Karen Ryan, reporting for duty

Published October 11, 2004 8:55PM (EDT)

Remember "Karen Ryan"? She was the fake reporter used in Bush administration promotional videos to advertise the Medicare law -- videos that were deemed propaganda and an inappropriate use of government money by the GAO. Now "Karen" is "reporting" for the education department.

"The video includes a news story that features Education Secretary Rod Paige and promotes tutoring now offered under law. The story ends with the voice of a woman saying, 'In Washington, I'm Karen Ryan reporting.' It does not identify the government as the source of the report. It also fails to make clear the person purporting to be a reporter was someone hired for the promotional video."


By Geraldine Sealey

Geraldine Sealey is senior news editor at Salon.com.

MORE FROM Geraldine Sealey


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