The Greenwich Time And The Greenwich Board Of Education Continue Thier War Of Words
The Third Rate Greenwich Time Cub Reporter Colin " BOE Brown Nose " Gustafson Has Inadvertently Started A Huge War Between Hearst Newspapers And The Greenwich Board Of Education.
First There Was This ....
Then There Was This .....
When Greenwich Time Editor David McCumber Ignored Superintendent Of Greenwich Public Schools Press Release, Sidney Freund Pushed The Matter One More Step Further By Writing A Letter To The Editor.
This Really Pissed Of Hearst Senoir Vice President Lincoln Millstein Who Shot Back With This Blog Post .....
Now Greenwich BOE Members Are Getting Involved In The Combat .....
Slanted coverage
To the editor:
It was with confusion and anger that I read the Feb. 12 headline "Freund gives town low marks" followed by Mr. Millstein's blog criticizing Superintendent Freund's clarification.
For those not familiar with the Board of Education's budget presentation to the BET, it would appear that Dr. Freund was broadly critical of our town. Nothing could be further from the truth. From day one, he embraced our community, worked tirelessly to improve our schools and created strong relationships with all stakeholders. While there are normal areas of disagreement between the BET and BOE during the budget process, the relationship between them is strong and effective, reflective of the appropriate tension between serving the needs of our children and controlling our finances.
During the meeting there were no comments that came close to the blanket criticism that your headline implies. Dr. Freund and school board Chairman Steve Anderson presented the budget and Dr. Freund repeatedly pointed out his job, and indeed his passion, is advocating for our children.
In regards to a specific issue, he responded truthfully that our buildings are not up to standard. This did not disparage the town or the incredible support seen in recent investments in new schools. It does mean there has been under-investment in maintenance in prior years; not very controversial, but your paper decided not to report the news; it chose to "create" the news. It implied controversy where none existed.
As the main source of information for many in our community, this is extremely troubling. Your newspaper can dictate outcomes through slanted and distorted reporting, a path towards which you seem to veer. It would be refreshing to see you re-look at your reporting and headline and through some introspection re-assess its accuracy and objectiveness. I doubt it will happen and I am sure that this request will elicit nothing more than Mr. Millstein's normal non-constructive cynicism and disparagement. Easier to tear down than to build up should be the title of his blog. The elected officials (mainly volunteers) serving our town understand that debate is an expected and key part of any functioning democracy; truthful and objective reporting is no less a critical component.
I am submitting this letter as a private citizen and not as a representative of the Board of Education (on which I proudly serve).
Michael C. Bodson
Cos Cob
To the editor:
It was with confusion and anger that I read the Feb. 12 headline "Freund gives town low marks" followed by Mr. Millstein's blog criticizing Superintendent Freund's clarification.
For those not familiar with the Board of Education's budget presentation to the BET, it would appear that Dr. Freund was broadly critical of our town. Nothing could be further from the truth. From day one, he embraced our community, worked tirelessly to improve our schools and created strong relationships with all stakeholders. While there are normal areas of disagreement between the BET and BOE during the budget process, the relationship between them is strong and effective, reflective of the appropriate tension between serving the needs of our children and controlling our finances.
During the meeting there were no comments that came close to the blanket criticism that your headline implies. Dr. Freund and school board Chairman Steve Anderson presented the budget and Dr. Freund repeatedly pointed out his job, and indeed his passion, is advocating for our children.
In regards to a specific issue, he responded truthfully that our buildings are not up to standard. This did not disparage the town or the incredible support seen in recent investments in new schools. It does mean there has been under-investment in maintenance in prior years; not very controversial, but your paper decided not to report the news; it chose to "create" the news. It implied controversy where none existed.
As the main source of information for many in our community, this is extremely troubling. Your newspaper can dictate outcomes through slanted and distorted reporting, a path towards which you seem to veer. It would be refreshing to see you re-look at your reporting and headline and through some introspection re-assess its accuracy and objectiveness. I doubt it will happen and I am sure that this request will elicit nothing more than Mr. Millstein's normal non-constructive cynicism and disparagement. Easier to tear down than to build up should be the title of his blog. The elected officials (mainly volunteers) serving our town understand that debate is an expected and key part of any functioning democracy; truthful and objective reporting is no less a critical component.
I am submitting this letter as a private citizen and not as a representative of the Board of Education (on which I proudly serve).
Michael C. Bodson
Cos Cob
Stand Back
Lincoln Millstein Is About To Return Fire
Lincoln's Log - Hearst Newspaper VP Lincoln Millstein
School board member slams coverage of meeting he did not even attend
Greenwich BOE member Michael Bodson’s hissy fit in the Greenwich Time on Tuesday would lead one to believe that Bodson had a front row seat during he recent BET meeting at which School Supt. Sid Freund told the finance board, “I don’t think you’ve done a good job improving and maintaining your facilities (based) on what I’ve seen in other districts a lot less affluent.”
In fact Bodson wasn’t even there, as verified by several who attended the meeting on Feb. 11.
Yet, he was able to state with such clarity that “during the meeting there were no comments that came close to the blanket criticism that your headline implies.” The headline was, “Freund gives town low marks on schools upkeep.”
Now, it’s perfectly understandable that Bodson and other long-time members of the BOE would be put on the defensive given all that which has happened to the schools under their watch the last four or five years – the embarrassing delays of the Ham Ave School construction, the “lost years” under Betty Sternberg, the declining performance on standardized testing, etc …
Still, that’s no reason to misrepresent – or worse, prevaricate. Bodson clearly gave the impression in his letter that he was witness to the entire discussion between Freund and the BET. Fact was he was not.
Let me repeat what Freund said according to the beat reporter of the Greenwich Time who covered the meeting in person:
“I DON’T THINK YOU’VE DONE A GOOD JOB IMPROVING OR MAINTAINING YOUR FACILITIIES ….”
That, Michael Bodson, is what Sid Freund actually said, no matter how much spin you and other revisionist board members would like to imagine (or hope) was said.
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