Where'd That Rubber Stamp Go?

There was an odd cautionary note sounded amidst the enthusiasm greeting the new citizen's review board proposal Tuesday. It came from Jack Sharp (often described by Mayor Victor Ashe as "the best vice-mayor Knoxville ever had"), who thanked Bernie Bernstein for chairing the commission that drew up the proposal and telling him his service is appreciated "regardless of what happens." Ashe, long a review board opponent, changed his position and announced his support for it in January after Knoxville Police Department brass embarrassed themselves by falsely claiming to have found cocaine in the car driven by Andre Stenson, who died in police custody Jan. 9. Ashe continues to say that only two council members—Carlene Malone and Danny Mayfield—support the review board; an odd occurrence on a legislative body that generally rubberstamps the mayor's desires.

Packing the Courtroom

The atmosphere was toxic at the League of Women's Voters candidate forum for the attorney general's race. The biggest problem was the venue—a criminal courtroom. Cute idea, maybe— but the room, which seats 50-60 people and is just a stone's throw away from the attorney general's office, was jam-packed and overflowing with interested citizens, who, true to the timeworn courthouse tradition perfected by Lillian Bean, appeared to include most every living employee of incumbent Randy Nichols. If challenger Jimmy Kyle Davis, who focused his attention on the people out there in radioland, looked up from the microphone, he would have found himself in uncomfortable proximity to a front row full of Nichols' investigators. There were snarls and sniggers—particularly when Davis dropped Heath Shuler's name and when he suggested that actorlet Brad Renfro needs a butt-whipping—despite moderator Hallerin Hill twice admonishing the room full of prosecutors that fairness required their silence. Both the large and the small assembly rooms were empty that night.

Newsroom Duels

Speaking of the attorney general's race, did anyone notice the interesting placement of the News-Sentinel's article on a sexual harassment complaint filed against Randy Nichols? The story, by staff writer Wes Loy, was lengthy, balanced...and on page 4. Hmmm. Could be that Managing Editor Frank Cagle, a Jimmy Kyle Davis supporter, wanted it on the front page. Could be that Editor Harry Moskos, who supports Nichols, didn't want to do it at all. Both of those approaches would have been questionable in the heat of an election campaign. Ironically, by striking a delicate compromise, the paper ended up handling the story about right (and much more responsibly than some local TV stations, who reported the unsubstantiated complaint more or less as if it were fact).

Nationally Ranked, Once Again!

Yup, our fair city gains yet more national prestige, this time in Movieline's August issue (on news stands now!). In its annual "The 100 Dumbest Things Hollywood's Done Lately" feature, the movie magazine selected not one but two Knoxville-related tidbits. First, at number 53: "Brad Renfro, who most recently starred in Telling Lies in America, denied that he had been arrested on suspicion of cocaine and marijuana possession, as reported by the Knoxville News-Sentinel." And hot on its tail at 61: "Betsy Pickle of the Knoxville News-Sentinel wrote, 'Costner's mastery of tone in The Postman is the key to the film's success." Let's see...teen movie stars...drugs...fawning reviews... maybe Gov. Sundquist is right—perhaps we are becoming "the third coast."