{"id":607,"date":"2009-09-02T02:28:51","date_gmt":"2009-09-02T07:28:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stager.tv\/?p=607"},"modified":"2020-07-25T18:59:51","modified_gmt":"2020-07-25T23:59:51","slug":"shocked-shocked-reading-first-plagued-by-corporate-welfare-cronyism-and-demonization","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stager.tv\/?p=607","title":{"rendered":"Shocked! Shocked! Reading First Plagued by Corporate Welfare, Cronyism and Demonization"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>Originally published on Wednesday, October 04, 2006 in The Pulse: Education&#8217;s Place for Debate<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Aside from reducing teachers to script-reading robots  \t\tand reading to an onerous task, the Federal government&#8217;s controversial $4.8  \t\tbillion Reading First program has been accused of numerous improprieties by the  \t\tInspector General of the Department of Education. The scathing report, <em><a href=\"http:\/\/www.ed.gov\/about\/offices\/list\/oig\/aireports\/i13f0017.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"> The Reading First Program\u2019s Grant Application Process \u2013 Final  \t\t\t\tInspection Report<\/a><\/em>, was released on Friday (June 22), employing  \t\ta common tactic used in the hopes that bad news will escape the public\u2019s  \t\tattention over the weekend. This is a news story that should not be ignored.<\/p>\n<p> Back in October 2004 I <a href=\"http:\/\/www.stager.org\/articles\/october2004.html\" target=\"new\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"> wrote<\/a> that  \t\tthere was something fishy about McGraw-Hill\u2019s <em>Direct Instruction\/Reading  \t\t\tMastery<\/em> program and the administration\u2019s fondness for it. The  \t\tDirector General&#8217;s report details how the Department of Education and Reading  \t\tFirst administrators used their influence to benefit the commercial product, <em>Direct  \t\t\tInstruction. <\/em>According to the New York Times, one of the whistle  \t\tblowers leading to this investigation was Robert Slavin, the creator and  \t\tdirector of <em>Success for All<\/em>, a product many educators find quite  \t\tsimilar to <em>Direct Instruction. <\/em>Slavin told the New York Times,  \t\t\u201cThe department has said at least 10,000 times that they had no favored  \t\treading programs, and this report provides clear evidence that they were very  \t\taggressively pressing districts to use certain programs and not use  \t\tothers.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p>The Inspector General\u2019s report illuminates the  \t\tcorruption involved in the Federal Government\u2019s attempts to micro-manage  \t\treading instruction. This should justify caution and vigilance as the President  \t\tappoints a National Mathematics Advisory Panel that promises to do for  \t\tmathematics what was done to reading. The report suggests a cozy relationship  \t\tbetween the Department of Education and \u201cexpert review panels.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>  Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings is spinning  \t\tthe report as ancient history predating her tenure in the position although she  \t\twas an architect of No Child Left Behind. Reading First was a cornerstone of  \t\tNCLB.<\/p>\n<p>  The report found that the Department of Education <\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p> Developed an application package that obscured the  \t\t\trequirements of the statute;<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p> Took action with respect to the expert review panel  \t\t\tprocess that was contrary to the balanced panel composition envisioned by  \t\t\tCongress;<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p> Intervened to release an assessment review document  \t\t\twithout the permission of the entity that contracted for its development;<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p> Intervened to influence a State\u2019s selection of  \t\t\treading programs;<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p> Intervened to influence reading programs being used  \t\t\tby local educational agencies (LEAs) after the application process was  \t\t\tcompleted.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> The report states, \u201cThese actions demonstrate  \t\tthat the program officials failed to maintain a control environment that  \t\texemplifies management integrity and accountability.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>  My summary of this complex report is already too long,  \t\tbut there are countless reasons for concern. You can read the full report of  \t\tthe Inspector General (<a href=\"http:\/\/www.ed.gov\/about\/offices\/list\/oig\/aireports\/i13f0017.pdf\">http:\/\/www.ed.gov\/about\/offices\/list\/oig\/aireports\/i13f0017.pdf<\/a>)<\/p>\n<p>  I would like to call attention to four major issues  \t\tthat should alarm educators and taxpayers alike.