A picture is worth a thousand words...so why use the worst one?

I know that the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette endorsed Pittsburgh City Councilor Patrick Dowd for mayor, but I have to wonder again why they print such terribly unflattering photos of him?

I'm sure that this photograph...


accurately represents how Dowd looked for a split second or so (it's not like I think they rock the Photoshop like me -- or the NYT), but I'm certain that the photo was one out of many which were taken that they had to choose from.

So why pick the one that makes him look like he was screaming at the top of his lungs (or made me feel like I was a doctor holding a tongue depressor)?

If I was a voter who wasn't paying much attention to the mayoral race up until this point and I saw this picture it might sway me against Dowd or at the very least not make me want to find out more about him.

And, it's a shame because the issue is real:

The back-and-forth started with Mr. Dowd standing across the street from the Grant Street Transportation Center, with its unfinished Lamar Advertising electronic billboard. His campaign staff brought a cardboard check for $101,000 -- the approximate amount of post-resignation payments and benefits that former Urban Redevelopment Authority Executive Director Pat Ford is getting as part of an agreement that bars him and city officials from disparaging each other.

"That's hush money!" Mr. Dowd shouted, as his neck reddened and passers-by stopped to listen. "That's a sign of corruption. That's unacceptable in this city."

That arrangement stemmed from winter 2008 revelations that the city -- with guidance from Mr. Ford -- let Lamar have a permit and a no-bid contract to put a 19-by-58-foot sign on the center. When Mr. Ford confirmed that he'd received Christmas gifts from a Lamar executive, a State Ethics Commission review ensued, Mr. Ford accused the administration of a "culture of deception and corruption," and the two sides reached the settlement that Mr. Dowd brandished yesterday

This isn't the first time that the P-G has used what had to have been the least flattering picture taken to illustrate an article. Remember this one which made the very tall Dowd look like a dwarf?


Granted that Dowd was animated -- even passionate -- when speaking about the billboard issue, but judge for yourself if the first photograph above really represents the press conference he held:




(h/t to The Pittsburgh Comet for the video.)
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Around the Burgosphere

The Reformation is making a comeback with the re-launch of City Councilman Bill Peduto's Reform Pittsburgh Now site (he even nails his theses to the virtual door).

Progress Pittsburgh notes a need for election workers in Pittsburgh's 7th and 8th Wards for the May 19th primary.

Progress Pittsburgh (again) and The Pittsburgh Women's Blogging Society report on yard sign thuggery against Natalia Rudiak and Susan Banahasky (I also hear that Georgia Blotzer supporters are facing intimidation when putting up her signs in their own yards and it sure as hell is not coming from the Rob Frank camp).

Pittsburgh Lesbian Correspondents gives a queer perspective on the City Council District 6 race.

The Pittsburgh Comet "Will Make You Talk About Pat Ford If It's The Last Thing This Blog Does," dammit! (You go, Bram!)

The Busman's Holiday's April 22nd post is relevant anew as Lil Mayor Luke dodged the making his schedule public question one mo' time at this week's mayoral debate. Bonus points to Lukey for blaming it all on Dowd instead of Mayo asking the question. Meanwhile, Early Returns gets all hairy over the debates.

The City Paper interviewed local bloggers Bram and Matt H on print vs. blogs and agendas (which we blogged on here).

The Angry Drunk Bureaucrat provides a sneak peak at web-based permitting.

View from the BurghChair interviews, uh, everyone!

And, A Spork in the Drawer takes on Pooh.
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NO! (yes)

Bob Mayo's transcript of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's Q&A with reporters about the payment to former URA Executive Director Pat Ford where he denies that hush money was paid here and the questions that Bram would like to have asked here.
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Tales from the Burghosphere

Congratulations to Bram at The Pittsburgh Comet and The Burgh Report for bringing to light an obvious conflict of interest regarding (on leave) Urban Redevelopment Authority Executive Director Pat Ford and Lamar Advertising.

Video here.

Note: There is absolutely no truth to the rumor that the after the latest revelations that Lamar Advertising has decided to stop their civil lawsuit against Pittsburgh City Council members (FREE THE LAMAR FIVE!) and will put up inspirational/motivational billboards free of charge around The Burgh starting with this one:


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Shining a Light

Pittsburgh City Councilman Bruce Kraus is set to introduce a resolution today asking Mayor Luke Ravenstahl to rescind the LED sign zoning approval granted to Lamar Advertising (in a no-bid agreement) for the Grant Street Transportation Center. As Kraus' press release noted:

The approval was granted without being brought before the Planning Commission, the Zoning Board, or City Council.

Kraus' resolution can be found here.

We noted the um, "special" relationship between Lil Mayor Luke and Lamar Advertising here.

There's been some great recent blogging on this at The Burgh Report and Pittsburgh Pist-Gazette (here, here & here).

In writing about the sign controversy at the Pittsburgh City Paper in an article with the subheading of "Shedding light on local government," Chris Potter stated:

Sure, a mayor can often take a commission's approval for granted. But only Ravenstahl would demonstrate the fact by bypassing the commission entirely. Only in the Ravenstahl administration would a planning commissioner actually leave a controversial meeting to, say, watch a college basketball game, returning to vote as debate was wrapping up.

Which segues nicely into yesterday's meeting between Pittsburgh City Council and Hill District leaders and their supporters on a community benefits agreement tied to the new Penguins arena (P-G article here, Pittsburgh Comet here).

According to the Post-Gazette, Council may get involved in the process:

By the time they finished, they had won the ear of Council President Doug Shields, who said it may be time for council to become more actively involved in talks involving the city, Allegheny County and the neighborhood.

"I think we're going to have to," he said after the public hearing. "We got lawsuits. We got, obviously, a stalemate between all the engaged parties."

To date, council has been out of the loop in the talks over a community benefits agreement, Mr. Shields said. He added council needs "to have a dialogue" with Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato and perhaps Gov. Ed Rendell to find out what the sticking points are in the talks.

"We have a role to play," Mr. Shields said.

"I stand with you to make sure [the Penguins] do the right thing," another councilman, William Peduto, said to the applause of supporters.

We're happy that Council wants to provide a check to the Ravenstahl's utter lack of transparency and his constant disregard for the average Pittsburgh citizen in favor of his big important buddies (and contributors).
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Pittsburgh Housing Authority Waste Exposed by Local Blogger

Local blogger Matt H's long awaited story on ridiculously wasteful spending at Pittsburgh's Housing Authority has finally made the news. Marty Griffin interviews Matt on KDKA News here.

Matt has hundreds of documented instances of abusive spending.

Urban Redevelopment Authority executive director -slash- Parking Authority chairman -slash- Housing Authority chairman* Patrick Ford is also interviewed by Griffith. Ford has been on the Housing Authority Board for a year -- much of that time overlapping with Matt's documentation of waste.

Great job, Matt!


* h/t to the Comet
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