Student loan expert cited in the U.S. media is no expert. In fact, he's not even a real person.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Retweeted by David Fahrenthold: https://twitter.com/Fahrenthold

Student loan expert widely cited in the U.S. media is no expert. In fact, he's not even a real person.

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Drew Cloud Is a Well-Known Expert on Student Loans. One Problem: He’s Not Real.

By Dan Bauman and Chris Quintana APRIL 24, 2018

Drew Cloud is everywhere. The self-described journalist who specializes in student-loan debt has been quoted in major news outlets, including The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, and CNBC, and is a fixture in the smaller, specialized blogosphere of student debt.
....

All of those surveys came from Cloud’s website, The Student Loan Report. ... Drew Cloud’s story was simple: He founded the website, an "independent, authoritative news outlet" covering all things student loans, "after he had difficulty finding the most recent student loan news and information all in one place." ... He became ubiquitous on that topic. But he’s a fiction, the invention of a student-loan refinancing company.

After The Chronicle spent more than a week trying to verify Cloud’s existence, the company that owns The Student Loan Report confirmed that Cloud was fake. "Drew Cloud is a pseudonym that a diverse group of authors at Student Loan Report, LLC use to share experiences and information related to the challenges college students face with funding their education," wrote Nate Matherson, CEO of LendEDU.

Before that admission, however, Cloud had corresponded at length with many journalists, pitching them stories and offering email interviews, many of which were published. When The Chronicle attempted to contact him through the address last week, Cloud said he was traveling and had limited access to his account. He didn’t respond to additional inquiries.
....

Chris Quintana is a staff reporter. Follow him on Twitter @cquintanadc or email him at [e-mail].

Dan Bauman is a reporter who investigates and writes about all things data in higher education. Tweet him at @danbauman77 or email him at [e-mail].

Questions or concerns about this article? Email us or submit a letter to the editor.

[genxlib]

1. Fake news should have an equivalent to fraud

To make this kind of shit illegal.

I could see why a bunch of parasites living off the dreams of young people would want to hide behind a psuedonymn

[FakeNoose]

2. OK so you guys know there's no real Betty Crocker, right?

There never was an Aunt Jemima either. They're corporate trademarks and nothing else.
As for Colonel Sanders, he really did exist but he's been dead for over 30 years.

Hate to burst your bubble, but hey!

[procon]

3. Is it legal for loan sharks to run a scam to lure in unsuspecting students? nt

[Trailrider1951]

4. Here is a REAL website devoted to the abomination that is student loans

http://studentloanjustice.org/