\n<\/p>\n<p><strong>Issue 1) Reading First Favored One Curriculum  \t\t\t\tProduct Over All Others<\/strong><\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n<p>Numerous states had their applications for millions of dollars worth of Reading  \t\t\tFirst grants rejected because they did not plan to use the funds for <em>Direct  \t\t\t\tInstruction<\/em>. The report also says that states received little if any  \t\t\tguidance on why their proposals were rejected. This caused state officials to  \t\t\twaste time and resources chasing funding based on elusive criteria\n<\/p>\n<p><strong>Issue 2) Conflicts of Interest<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>The No Child Left Behind legislation mandated that a National Expert Review  \t\t\tPanel be appointed to review scientifically-based reading materials eligible  \t\t\tfor Reading First funding. The Inspector General\u2019s Report found that  \t\t\tmakeup of the panels was inconsistent with the goals of the law authorizing the  \t\t\tpanels. <\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><strong>The Department Took Action With Respect to the  \t\t\t\t\tExpert Review Panel Process That Was Contrary to the Balanced Panel Composition  \t\t\t\t\tEnvisioned by Congress<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>    Section 1203(c)(2)(A) states that the Secretary, in consultation with  \t\t\t\tthe National Institute for Literacy (NIFL), shall convene a panel to evaluate  \t\t\t\tapplications and that, at a minimum, the panel shall include: three individuals  \t\t\t\tselected by the Secretary, three individuals selected by NIFL, three  \t\t\t\tindividuals selected by the National Research Council of the National Academy  \t\t\t\tof Sciences (NAS), and three individuals selected by the National Institute of  \t\t\t\tChild Health and Human Development (NICHD). We have determined that each of the  \t\t\t\tfour organizations nominated at least three individuals to serve on the expert  \t\t\t\treview panel; however, the Department failed to ensure that each State  \t\t\t\tapplication was reviewed by a properly constituted panel.<\/p>\n<p>    Section 1203(c)(2)(C) requires a panel to recommend  \t\t\tgrant applications to the Secretary for funding or for disapproval. After  \t\t\tselecting the panelists, the Department created subpanels made up of five  \t\t\tpanelists each to review the State applications and recommend either approval  \t\t\tor disapproval to the Secretary. None of the subpanels possessed adequate  \t\t\trepresentation from each of the organizations identified under Section  \t\t\t1203(c)(2)(A) of the Act.<\/p>\n<p>    The Department created a total of 16 subpanels to  \t\t\treview the State applications. A majority of the panelists were nominated by  \t\t\tthe Department for 15 of the 16 subpanels; and 7 of the 16 subpanels consisted  \t\t\tentirely of Department-selected panelists. None of the subpanels included a  \t\t\trepresentative from each of the nominating organizations and there is no  \t\t\tindication that the subpanels ever met as one large panel to review the State  \t\t\tapplications and\/or recommend approval or disapproval to the Secretary.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> If your eyes glazed over by the official mumbo jumbo  \t\tabove, check out this statement from the Inspector General\u2019s report.\n<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u202615 of the 16 subpanels had a majority of  \t\t\tDepartment-nominated panelists and <em>none<\/em> had the balanced composition  \t\t\tenvisioned by Congress.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> Members of the National Expert Review Panels and  \t\tReading First staffers had commercial or academic ties to <em>Direct Instruction<\/em>.  \t\tThese conflicts rose all the way up the Department of Education to then  \t\tSecretary of Education, Rod Paige, who won an award from McGraw-Hill for his  \t\trole in the now largely discredited \u201cHouston Miracle\u201d  &#8211; the  \t\tbasis for No Child Left Behind.\n<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>The Reading First Director took direct action to  \t\t\tensure that a particular approach to reading instruction was represented on the  \t\t\texpert review panel. <em>Direct  Instruction<\/em> (DI) is a model for  \t\t\tteaching that requires the use of <em>Reading Mastery<\/em>, a program published  \t\t\tby SRA\/McGraw-Hill, to teach reading. The Reading First Director formerly  \t\t\tserved as the Executive Director of the Baltimore Curriculum Project, which has  \t\t\timplemented DI in Baltimore City schools since 1996. The Reading First Director  \t\t\tpersonally nominated three individuals who had significant professional  \t\t\tconnections to DI to serve on the expert review panel.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> When asked about potential conflicts of interest and  \t\tideological blindness, Reading First officials reacted sarcastically with  \t\tcontempt for Congress and the public.