Dive Brief:
- In a letter-from-the-editor, Time Magazine's Nancy Gibbs on Thursday addressed teacher outrage over a Nov. 3 cover line that read, "Rotten Apples: It’s Nearly Impossible to Fire a Bad Teacher. Some Tech Millionaires May Have Found a Way to Change."
- Gibbs states in the letter that Time admires admires the nation's teachers, expressing dismay that many may have heard the coverage "mischaracterized" before being able to read it.
- To promote an informed debate, Gibbs writes that the story will now be available for free on Time's website.
The cover that caused the controversy.
Dive Insight:
In addition to making the article available for free, Gibbs also reached out to union leaders, teachers, administrators, parents, and students for their viewpoints.
The initial controversy wasn't so much about the article itself as it was the cover line, which many took as an insult to educators — a point American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten made in a letter of her own last week. Gibbs also took to MSNBC's Morning Joe on Thursday to address the controversy:
