So in all this, Kimberly Houghton who is the Union Leader reporter that wrote about this “Rich Girard smear-a-like political stunt” (the Conservative Manchester School Board member earlier accused of “identifying” a student even as GraniteGrok outed her as having outed herself on Manchester Ink in a public Op-Ed) against Nashua School Board Doris Hohensee. Why is it that a formerly Conservative paper has not only left the conservative reservation but is now seemingly wanting to be part and parcel of the Liberal Clown Car that is the “the NH Media”?
Any reservations as to the innocence of Doris (yes, I do know her personally) was ignored by Houghton – I call your attention to her words AND the timing laid out in her article. First, the headline:
Nashua school officials say board member should resign after identifying student
Which, pretty much, casts Doris into a guilty light right from the get-go. Houghton is trying to amplify the notion that Hohensee’s guilt is already fait d’acommpli. It calls for the action and it, on purpose, says that Doris identified a student which is against the Law. The problem is – she didn’t. Kimberly Houghton even SAYS that – but continues what we have come to know is the Progressive Narrative – don’t agree with us? We will find a way to silence you. Personal destruction isn’t a feature – it’s the main point. And, IMHO, Houghton falls into it – willingly. Heck, did we just write about this mantra concerning Peterborough and Brentwood? So why is now Kimberly Houghton trying to help that silencing effort in Nashua?
Look at Kimberly Houghton’s wording which ignores the simple “chicken or egg” timing. Here’s the operative question: which came first – the student willingly and openly speaking out voluntarily to the old dead tree media and social media and thereby “identifying” herself – or did Doris out her first? THAT is the crux of this whole matter – and Kimberly Houghton willing is playing into the Narrative of a School Board that hates Conservatives.
Timing point #1:
The student, Paula Durant, spoke willingly this week with the New Hampshire Union Leader about her views against the air rifle marksmanship course approved at the Nashua High School North campus for the Nashua Air Force Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps.
Timing point #2:
She also posted on her personal Facebook page that the course should be held off campus, and urged people to attend Monday’s Board of Education meeting to share their concerns.
Timing point #3:
Hohensee identified the student on social media when she shared Durant’s Facebook post, which had also been shared by at least one other Nashua resident, while responding to a local blogger’s article about the matter.
Let’s see if I have this straight:
- Kimberly Houghton says that Paula Durant (is now Houghton in trouble with FERPA for having used the student’s name – Paula Durant – as well? Yeah, /sarc) spoke willingly with a public media outlet. So by association, will the Union Leader be held accountable for “identifying” a student? Of course not – the student self-identified the moment she started to speak with a reporter. The Union Leader is a very PUBLIC outlet for, perhaps, a few hundred thousand readers here in NH
- Paula Durant posted her opinion on Facebook – a very PUBLIC outlet. Again, she self-identified herself to all 2.5 billion users of Facebook worldwide.
So Kimberly Houghton, where is your “journalistic objectiveness” why did you then use the legal term “identified“, the legal trigger for FERPA, when all Hohensee did was to do a regular action on Facebook – linked to Paula Durant’s post. After all, isn’t that the whole purpose of Facebook? To share information, events, and actions? Isn’t an opinion “information”?
You KNEW when you keyboarded your article that in order to link to someone’s post, that someone had to have already put their name out into the Public Square as Paula Durant did, didn’t you, Kimberly Houghton? That Paula Durant had already started the process? Your own article lays out the timeline! So why did you try to make something seem what it is not?
So Kimberly Houghton KNEW that Doris Hohensee didn’t use ANY information (or “record”) from the Nashua School District in “identifying” Paula Durant, didn’t she? Which Kimberly Houghton knew would trigger a FERPA claim by a Board that couldn’t contain themselves in ridding themselves of someone they couldn’t stand, didn’t she? Instead, Kimberly Houghton went “low” and is trying to conflate a FERPA actionable item, punishable by Law, to a simply linking in a public forum to something that Paula Durant had written – and by doing so, outed herself as a partisan instead of an “objective” journalist?
So, here is another case where the bias of a reporter is well played out. Instead of “comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable”, Kimberly Houghton has made herself part and parcel of the comfortable – and powerful” Progressive Nashua School Board (in which “Progressive” is anything but regressive). How’s that Crony Journalism gonna work out for the rest of us, eh Kimberly? How’s that “providing cover” gonna work out, eh?
Here’s the entire article – with ONE most important point:
Nashua school officials say board member should resign after identifying student
By KIMBERLY HOUGHTON Union Leader Correspondent
May 10, 2019 Updated 11 hrs agoNASHUA — School officials are seeking the resignation of school board member Doris Hohensee after she publicly identified a student opposed to the recently approved marksmanship course, which ultimately resulted in harassment and backlash against the student.
The student, Paula Durant, spoke willingly this week with the New Hampshire Union Leader about her views against the air rifle marksmanship course approved at the Nashua High School North campus for the Nashua Air Force Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps.
She also posted on her personal Facebook page that the course should be held off campus, and urged people to attend Monday’s Board of Education meeting to share their concerns.
Hohensee identified the student on social media when she shared Durant’s Facebook post, which had also been shared by at least one other Nashua resident, while responding to a local blogger’s article about the matter.According to a release from the school district, Hohensee also wrote a comment “agreeing with another user’s aforementioned statement that the student deserved ‘heavy backlash’ for her post.”
“Mrs. Hohensee’s public statements on social media, Facebook, this past weekend violated the requirements of the city charter by placing the student in danger. The student and (her) family have been in contact with Nashua Police Department officers as a result of the concerning comments posted on the students’ page after being encouraged to do so by Ms. Hohensee,” states the release.
After Hohensee identified the student on social media, school officials claim numerous people visited the girl’s Facebook page, which was not private at the time, and made derogatory comments toward the student.
“…not private at the time“. There is the whole and entire linchpin. So just like the Manchester student in the Rich Girard case, the student CHOSE to make their opinion public to the world. ANY effort in trying to cast guilt isn’t just journalistic malpractice but is truly the mark of a journalist hack. Thanks for letting us all know that even under the cover of reporting “news”, Kimberly Houghton wants people to believe that Hohensee is guilty – even as her own words prove her assertion to be dead wrong.
“I didn’t even target her. I didn’t throw stones or recommend anything,” Hohensee said on Friday “I just told them to do the research.”
Hohensee said she has no intention of resigning.
Hohensee also posted a quote from Lothrop Stoddard, an avowed anti-Semite who promoted eugenics and whose book was considered training materials for the Nazi regime, according to the release, adding she referenced the book, “Revolt Against Civilization: The Menace of the Under-Man” to justify a larger point about social and emotional learning.
“This type of reckless and public behavior created a concerning climate for both students and faculty and has no place in a school climate for both students and faculty, and has no place in a school district,” says the release. “ … We condemn this behavior in the strongest terms. This is unacceptable and disqualifying. Consequently, President (Heather) Raymond has requested Ms. Hohensee to resign immediately from the Nashua Board of Education and to issue an apology to the student and their families.”
Oh yeah – and given the lack of transparency, I hope Doris not only sues the Nashua School Board for Big Bucks, I hope she personally sues this self-important Heather Raymond at the same time.
Hohensee acknowledged that she did post something on socialism, but said she is not racist.
“I feel like they just want me contrite without cause,” she said of the majority of board members. “It is a game with them. It is board politics and I think it is clear the lines have been drawn.”
She went on to say, “I don’t feel I owe the student an apology. She put out a post and it was shared publicly. I saw it and I shared it with other people that I thought would be interested. I didn’t facilitate the conversation or make any recommendations.”Hohensee said it is unfortunate that derogatory comments were made toward the student, adding no one — including herself — wanted that to take place.
Durant told the New Hampshire Union Leader that she took down her Facebook post because of the many negative comments. However, she said she is still optimistic that school board members will reverse their decision and instead have the marksmanship course held off campus, which she believes is a good compromise.
“I think the first priority of the school should be making sure students feel safe,” she said, adding many students feel uncomfortable about having air rifles on school grounds.
Her friend, Hannah Farley, agreed. She said that while they respect the JROTC program, they believe the marksmanship course, on campus, would normalize the appearance of guns on school grounds.An online petition has been created by Susan Nelson urging the school board to require that the course be held off campus. It has garnered more than 200 signatures.
Raymond, Superintendent Jahmal Mosley, members of the Board of Education and the Nashua Teachers’ Union are all calling for Hohensee’s resignation.“As educators, we have a responsibility to educate our students on all points of an issue, teach them to debate the issue fairly and respect all points of view,” the NTU said in a statement. “The student in this case wrote a very well-written argument from her perspective to enter the debate. We commend this student for bringing forward her point-of-view in an articulate manner, and entering the debate in a professional manner.”
Hohensee questioned when the Board of Education met to vote on its recommendation to seek her resignation.
“We were not called to vote. How did they get a quorum to get this declaration? They are conducting public business in private,” she said.
NashuaNews@unionleader.com
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