Title: Patrick's Image Tarnished, But Not Destroyed By Walsh Controversy

" This is -- WBUR news podcast for Wednesday April 1 a service of WBUR. Boston's NPR news station I'm Bob and -- coming up today. We look at a Boston program that tries to fight the high school drop out rate by boosting services for preschoolers. And first today Marian Walsh will be staying in the state senate after all. The west rocks -- democrats' decision capped -- controversy that's been growing since Governor Patrick nominated Walsh three weeks ago for a top job at the Massachusetts health and educational facilities authority. The position has been vacant for a dozen years. Critics described Patrick choice of Walsh as a patronage tighter as Walsh is a key Patrick supporter. But yesterday saying the outcry it was like a suit mommy Walsh backed out saying she won't seek the job Patrick said he had mixed feelings about Walsh's decision. And about the way he handled her higher."

" I wish he would handle -- different you know look it's tonight. It's been that painful. For me it's senator. Four area."

" For a whole lot of for more on how the governor might have handled the appointment differently. We turn this morning to Jeffrey berry -- political science professor at Tufts University Jeff good morning good to speak with you again. The governor said yesterday that he and his staff had been hammered over the Walsh appointment propagate gaffe was this for the governor."

" I think there's been a a transformational. Deval Patrick's. Image the first impression. A lot of of Scotland Deval Patrick. During the democratic primary in 2006 -- modest man overcome. Dire poverty as a child to become great -- little. That image of gentle caring empathetic person has turned into an image of out of touch and sometimes even arrogance. Politician needs to bring back people Deval Patrick. "

" So does that mean the image he tried to set forth in his campaign a couple of years ago over reformer. Is now gone."

" He. It. It is not compute does not come across as a reformer despite the eloquent and -- sincerity of his campaign of governor to be a different kind of Massachusetts governor. What philosophy has been anything but a reformer yet at the same time the state legislature. Totally controlled by its. Democratic colleagues have an interest -- and reforms and I'm not sure spending a lot of political couple. Pushing things -- going to get to the legislature made a lot of strategic sense. But now belatedly. Did he in the Democrats in the legislature pushing hard on pension reform bill and it looks like a surge peaceful legislation passed."

" But but how bad is the governor's credibility kind of shot with the voters right now with the with people who supported him during his campaign."

" I think his his judgment of how average voters citizens of modest incomes. Think about politics we saw a lot to be desired."

" Does that mean he's out of touch."

" Well I think he does he needs to start thinking like Joe The Plumber you know he and his advisers need to start asking themselves how will this play and revere. How this whole working class voters reacting an immediate and instinctive way."

" What's ahead for the governor you could look at the move to put the Marian -- controversy behind him as a signal that the governor is in fact going to run for governor and at the same time he faces a possible democratic challenger from within his own party the state treasury Timothy dale."

" Let's think of the first thing needs to do is to link himself more properly with the president's stimulus package -- return money is allocated tougher project he needs to be the one to make an announcement. They need to do it unappealing photo op with nurses construction workers or policemen stand behind him. And he needs to communicate to voters more than anything else that he is absolutely obsessed. Lift economic recovery is working 24 sevenths to help massachusetts' move forward."

" And at this point do you think K hill poses a big challenge form."

" Well he's. So likable true circling overhead and -- holt indicated that he's likely to run but he hasn't made up his mind whether to run as an independent or as a Democrat who runs the democratic defaced Deval Patrick and primary. And the voters and democratic primaries are disproportionately liberals so that papers Patrick. Now can run as an independent his chances independently and not Republicans nominate. A viable candidate if they don't put him viable candidate take its -- helicopters shot kept Patrick out in a much better chance of winning. With a wealth funded Republican in the racists come to a three person body broken and no betting line on what happens on that quite yet."

" If Mary thanks a lot. Thank you Jeffrey berry is a professor of political science at Tufts University. The trouble facing newspapers across the country has had Boston's too big dailies. In the last week the Boston Globe has cut its newsroom by fifteen jobs. The Boston Herald gave pink slips to 24 workers mostly on the business side of the paper. The problem is even more acute across the nation with major dailies in Seattle and Denver for instance moving online or folding altogether. WBUR. His senior media analyst John Carroll says the slow motion demise of newspapers. As triggered the usual responses from the media."