\n<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>A Department employee reported to the Reading First  \t\t\tDirector that the Department had received a question from a member of the media  \t\t\tabout the panel composition. The response by the Reading First Director  \t\t\tsuggests that he may indeed have intended to \u201cstack\u201d the expert  \t\t\treview panel. The employee stated: \u201cThe question is&#8230;are we going to  \t\t\t\u2018stack the panel\u2019 so programs like <em>Reading Recovery<\/em> don\u2019t  \t\t\tget a fair shake[?]\u201d The Reading First Director responded,  \t\t\t\u201c\u2018Stack the panel?\u2019&#8230;I have never *heard* of such a  \t\t\tthing&#8230;.&lt;harumph, harumph&gt;[.]\u201d<\/p>\n<p>    Doherty responded wrote in a 2002 email. &#8220;You know the  \t\t\tline from Casablanca, &#8216;I am SHOCKED that there is gambling going on in this  \t\t\testablishment!&#8217; Well, &#8216;I am SHOCKED that there are pro-DI people on this  \t\t\tpanel!'&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>Issue 3) Ideology Trumps Science and Good Public  \t\t\t\tPolicy<\/strong><\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n<p>The Inspector General\u2019s report documents how the Department of Education  \t\t\tand the review panels manipulated the law to support <em>Direct Instruction<\/em> at the expense of competing programs. <em>Reading Recovery, <\/em>an remedial  \t\t\tintervention strategy employed by schools across the globe, was a particular  \t\t\ttarget of Reading First.\n<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>The Assistant Secretary for OESE planned for the  \t\t\tReading First Guidance to include language that was not in the statute and  \t\t\texclude language that was in the statute. After reviewing a revision to the  \t\t\tDepartment\u2019s draft of the Reading First Guidance, the Assistant Secretary  \t\t\tfor OESE wrote to the Reading First Director, \u201cunder reading first plan.  \t\t\ti\u2019d like not to say \u2018this must include early intervention and  \t\t\treading remediation materials\u2019 which i think could be read as  \t\t\t\u2018reading recovery\u2019 [a reading program]. even if it says this in the  \t\t\tlaw, i\u2019d like it taken out.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>    A few days before the Department publicly announced  \t\t\tthe panelists it had chosen to serve, one of the Department-nominated panelists  \t\t\tcontacted the Reading First Director and shared his strong bias against Reading  \t\t\tRecovery and his strategy for responding to any State that planned to include  \t\t\tReading Recovery in its application. The Reading First Director responded:  \t\t\t\u201cI really like the way you\u2019re viewing\/approaching this, and not  \t\t\tjust because it matches my own approach :-), I swear!\u201d This individual  \t\t\tlater served as the panel chair for the subpanel that reviewed  \t\t\tWisconsin\u2019s State application and in response to the State\u2019s plans  \t\t\tto use Reading Recovery, he included an 11-page negative review of Reading  \t\t\tRecovery in his official comments on the application.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> The Inspector General\u2019s report includes an email  \t\tfrom Reading First Director, Chris Doherty in which he makes his motives and  \t\ttemperament perfectly clear.\n<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cThey are trying to crash our party and we need  \t\t\tto beat the [expletive deleted] out of them in front of all the other would-be  \t\t\tparty crashers who are standing on the front lawn waiting to see how we welcome  \t\t\tthese dirtbags.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><em>Reading Recovery<\/em> was not the only approach  \t\t\tor curricular product to endure the wrath of Reading First officials. Reading  \t\t\tFirst attacked any curriculum product or pedagogical approach determined to  \t\t\thave a whiff of \u201cwhole language\u201d.<br \/>\n  <\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><strong>The Department Intervened to Influence Reading  \t\t\t\t\tPrograms Being Used by LEAs After the Application Process Was Completed <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>    After certain States completed the application process and received funding,  \t\t\t\tthe Reading First Director became aware that certain LEAs in these States were  \t\t\t\tusing the Rigby Literacy (Rigby) and Wright Group Literacy (Wright Group)  \t\t\t\tprograms. The Reading First Director worked closely with a Department staff  \t\t\t\tmember, a former expert review panelist, who undertook a review of both of  \t\t\t\tthese programs.<\/p>\n<p>    In e-mail correspondence with the staff member  \t\t\tregarding the Wright Group, the Reading First Director stated:<\/p>\n<p>    <em>Beat the [expletive deleted] out of them in a way  \t\t\t\t\tthat will stand up to any level of legal and [whole language] apologist  \t\t\t\t\tscrutiny. Hit them over and over with definitive evidence that they are not  \t\t\t\t\tSBRR, never have been and never will be.  