Remember conservative African-American TV and radio commentator Armstrong Williams? He’s the guy who was exposed for being paid $241,000 to help promote President George W. Bush’s No Child Left Behind law on the air.
The only problem was that he failed to disclose his contractual arrangement with the Bush administration, while pretending to be an independent advocate for the law. He was criticized as unethical, and his syndicated column and TV shows were cancelled as a result.
It’s called being a media prostitute or a “rent-a-host.” That’s because media creates influence, and for the journalists who write or broadcast their “opinions” it creates the opportunity for that influence to be monetized or translated into big bucks.
And when this happens, it blurs the line between objective journalism, public relations, profiteering and prostituting the accurate and unbiased dissemination of public information.
It appears that East St. Louis has its own version of “brother Armstrong” in the guise of Lee A. Coleman II. In 2005, Coleman signed a 15-year contract with the City to operate ESL’s public-access cable TV station. Coleman also happens to “moonlight” for the Illinois Department of Transportation as a contract compliance officer.
In addition, Coleman also hosts his own cable show, Talk of the City, which features politicians and local figures with a call-in format. In the past year, however, Coleman’s show has paraded an inordinate number of ESL School Board officials and staff.
What most people don’t know is that while boasting to be a fair and objective journalist, Coleman and his company (LAC and Associates, LLC) entered into a lucrative 2-year consulting agreement (in May 2008), with ESL School District 189, to provide public relations “consulting services” for the school district, in the amount of $100,000 per year, through June 30, 2010.
Cancelled checks and invoices support Coleman’s “media” venture and profiteering in the name of “journalism.”
When I perused Mr. Coleman’s website it turns out that his so-called “associates” consist of his wife, two daughters and his son. Yet, in watching Mr. Coleman’s show I’ve yet to hear him reveal that he and his family are profiteering from ESL Schools and that his show is in fact a paid advertisement, NOT journalism.
And if the barely legible East St. Louis School District #189 sign (in the far background of his TV set) is supposed to satisfy the requirement of full disclosure, then Coleman fails miserably in accomplishing that goal.
In fact, the FCC clearly states that “when money or other consideration for the airing of program material has been received … the station must broadcast full disclosure of that fact at the time of the airing of the material, and identify who provided or promised to provide the consideration.” It would appear that Mr. Coleman has been remiss.
Besides the obvious appearance of being a shill, Coleman and family shouldn’t even have a contract, given the fact that ESL Schools already employs a public relations person, Douglas Clark, who makes in excess of $60,000 per-year.
What’s even worse is that the viewers who actually watch Coleman’s obscure cable show may operate under the illusion that Coleman is actually disseminating unbiased information, versus granting “sweetheart interviews” and an orchestrated public relations display.
But you can’t challenge the superintendent of ESL schools when you have a contract which stipulates that you report to her as a consultant. It’s an insult to Coleman’s viewers and Coleman should be exposed and held accountable.
It also begs the question of who else is unethically and covertly being pimped (and sponsored) by ESL Public Schools, when those very same public funds should be directed toward educating the students of ESL.
Email: jtingram_1960@yahoo.com.