Changes

Participants in SPN's predecessor organization, known as the Madison Group for its meetings at the ultra-luxurious Madison Hotel in Washington, D.C. (see [[SPN Founders, History, and Staff]] for more), "were active in assisting new state-based think tanks with public relations plans designed to garner press clippings from right-wing publications, along with state, local, and national newspapers and magazines. Despite corporate and conservative foundation support and a conservative agenda, these state-based think tanks were trained by the Madison Group to speak to the media and politicians in populist terms like 'Welfare Reform,' 'Empowerment of the Poor,' 'School Choice,' and now of course 'Paycheck Protection,'" according to a report.<ref>National Education Association, [http://web.archive.org/web/20020211103902/http://www.nea.org/publiced/paycheck/ The Real Story Behind 'Paycheck Protection': The Hidden Link Between Anti-Worker and Anti-Public Education Initiatives: An Anatomy of the Far Right, Chapter 4: "The State-Based Assault: The State Policy Network]," organizational report, 1998.</ref>{{#evp:youtube|_eRkDMZvhl4|Grant Bosse Testimony on HB 630-FN|left|210310}}Today, SPN think tanks are hooking up with right-wing media outlets to push out their message. The [[Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity]] is a national non-profit organization that was created to fill a void in state capitol reporting caused by the loss of a third of the nation’s journalism jobs since 1992. The Franklin Center funds state news websites and wire services in more than 40 states. Despite their non-partisan description, many of these “news” websites have received criticism for their conservative bias. A majority (37) of SPN think tanks host Franklin “reporters” or publish a Franklin-affiliated publication, according to a review by CMD.