They are trying to crash our  \t\t\t\t\tparty and we need to beat the [expletive deleted] out of them in front of all  \t\t\t\t\tthe other would-be party crashers who are standing on the front lawn waiting to  \t\t\t\t\tsee how we welcome these dirtbags. <\/em><br \/>\n  <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>    The Reading First Director forwarded the above e-mail  \t\t\tto Lyon and stated:<\/p>\n<p>  <em>Confidential FYI. Pardon in-house language I  \t\t\t\t\tuse&#8230;with fellow team members and friends. Do you know\u2014on the  \t\t\t\t\tQT\u2014if anyone has done any good review of the Wright Group stuff, to date?  \t\t\t\t\tWe have beaten Maine on Rigby and this is cut from the same cloth. We are  \t\t\t\t\tproceeding, of course, but if you knew of a good piece of work dissecting The  \t\t\t\t\tWright Group\u2019s stuff, it could further strengthen our hand. <\/em><br \/>\n  <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>    Lyon responded that he would obtain this information  \t\t\tand added, \u201cI like your style.\u201d In response, the Reading First  \t\t\tDirector stated, \u201cAdditional firepower&#8230;may help us make this a  \t\t\tone-punch fight.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>    After reviewing the programs, the staff member  \t\t\tprovided the Reading First Director with notes and talking points critiquing  \t\t\tthese programs. The Reading First Director used this information to convince  \t\t\tStates using Rigby and Wright Group to change programs. In an e-mail to Lyon,  \t\t\tthe Reading First Director wrote, \u201cI spoke to Fred Carrigg [the former  \t\t\tNew Jersey Director of Reading First]&#8230;with a roomful of others on their end  \t\t\tand they are HALTING the funding of Rigby and, while we were at it, Wright  \t\t\tGroup. They STOPPED the districts who wanted to use those  \t\t\tprograms.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>    In a later e-mail to Lyon, the Reading First Director  \t\t\tstated:<\/p>\n<p>  <em>As you may remember, RF got Maine to UNDO its  \t\t\t\t\talready-made decision to have Rigby be one of their two approved core programs  \t\t\t\t\t(Ha, ha \u2013 Rigby as a CORE program? When pigs fly!) We also as you may  \t\t\t\t\trecall, got NJ [New Jersey] to stop its districts from using Rigby (and the  \t\t\t\t\tWright Group, btw) and are doing the same in Mississippi. This is for your FYI,  \t\t\t\t\tas I think this program-bashing is best done off or under the major radar  \t\t\t\t\tscreens. <\/em><br \/>\n  <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>    In a formal letter to Carrigg, the Reading First  \t\t\tDirector did not specifically name Rigby and Wright Group as not being aligned  \t\t\twith SBRR (scientifically-based reading research). The Reading First Director  \t\t\twrote, \u201cIt appeared that New Jersey had not fulfilled its responsibility  \t\t\tto ensure that all LEAs and schools selected to participate in Reading  \t\t\tFirst&#8230;would implement comprehensive reading programs that are fully aligned  \t\t\twith scientifically based reading research.\u201d The Reading First Director  \t\t\tinformed us that he could not definitively say why he did not formally state in  \t\t\tthe letter that those specific programs were not in line with SBRR.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>Issue 4) Bias equals dissent?<\/strong><\/span><\/span>\n<\/p>\n<p>The Inspector General\u2019s reports how Reid Lyon, one of the architects of  \t\t\tNo Child Left Behind and Reading First, viewed dissent. People who disagreed  \t\t\twith his agenda were accused of bias, ridiculed and intimidated. <\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Around the same time, Reid Lyon, the former Chief of  \t\t\tthe Child Development &amp; Behavior Branch at the NICHD, advised the Reading  \t\t\tFirst Director, the Assistant Secretary for OESE, and the Senior Advisor to the  \t\t\tSecretary at the time that one of the panelists had been \u201cactively  \t\t\tworking to undermine the NRP [National Reading Panel] Report and the RF  \t\t\tinitiatives.\u201d Lyon further stated, \u201cChances are that other  \t\t\treviewers can trump any bias on her part.\u201d In a written response to all  \t\t\tof the people involved, the former Senior Advisor to the Secretary stated,  \t\t\t\u201cWe can\u2019t un-invite her. Just make sure she is on a panel with one  \t\t\tof our barracuda types.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>    The apparent intent of the Reading First Director to  \t\t\tinclude and to give a significant role to panelists who reflected his personal  \t\t\tpreference in reading programs; his specific encouragement to a panelist who  \t\t\theld views similar to his on <em>Reading Recovery<\/em>; and the intention of  \t\t\tthe former Senior Advisor to the Secretary to control another panelist raise  \t\t\tsignificant questions about the control environment in which the program was  \t\t\tbeing managed.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> How is ignoring competing views part of the  \t\t\u201cscientific method\u201d Lyon and his colleagues require as the basis  \t\tfor all educational practice?<\/p>\n<p>  The Executive Summary of the Inspector General\u2019s  \t\treport describes the following findings about Reading First.