“Has become,” not “is.” Bill Clinton had a problem with that, too. : ) And, *not* always, but “all too often,” stories are written in such a way as to persuade. Writing a story in a way that will engage the reader implies knowing who that reader (customer) is and what will, in fact, engage them. If the writer is going to engage the reader, they must do more than strictly inform.

In “Education Policy, Academic Research, and Public Opinion,” by William G. Howell (When Research Matters, How Scholarship Influences Education Policy, Edited by Frederick M. Hess, Harvard Education Press, 2008), Howell states, “A number of scholars have shown that citizens who know less about a chosen policy are especially susceptible to persuasion.” Depending on the journalists own bias, “…journalists all too often conjure up controversy where it does not exist, focus on the personalities of the parties involved, look to vested interest groups for commentary, and give equal time and attention to two sides of an issue even when the preponderance of evidence suggests that only one is right.” [emphasis mine] Off the top of my head I can think of an example of a journalist seeking out a teacher who still insists on using the “Literacy Based” (whole word) reading instruction when it has been thoroughly discredited, as part of an article on the fallout from the Reading First scandal. Is the average, uninformed citizen going to be able to see beyond the obvious bias in that article?
Education is the most values-driven of enterprises. (See above, pg. 39) What the consumers of education research want is confirmation of their baseline values. Even when faced with empirical data contradicting their beliefs, the percentage of people willing to change their baseline beliefs is surprisingly low. (See above, Pg. 142) The job of journalist has become more than to inform; it all too often includes persuasion.
Still, if there was not an interest in education writing, why would there be an Education Writers Association? And if they are not writing about what we would hope they would write about, perhaps it is our duty to bring some piece of research to their attention as I did just today regarding the on-going debate about whether home-schooling parents should be required to be credentialed.
Yes, the challenges facing the modern-day education reporter is an opportunity for the education bloggers, but we need to make sure that we don’t end up just talking to each other.