The former FAMU interim president who nearly drove the university into the ground is currently a telephone pal of Bob Gabordi, executive editor of the Tallahassee Democrat.In the print version of the Saturday, December 10 Democrat, Gabordi wrote: "As editor of the daily newspaper in Tallahassee, I can tell you I've spoken more to his predecessor Castell Bryant in recent weeks than with [President James] Ammons. Say whatever else you want about Bryant, she knew how to get her message across. And she sure knew how to dial a phone or answer one when it rings."
Gabordi is absolutely right that Castell “knew how to get her message across.” She knew how to persuade editorial boards to print information about FAMU that did not square with the facts.
Castell has serious problems with the truth. She told the state’s newspapers that she created an $8M surplus and then basked in their editorial praises. But when the state auditors took an objective look at her financial books, they found that the “surplus” was nothing but a fairy tale. There was really a $10.4 million deficit.
The former interim president got several Florida editorial boards to go along with her claims that previous administrations were at fault for most of the financial problems during her time in office. But again, the state audits did not support this. Castell was the one and only FAMU president who was ever incompetent enough to receive qualified opinions (meaning: that the financial records were in such poor condition that auditors couldn't render an opinion) from the Florida auditor general. FAMU never had a qualified audit before Castell and has not had one since FAMUans ran her off.
Now that we know Gabordi has been regularly chatting it up with Castell before his pages go to press, it is easier to understand why the Democrat’s recent coverage of FAMU reads like one of Castell’s infamous rants about how terrible FAMU is.
Democrat editors and staff have been hard at work inserting the FAMU name into the Penn State script, though the two events are nothing alike. For the record, Penn State trustees acted only after a two year investigation that has lad to over 40 criminal charges. In contrast, the investigation into the death of Robert D. Champion is just over two weeks old.
If the Democrat’s coverage was all that the public had, we might never know that a 2008 study by researchers at the University of Maine found that most college students involved in clubs, teams and organizations experience hazing, but 95 percent never report it. Or, sadly, that five to six college students die each year as a result of hazing. Or, that despite his claims for help and warnings to "higher ups", that there is an opposing view to Julian E. White's allegations against Ammons.
At this rate, it probably won’t be long before Gabordi starts writing that FAMU’s students are 2s on a 4-point scale.