News interest has been building during the week of January 3, 2006, over apparent fraud by Dan Tollett of the Tennessee School Boards Association. The most ironic, or humorous, response by the Tennessean editor came in the Sunday page of January 8.
Their [school board's] constituents now are left to hope that TSBA members are far more diligent with the tax money used to run their local schools than they've been with the tax money used to fund TSBA.The concluding sentence points the finger at school board members. It should also be acknowledged that news media--including print media--ignores vital financial reports and processes because they are boring. This process of skipping investigation for the shortcut of dueling quotes makes public officials believe they are bulletproof.
With the Metropolitan Nashville school board, Pedro Garcia, and the Tennessean as exhibits A, B, and C, the mere "hope" that local tax money is better spent is a poor substitute for real journalistic, financial, and educational ethics.