There’s a phenomenon prevalent in modern election coverage and media researchers call it framing. In order to the bolster public interest surrounding a race, so the charge goes, news pundits often borrow choice pieces of vernacular from the satchels of sports writers.
For example, it’s entirely common to refer to voter suppression as a “fix.” If a candidate makes a shrewd tactical decision in the public’s line of sight, his opponent is “outflanked.” Or if the candidates all prove verbose, a scheduled debate could become a “pitched battle.”
If all this is true, it seems fair to say Ryan Corcoran just “fouled out.”
Under intense pressure to drop from the race for the District 8 seat, following a furious fit of political defamation against his opponents over the past week, Corcoran, Monday, did just that.
For the former Common Council challenger, the downward spiral began last Thursday during a forum at Memorial Union. As the aldermanic candidates assembled for a debate organized by the Associated Students of Madison, predictability seemed the order of the day.
With ASM running the show, the topics of discussion proved biased and stilted — check.
Incumbent Austin King stepped up to hustle causes — double check.
And local entrepreneur Kami Eshraghi made a concerted effort to convince the room of his ability to represent a largely student population. Seriously, who’s got the script?
Enter Awesome Car Funmaker front man and progressive activist Corcoran, livening up the night in the worst way possible.
Taking time in his opening statement to address alleged acts of character assassination against himself, Corcoran proceeded over the course of the forum to sling mud like an embattled scrumhalf. Right off the bat, the candidate accused King of ignoring a racially motivated assault against a Native American student in the heat of the DeJope controversy last year — citing the alder’s stance against the casino expansion as a motive.
As Corcoran made the indictment, a look of disgust spread across King’s face. In his rebuttal, the alderman flagged his record and promptly demanded an apology. Sporting a pompous swagger, Corcoran asked King to “settle down.”
Then, Monday, in the column space of this very newspaper, Corcoran reapplied the charge with renewed vigor. In fact, the notoriously ad hominem guest piece hardly addressed anything else. Yet, Corcoran’s hatchet job exploits didn’t just cut the incumbent.
Minutes after chastising King Thursday, Corcoran took aim at Eshraghi. Initially claiming the Fitchburg resident and club owner could never represent the students on such issues as rent control or the proposed smoking ban, Corcoran continued by frequently asserting Eshraghi’s establishment, the Kimia Lounge, remains the challenger’s only real interest. In a word: carpetbagging.
Eshraghi also appeared visibly startled by the attack, but opted to just laugh it off. “Ryan, you’re funny,” the middle-aged challenger let out with a smile.
Funny? Perhaps. However, while Corcoran’s theatrics added a sense of flair to an otherwise arid event (again, thanks to ASM), his efforts also overshadowed an important opportunity for the public to learn at least something about the real candidates.
Now, with the perpetual distraction removed from the picture, the election process can finally hit a serious note. In a race already shrouded in ideological parity, the candidacy of Corcoran really served little purpose. But, oddly enough, the tale of the misguided challenger’s fall from grace yields one valuable lesson: stick to the issues gentlemen — Madisonians loathe filthy politics.
Even beyond its inflammatory potential, the topic should have never been raised. After all, too often social platforms get tossed around during a race when they bear no significance toward the individual’s ability to get the job done. A candidate’s stance on social security reform means nothing when dealing with road construction or mixed-use development. Why, therefore, should the voters care about greater state issues such as Indian gaming? Especially when any sane person, regardless of politics, already recognized the DeJope incident for what it was — a crime.
Ultimately, leadership and the interest of serving the community must prevail for voters to come out on the winning end.
All the grandstanding aside, King’s record clearly speaks of leadership. As for the second item, well, that’s another column.
Unfortunately, many District 8 residents know very little of what sets Eshraghi apart and the recent mud-fest did little to remedy that situation. For those actually concerned with the economic health of the State Street commercial corridor, it remains important to gauge whether or not this challenger stands fit to hold a seat on the city council. As of this moment, it’s impossible to know.
In order to ensure a healthy and productive race in the coming months, Corcoran needed to go.
So thanks Ryan, we’ll call you if the Overture Center needs some instruments tuned.
Patrick Klemz ([email protected]) is a redshirt senior majoring in journalism who loves muddy battles on the pitch, but never in civilized debate.
