I t wasn’t so long ago that many of these same players were bemoaning the level of citizen involvement in the electoral process. When candidates have to meet the diversity of communities in this city and learn of their concerns – it’s going to enrich the decisions they make which effect those communities. It’s only boring to those who don’t share those concerns and only pandering when candidates address issues they don’t find important. It’s a shame these forums divert resources from other more important events, like meeting with large donors.

I’m encouraged to see the level of responsiveness that comes from these forums – you certainly won’t see average citizens getting to ask these questions directly after the election. So, don’t worry boys – after the election – it will revert to business as usual. Newspapers and those with power will continue to control the agenda.

Campaign 2007
Too many forums for candidates?
Those in the running for mayor like the interchange. Others say there’s a dulling effect.
By Larry Eichel
Inquirer Senior Writer

Unless something changes sometime soon, they'll have to go on meeting like this: sharing a stage with one another, night after night, in a traveling series of political forums.

Sure, it sounds like a great idea, making the men who want to be Philadelphia's next mayor discuss the issues with each other early and often before audiences throughout the city.

The reality, however, is a bit more complicated.
Campaign strategists, political watchdogs, former candidates and even some current ones say (privately) the forums eat up huge chunks of time, make it hard to schedule other events, result in pandering to the sponsors, and produce very little real dialogue.

"It's not a terrible thing but not as constructive as I would have liked,"
said Zack Stalberg, president and chief executive officer of the Committee of Seventy, who's hosted several forums. "So far, instead of making the campaign deeper and more interesting, it's having kind of a dulling effect, which worries me."

In the last six days, there were seven forums for Philadelphia's mayoral candidates, including two on Saturday, although some allowed the candidates to speak and leave rather than appear together.
And there's no end in sight. An additional 30 (or more) are scheduled between now and the end of April, not counting the broadcast debates.
http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/local/states/pennsylvania/168853...