Clarification

A letter to the editor from Gianine Crowell entitled “Encouraging Debate On Important Issues” appeared in last week’s edition of The Bee that criticized the newspaper for, among other things, its failure to include comments from Board of Education members on the creation of the new WECAN educational advocacy group. An editor’s note at the end of that letter noted that Board of Education Elaine McClure had been contacted before the story ran, but that she declined to comment on the record.

Ms McClure reported this week that she was willing to comment and did so in her conversation with John Voket, the writer of the story. “I did not decline to comment on the record when John Voket asked me about WECAN two weeks ago,” Ms McClure said. “I told him that the group was working hard and doing a lot of research.”

A misunderstanding between Ms McClure and Mr Voket over what was on and off the record in that conversation led to the misleading editor’s note.