As we covered on Friday, the big news to come out of last week’s State Board of Education meeting was Ryan Walters pandering for national media attention and notoriety by stating he was going to unconstitutionally force teachers to preach from the Bible in Oklahoma classrooms.
You know, typical PR-driven Christian Nationalist stuff.
Although that was the big headline, another strange occurrence from the school board meeting involved Ryan’s Austin-based puppet master, Matt Langston, leaving tiny ghost figurines along with a cryptic message for local journalists.
Check this out:
Yep, that’s right. The guy who pulls the strings of our State School Superintendent is now taunting local journalists with crafts made from the Hobby Lobby discount rack. I know journalists pride themselves on professionalism, so I’ll respond to Matt on their behalf…
It’s a Monday and we’re on a short holiday week, so I don’t have the time or mental energy to get inside the mind of a shady, unscrupulous, right-wing political operative psycho from Texas, but I believe Matt is referring to the local media investigations that have dug into whether or not he should be considered a “ghost employee.”
If that was the catalyst for Matt's spooky gift, I kind of agree with him.
The local media should stop chasing Matt’s ghosts and instead be turning their attention toward the many skeletons hiding in his closet! Just like One-Eyed Willy and his fellow pirates in Goonies, they appear to be guarding a heavy bounty of journalism gold that could make a real impact!
About a month ago, I mentioned in an article that “a woman from Texas who was once close to Matt has reached out to some people in the media with scandalous details about his personal life.”
I wrote that sentence because I had in my possession a batch of emails that Matt Langston’s estranged ex-wife, Tabitha Langston, sent to a local reporter in the spring of 2023.
The emails contained an impressive list of allegations, grievances, and shady incriminations about Matt’s behavior that, if we’re being honest, wouldn’t surprise anyone who’s followed the demented rise of Ryan Walters over the last few years.
After receiving the emails, I reached out to Tabitha via text to see if she could talk about them in more detail. She never responded.
Due to the sensitive nature of their contents and the fact that I couldn’t talk directly to the source, I put them in my ever-growing “Useful Knowledge To Have” file – a priceless bin of knowledge located on a shelf next to my Harbor Mountain Coffee Shop mug collection.
Although I didn’t feel comfortable sharing the emails publicly, Cameron Spradling – an attorney who has represented victims of physical and sexual abuse in Oklahoma schools and has become a frequent critic of Walters on social media – didn’t seem to care.
Back in June, he shared some of the emails and their many accusations regarding Matt’s alleged infidelity, lack of business ethics, and general shittiness on X. They then went semi-viral in the anti-Ryan Walters online echo chamber.
Here's one of them:
That’s just one of several emails Cameron shared. If you want to find the others on X, feel free.
I actually spoke to Cameron about the emails. He told me he had talked to Tabitha directly and has no qualms about sharing them. He also claims that he put her in touch with both State Rep. Mark McBride and the Oklahoma Attorney General’s office, and they have both interviewed her.
Anyway, since I’ve already tried to reach Tabitha and failed, I have a favor to ask to the gumshoes in local news media:
Can one of you interview her about the various claims and accusations in her emails?! You know, like one of the TV news channels that always like to say they’re first, or one of the local non-profit outlets that only produce a few stories a month. They can give this the old college try, right?
I really hope so, because Oklahomans not only deserve to know as much about the Texan who’s pulling the strings in the Oklahoma education department as possible, but if the story is damaging enough, maybe it will get him to resign or step down!
For example, I’m sure Matt and Ryan can whip up enough legal justification to survive the accusation that Matt’s a ghost employee, but how would they defend a video of Matt trying to break into a house or getting into a fight with one of his kids or doing some of the other things his ex-wife’s emails allege?
“Patrick, they’d probably just say it’s ‘a fake woke news conspiracy’ and continue doing what they’re doing.”
Fair point, but at least it would embarrass him a little bit. I know he's a demented, twisted dude, but that would still bother him... right?
Either way, I really hope the legitimate media follows my advice and digs into Tabitha’s accusations.
Until then, if you have any scoop or dirt on Matt – or were married to him or had an affair with him – hit us up on the TLO Tip Line! I’d love to chat.
Stay with The Lost Ogle. We’ll keep you advised.
