The Washington Post education team has been doing some strong work lately, though a recent stumble is a vivid reminder that there are still some issues that need sorting out.
By Alexander Russo
When the Washington Post’s Stephen Smith officially left the education editor spot this past summer, the opportunity for improvement was clear.
The paper’s large, talented team of education reporters had been producing some strong stories, but nagging problems were unresolved.
In recent months, things seem have shifted and the paper’s K-12 coverage has been noticeably stronger, aided perhaps by the guidance of interim education editor Kathryn Tolbert and the pairing of two veteran journalists on national coverage.
However, flaws in a recent story — one of which required a correction — are a reminder that the Post still has some things to work out, especially when it comes to its coverage of national education issues and how it deploys its most senior education journalist, Valerie Strauss.
In recent months, the paper’s K-12 coverage has been noticeably stronger, aided perhaps by the guidance of interim education editor Kathryn Tolbert and the pairing of two veteran journalists on national coverage.
The Post’s K-12 team is large by today’s standards, and full of talented journalists.
The national reporters are Laura Meckler and Moriah Balingit; the local reporters include Perry Stein (DCPS), Hannah Natanson (Northern Virginia), and Donna St. George (Maryland suburbs). Veterans Valerie Strauss and Jay Mathews are its two main K-12 opinion journalists.
It was always clear that the team could do great work if given the right guidance and support.
However, Smith’s success heading the education was mixed, as his predecessors’ had been.
During the past few years, The Post missed the DC Public Schools graduation rate scandal that took place in its backyard, thanks in large part to turnover on the DCPS beat. It has long deployed Valerie Strauss in a way that is confusing to readers and, in my view, has cast a shadow over the work of her colleagues.
Meanwhile, a stream of talented journalists have come and gone from the team.
It was always clear that the team could do great work if given the right guidance and support. However, Smith’s success heading the education was mixed, as his predecessors’ had been.
In recent months, the team’s work — and Meckler’s efforts in particular — have been noticeable stronger, especially when it comes to coverage of the COVID pandemic.
In March, Meckler and health reporter Lena Sun reported the uncertainties surrounding school shutdowns as a COVID response.
In September, Meckler and Strauss were among the first to report that early efforts at bringing kids back into classrooms had not resulted in COVID outbreaks and shutdowns.
In October, they produced a survey of 50 large districts showing that in-person education was much more common than it may have seemed.
These and other stories show a strong independent streak, a willingness to question the dominant narrative, and a keen understanding of the role of the teachers’ unions.
Meckler isn’t the Post’s only K-12 education reporter whose work is shining in recent months.
Stein’s recent piece about kids learning to read via Zoom was widely admired for its careful attention to detail. Natanson has done a good job covering the summer protests and the fall reopening drama in Fairfax and other Virginia districts. Donna St. George’s ambitious look at a Pennsylvania district trying to keep kids in school despite rising infection levels was one of the best pieces of writing I’ve seen in recent months.
No surprise that four of the stories featured in my year-end roundup of great education journalism from 2020 come from the Post’s education team.
Four of the stories featured in my year-end roundup of great education journalism from 2020 come from the Post’s education team.
One reason for the improvements may be that, despite or because of the pandemic, the team has finally had time to gel. Big stories often bring out the best in reporters.
The guidance provided by longtime Post journalist Tolbert, who’s been serving as interim section editor for the past several months, may be another factor. Tolbert declined to be interviewed for this piece, but I’m told that she has agreed to take the job permanently and her assignment will be announced soon.
It’s also been exciting to see the Post deploying Strauss as a national reporter more often, though I’ve argued against the practice in the past. Strauss and Meckler recently debunked the notion that former NEA head Lily Eskelen Garcia was a front-runner for education secretary. Just this week, the duo were among the first to report that former Howard education school dean Leslie T. Fenwick and Connecticut’s Miguel Cardona may be the current front-runners.
Deploying Strauss as a reporter with Meckler has some obvious advantages. They’re both experienced journalists, and Strauss has a long history covering the beat. However, the strategy also brings with it some clear challenges, not the least of which is that it sometimes involves Strauss writing about stories where she’s previously expressed a clear opinion through her work as a columnist and blogger.
Above: Meckler (left), Tolbert (center), and Strauss (right).
Last week’s story about the education secretary nomination process is a good example. The piece included an obvious error in its depiction of Teach For America (TFA), which required a correction. It conveyed one of its source’s criticism of reform efforts without contextualizing her claims. And it failed to indicate that Strauss had previously published columns critical of TFA in her role as a columnist.
To rebuild trust with readers and reach even greater heights with its coverage, the education team will have to work even harder and smarter. What worked over the summer and fall may not work now that the Biden-Harris administration is about to begin.
PREVIOUSLY FROM THE GRADE
3 steps to fix the Washington Post’s education section
The Washington Post’s confusing/unfair “Answer Sheet” byline system
How the Washington Post missed the DC schools graduation rate scandal so badly, for so long
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Alexander Russo
Alexander Russo is founder and editor of The Grade, an award-winning effort to help improve media coverage of education issues. He’s also a Spencer Education Journalism Fellowship winner and a book author. You can reach him at @alexanderrusso.
Visit their website at: https://the-grade.org/
