First Mayoral Debate

Today was a very eventful day as I attended my first ever Mayoral Debate at the Holiday Inn on Holcomb Bridge Road. I arrived early to notice that there was a lot of buzz going around as no one knew what to expect from Councilwoman Lori Henry and Councilman David Tolleson in the upcoming debate. But they all knew exactly what they were going to get from Mayor Wood: a man that was very honest and highly personable. There were many jokes made by each of the candidates (and by each I mean just Councilman Tolleson and Mayor Wood, because I didn't really hear Councilwoman Henry make too many jokes), but more than 90% of them were made by Mayor Wood. He was extremely personable and seemed very approachable: a trait that anyone would want in their Mayor. But the one astonishing thing that I noticed throughout the debate was the undoubted bias against Mayor Wood and Ms. Henry by the Beacon. Mr. John Fredericks, the Beacon Media host for the debate, stated time and time again that Mayor Wood was "fighting for his political life" when in fact, there was absolutely no evidence to prove such an outlandish claim. He even took a jab at Ms. Henry asking why all the people that used to support her don't anymore: which seemed very much like a low blow and completely unnecessary at such an event. It just doesn't seem right for a newspaper, which is supposed to be unbiased, to have a very strong bias against any candidate. Isn't unbiased journalism what we strive for? In any case, the debate was a huge success for Mayor Wood as many people that attended seemed to think that he was the clear winner of the debate. What I learned: In any political event, it is important for the leader to be personable and approachable so that the people are not afraid to voice their concerns to make what is wrong, right.