\n<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>FINDING 1A \u2013 The Department Did Not Select the  \t\t\tExpert Review Panel in Compliance With the Requirements of NCLB<\/p>\n<p>    FINDING 1B \u2013 While Not Required to Screen for Conflicts of Interest, the  \t\t\tScreening Process the Department Created Was Not Effective<\/p>\n<p>    FINDING 2A \u2013 The Department Replaced What the  \t\t\tLaw Intended to be a Peer Review Process With its Own Process<\/p>\n<p>    FINDING 2B \u2013 The Department Awarded Grants to  \t\t\tStates Without Documentation That the Subpanels Approved All Criteria<\/p>\n<p>    FINDING 3 \u2013 The Department Included Requirements  \t\t\tin the Criteria Used by the Expert Review Panels That Were Not Specifically  \t\t\tAddressed in NCLB<\/p>\n<p>    FINDING 4 \u2013 In Implementing the Reading First  \t\t\tProgram, Department Officials Obscured the Statutory Requirements of the ESEA;  \t\t\tActed in Contravention of the GAO Standards for Internal Control in the Federal  \t\t\tGovernment; and Took Actions That Call Into Question Whether They Violated the  \t\t\tProhibitions Included in the DEOA<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><em>The Pulse <\/em>will continue to follow this  \t\t\timportant story. We will report on what happens to Reading First money already  \t\t\tin the pipeline and if government officials are held accountable for their  \t\t\tactions. Our teachers, students and taxpayers deserve no less.\n<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>  <strong>For further study:<\/strong><br \/>\n<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>The <em><a href=\"http:\/\/schoolsmatter.blogspot.com\/\" target=\"new\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"> Schools Matter<\/a><\/em> blog, while representing a particular  \t\tpoint-of-view, offers extensive coverage and analysis of the Reading First  \t\tscandal.<\/p>\n<p>Susan Ohanian reported (in 2005) on the original  \t\tconcerns that led to the Inspector General\u2019s investigation. <em><a href=\"http:\/\/www.susanohanian.org\/show_research.html?id=94\" target=\"new\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"> Read Special Report: Reading First Under Fire: IG Targets Conflicts of  \t\t\t\tInterest, Limits on Local Control.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p>Look for news stories involving:\n<\/p>\n<ul type=\"disc\">\n<li>\n<p> Reid Lyon, former Chief, Child Development and  \t\t\tBehavior Branch, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, who  \t\t\tinfamously proclaimed, \u201cIf there was any piece of legislation that I  \t\t\tcould pass it would be to blow up colleges of education.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p> Chris Doherty, former Director of Reading First, who  \t\t\trecently resigned<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p> Douglas Carnine, one of the major proponents of  \t\t\tDIBELs and a person involved in assisting Reid Lyon in assembling the Reading  \t\t\tFirst panels discussed in the Director General\u2019s report. Two of his  \t\t\tcolleagues from the University of Oregon were on the review panel. Carnine  \t\t\tconsults with the Department of Education and Congress on a remarkable range of  \t\t\ttopics and with great frequency.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p> Rod Paige, former Secretary of Education<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<hr \/>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> Gary Stager, currently teaching, consulting and  \t\tspeaking in Australia, is Editor of <em>The Pulse<\/em> and Editor-At-Large for <em>District  \t\t\tAdministration Magazine<\/em>. His personal web site is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.stager.org\/\" target=\"new\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"> www.stager.org <\/a><\/p>\n<p>  The views expressed in this article are the opinions  \t\tof the author and not the views of <em>The Pulse, District Administration Magazine<\/em> or Professional Media Group.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Originally published on Wednesday, October 04, 2006 in The Pulse: Education&#8217;s Place for Debate Aside from reducing teachers to script-reading robots and reading to an &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_wp_convertkit_post_meta":{"form":"-1","landing_page":"0","tag":"0","restrict_content":"0"},"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[446,427,428,434,425,431],"tags":[494,471,495],"class_list":["post-607","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-classic-stager","category-education-policy","category-general","category-learning","category-politics","category-teaching","tag-dibels","tag-phonics","tag-reading-first"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Shocked! Shocked! Reading First Plagued by Corporate Welfare, Cronyism and Demonization - Stager-to-Go<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/stager.tv\/?p=607\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Shocked! Shocked! 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