CBS Didnt Do Homework on Teachers Gas Price Story

Ken Shepherd

May 5, 2006 - 2:00pm

     Continuing her Eye on the Road series, CBSs Sharyn Alfonsi showcased a Washington, D.C.-area teacher who she says cant afford her commute due to rising gas prices.

     But Alfonsi didnt do her homework. Her featured teacher is a retired Navy lawyer who said in 2003 that she could only afford working as a Catholic school teacher because of her military pension. What Alfonsi didnt say was that teacher Bonnie McGann made a conscious choice to earn less so she could give back to her church.

     This was the area where I could afford a home, McGann informed Alfonsis viewers on the May 4 Evening News. The CBS correspondent added that McGanns problem was the cost of the commute. Its a burden for me now. Its something that I am unable to absorb, McGann added.

     The picture Alfonsi painted was incomplete. McGann is a retired Navy Judge Advocate who says she went into teaching in Catholic schools for the emotional and spiritual reward of the experience. She could find higher pay in a law career or public school teaching. McGann, an alumna of Rowan University [1] also holds a JD from from Cal Western, and a Masters of Education [2]from Marymount University.

     I was only able to consider teaching in Catholic schools because I had a military retirement income, McGann, then the incoming principal at a Winchester, Va. Catholic school, was quoted in the December 2003 MUToday, a Marymount University publication in December 2003. MUToday [3]added that even coupling her teachers salary with her retirement pay did not match her Navy income but that McGann cited a desire to give back to the Church and felt that the Holy Spirit guided her into teaching rather than a civilian law practice.

     While Alfonsi claimed in her report that McGann cant afford $1,000 more per year in gas costs, in 2003 the then-school principal donated $1,600 to 2004 perennial third-party presidential candidate Lyndon LaRouche in two-month time span in 2003, according to CampaignMoney.com [4].

Publication: News [5]

Division: MRC Business [6]

Tags: Employment [7], jobs [8], softdrink [9], Soda [10], Labor [11], Union [12], WallStreetJournal [13], AlGore [14], CurrentTV [15], Smoking [16], economy [17], GasHysteria [18], Drugs [19], autism [20], HousingBubble [21], oil [22], gas [23], RecordPrice [24], Kyoto [25], FannieMae [26], Advisors [27], USAToday [28], NewYorkTimes [29], WashingtonPost [30], CSPI [31], consumerconfidence [32], Insourcing [33], outsourcing [34], China [35], LouDobbs [36], TradeSecrets [37], Live8 [38], BalanceSheet [39], SupersizedBias [40], MediaMalpractice [41], personalaccounts [42], GasPrices [43], biasedaccounts [44], MorganSpurlock [45], obesity [46], Mercury [47], Tax&Spin [48], FairTax [49], Wal-Mart [50], FX [51], DiscoveryChannel [52], NBC [53], abc [54], cbs [55], SocialSecurity [56], runawaylitigation [57], GlobalWarming [58], ClimateChange [59], CharlesSimpson [60], AmyMenefee [61], DanGainor [62], HermanCain [63], news [64], MediaRealityCheck [65], FreeMarket [66], videos [67], taxes [68], newsbias [69], networknews [70], mediawatchdog [71], lbrentbozell [72], bozell [73], BrentBozell [74], LiberalBias [75], MediaResearchCenter [76], Cyberalert [77], MediaBias [78], bias [79], media [80], conservative [81], BusinessandMediaInstitute [82]

Links:
[1] http://rowanmagazine.com/classnotes/70s/
[2] http://www.marymount.edu/news/mutoday/issue59/alumnotes.html
[3] http://www.marymount.edu/news/mutoday/issue59/answercall.html
[4] http://www.campaignmoney.com/political/contributions/virginia_ashburn_20147.asp?cycle=04
[5] http://archive2.mrc.org/news
[6] http://archive2.mrc.org/division/mrc-business
[7] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/employment
[8] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/jobs
[9] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/softdrink
[10] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/soda
[11] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/labor
[12] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/union
[13] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/wallstreetjournal
[14] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/algore-0
[15] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/currenttv
[16] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/smoking
[17] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/economy
[18] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/gashysteria
[19] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/drugs
[20] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/autism
[21] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/housingbubble
[22] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/oil
[23] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/gas
[24] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/recordprice
[25] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/kyoto
[26] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/fanniemae
[27] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/advisors
[28] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/usatoday
[29] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/newyorktimes
[30] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/washingtonpost
[31] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/cspi
[32] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/consumerconfidence-0
[33] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/insourcing
[34] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/outsourcing
[35] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/china
[36] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/loudobbs
[37] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/tradesecrets
[38] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/live8
[39] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/balancesheet
[40] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/supersizedbias
[41] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/mediamalpractice
[42] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/personalaccounts
[43] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/gasprices
[44] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/biasedaccounts
[45] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/morganspurlock
[46] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/obesity
[47] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/mercury
[48] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/taxspin
[49] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/fairtax
[50] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/wal-mart
[51] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/fx
[52] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/discoverychannel
[53] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/nbc
[54] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/abc
[55] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/cbs
[56] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/socialsecurity
[57] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/runawaylitigation
[58] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/globalwarming
[59] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/climatechange
[60] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/charlessimpson
[61] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/amymenefee
[62] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/dangainor
[63] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/hermancain
[64] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/news
[65] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/mediarealitycheck
[66] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/freemarket
[67] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/videos
[68] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/taxes
[69] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/newsbias
[70] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/networknews
[71] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/mediawatchdog
[72] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/lbrentbozell-0
[73] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/bozell
[74] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/brentbozell
[75] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/liberalbias-0
[76] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/mediaresearchcenter
[77] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/cyberalert
[78] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/mediabias
[79] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/bias
[80] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/media
[81] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/conservative
[82] http://archive2.mrc.org/tags/businessandmediainstitute-0
[83] http://www.tellthetruth2012.org