" In a way -- lucky in the newspaper department here in Boston the local dailies are merely paper shredding as the Boston Herald Whittle away at itself and the Boston Globe completes its umpteenth by out of new staffers. Elsewhere papers are folding like origami from Seattle to Denver to Cincinnati to who knows what -- next. The good news is that several cottage industries have sprung up in the midst of the current newspaper pulpit. The first growth area is chin stroking through the ages -- American newspapers. For starters inspector Thomas Jefferson classic about his preferring newspapers without government to government without newspapers. Then there's the colonial era newspaper -- that a free press maintains the majesty of the people. And who can forget yellow journalism mogul Joseph Pulitzer is immortal our republic and it's press will rise or fall together. Nowadays it's falling more often than not. The second growth industry spawned by the decline of newspapers in his chin stroking solutions for the newspaper crisis. For instance. Solution number one micro payments whereby readers pony up a few cents for one article or a few bucks for one week up access to the paper's online version. Solution number two macro payments one school of thought says the Boston Globe for instance should Jack up the cost of its print edition from 75 cents to two dollars for the daily. And from 2525. Dollars on Sunday. Circulation might drop the thinking goes but revenues could rise. And their solution number three. In which the newspaper start charging for its online edition of course that's also are recipe for web aside when the online edition turns into ghost town. Solution number four or is your guess is as good as mine. Which brings us to yet another growth industry on the back of dying -- chin stroking about newspapers and democracy. One historian says that losing newspapers will change our political system and not for the better. A recent Princeton study seems to back that up. Finding that after the Cincinnati post expired few locals voted and you're local candidates challenged incumbent. But slate dot com media critic Jack -- will have none of that. I can imagine Schaeffer writes citizens acquiring sufficient information to vote or poke their legislators with a pitchfork. Even if all the newspapers in the country fell into a bottomless recycling and tomorrow. Add to that a Pew Research Center poll in which a majority of Americans apparently don't care whether their local newspaper lives or dies. One more life and death issue for the newspaper business to worry about."

" John Carroll is senior media analyst for WBUR. And a mass communication professor at Boston University. As education officials in Massachusetts look for ways to lower the State's dropout rate. They're mainly looking at programs in schools systems. But a city agency in Boston is also a player. It's reaching out to low income parents in public housing projects to show them how they can prepare children for success long before the kids and -- school. In this installment of our project drop out series WBUR. Sasha -- pays a visit to Boston's smart from the start program."

" This weekly play group -- the Charles town community center looks and sounds like a typical toddler get together. There's music and readings and toys and laughter and yes also some -- but ask Clinton consent tent with this group has done for her three year old son Adrian and her eyes light up. She says in the year so he's been coming here his temper has improved he listens better and he's learned a lot. In. Is. A diet Santana also says while Adrian used to speak mostly only her native language he's quickly become bilingual. Signing speaking and is anything if Santana and her son wouldn't have been here if the city's smart from the start program hadn't helped coax them to come. Along with other low income families from public housing projects in Charlestown -- and -- Some of these things were so isolated they rarely left their -- Sent ten cents before she joined this plea group she mostly kept Adrian at home. That didn't give him much exposure to English or to new places and new ideas. And program director Sherry Kraft says those early years offer prime learning to -- Families of these shows and I'm not yeah. So you make the -- since that time Caspian is a work. And a lot of time. In the economy and -- stimulus. -- of the king center found for. Yeah Kraft says many low income parents have little time or energy to focus on the kids' education. And she says almost 80% of the families who joined smart from the start hadn't known that talking two decades could increase the language skills. So the program make sure parents know their children are born in Britain tomorrow."

" We have one parent you have what ultimately sixteen year old life instead of just little little baby I was just happy when she looks good. I would put it this week and I look out. You know I've seen night when you won't talking pro Nazi and just yeah I can not believe that change that I've seen --"

" Since -- from the start began last. More than 10% of the famous it's reached have signed up for programs like English classes career planning and money management. The idea is that educated parents raise educated children. So the program's goal is universal school readiness that will help all kids become high school graduates. -- Sherman who helped create -- from the start. Once the city's poorest families to realize they're kids can blossom without fancy schools or expensive toys you what he's seeing and talked to meet meet me in any language -- don't know English and you have a home. Is a book in Chinese. That helps me learn and that helps my brain about getting ready for school and then I'm gonna succeed in school want to get there and then I'm gonna want to stay in school it's really that simple. In Sherman City -- office there's a poster that reads home is a child's first school. It's meant to encourage parents to treat their homes as classrooms by doing things like explaining measurements when they're cooking or talking about addresses when the mail arrives. Smart from the start also trains parents to point out shapes and colors and new words I think about it if you're a kid. Can you get to kindergarten and you're learning to read and write words you've never heard. That can -- as difficult as -- for an -- smart for the start even tries to help kids still in the womb. It does that by making sure pregnant women know where their local libraries health centers and other community resources are so the have a ready support network -- their babies are born. So far the program has helped a 160 families including almost 300 children. It costs about 700000 dollars a year. 500000 of that comes from the united way and several private foundations again -- Sherman who we're trying to do in -- and invest early in kids and continued that investment. To the school age years and then all of our kids could graduate if we do this right. Back at the Charles town -- DC Santana says she is now think in a person professor son's teacher and her home as his classroom."

" NA and blitzed London house until then I'll a lot of built an -- Palin. He's been watching and paying gig and yeah. And they got a pancake picked up and expanding. The accident it."

" Smart from the start hopes that kind of parenting will help Santana son and other kids in the program thriving school all the way through high school. For WBUR. I'm Sasha -- yeah."

" Our project -- series continues Friday with the success story of -- high school and high crime high poverty section of Worcester. Listen to other stories in our series visit our website project -- auto."

" Project dropout is a collaboration between WBUR and WGBH TV with support from the Boston foundation."

" Okay."

" This podcast is a free service of WBUR Boston to make a contribution to support the news go to our website wbur.org."