Where is the Star on the tuition tax credit issue?

by David Safier

If you live in Tucson and you want to know about the tuition tax credit/STO mess, there's currently only one place to go: my posts on BfA. The Star has been AWOL when it comes to covering the story. I don't think it would take all the fingers on one hand to count up the articles the Star has published on the topic since the story broke. Meanwhile, the East Valley Trib put together a 5 part investigative series which has received national recognition and has added much more information since then with regular, in depth reporting. The Republic is giving the Trib a run for its money, doing its own research and adding to the discussion. The Guardian has chimed in as well.

The Star has only one excuse I can think of. All the hearings are in Phoenix, and since Daniel Scarpinato left, I don't think the paper has anyone on the ground at the Capitol. But live legislative goings on are broadcast on the web for anyone to see from the comfort of their computers. It's not as good as being there, but it's a hell of a lot better than nothing. And one local legislator, Nancy Young Wright (D, LD-26), sits on the tuition tax credit task force. I'm certain she would be happy to talk with a Star reporter about what's going on. I've even seen papers quote from other papers — "According to the East Valley Tribune, . . . etc." You can't build a whole story from that, but you can use it to add depth to your reporting.

Oh, and the people who broke the story and know more about the dirty details than anyone live right here in Tucson. I'm not talking about me, because I piggy-backed on their research. I'm talking about people like Jen Darland who did Herculean research to get the ball rolling, and others like Ann-Eve Pederson who have been working on the issue and testified, along with Darland, at the recent task force meeting. The Star should be crowing about our local heroes and gathering information from them.

This is a statewide story. It has as much to do with Tucson as it does with anywhere in the state. The Star has been derelict in its coverage. As a result, its readers have missed out on an important story.