Arts 9 Out on his own, Radiohead's Thom Yorke still pushes the envelope Sports 13 Netters name new heniad h c Jbe £irb Yjirn i ui1g Monday, July 10, 2006 Summer Weekly One-hundred-sixteen years of editorialfreedom www.michigandaily.com Ann Arbor, Michigan Vol. CXVI, No. 125 ©2006 The Michigan Daily Primary candidates join in forum Abortion, affirmative action By and healthcare among the issues discussed at the forum Kelly Fraser Daily News Editor Gearing up for the next month of campaign- ing, 18 candidates in the Ann Arbor races for mayor, city council and the Washtenaw Coun- ty Board of Commissioners participated in a forum hosted by the Ann Arbor Democratic Party Saturday morning. With the Aug. 8 Democratic Primary less than a month away, today is the deadline to reg- ister to vote in the primaries. Because there are no Republican candi- dates currently running for the city council - which is exclusively composed of Demo- crats - next month's primary could decide the election. The candidates shared a common phi- losophy on abortion, with all 18 saying they are pro-choice. All candidates also strongly oppose the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative, which if passed in November would ban most affirmative action programs in the state. Universal healthcare also brought the candidates to a common ground. During a lightning round, nearly every candidate gave universal healthcare coverage top priority for the Democratic Party on either the federal or local level. The round prompted former United States representative and political science Prof. Lynn Rivers, who moderated the forum, to say, "Who says democrats can't agree?" Some candidates, such as prospective city council member Sonia Schmerl, said the all- democratic makeup of the council was hurt- ing the city and called for "new blood" and more transparency. Occasionally, candidates lightened the mood by offering original selling points such as "I don't own a car" or "If it helps, I've never been inside a Wal-Mart" to the audience of about 60 See FORUM, Page 2 Daily Editor in Chief to join senior society AM Y DRUMM/DUaily Ann Arbor Mayor John Hieftje performs a monologue as the guest on Citizen Improv at Improv Inferno, a comedy club in downtown Ann Arbor. Improvisers used his narratives as a basis for comedy acts. Ann Arbor Mayor. takes center stage Managing Editor Ashley Dinges resigns, saying mem- bership is a conflict of interest By Carissa Miller Managing News Editor Donn Fresard, The Michigan Daily's fall/winter editor in chief, recently announced plans to join the campus society formerly known as Michigamua. His decision has sparked a blaze of controversy at the Daily and prompted the second highest-ranking fall/winter editor to resign her post. Ashley Dinges, who was the paper's managing editor, resigned July 2 on the grounds that Fresard's membership in the group - which is composed of some of the campus's most influential student lead- ers - will be a conflict of interest. The Daily often covers those leaders' organiza- tions and teams and also covers the group itself. "I am very sad to leave the Daily, which has been my second home since I came to the Univer- sity," Dinges said. "But the main reason I work at this paper is my love of journalism and I am not willing to compromise my journalistic integrity or my ethical beliefs." Many top fall/winter editors have expressed their displeasure with Fresard's decision for the same rea- sons. For years, no Daily editor in chiefs have been known to be in the society, but Fresard said it is now appropriate because of the group's recent reforms. For decades, the group formerly known as Michigamua kept its elite membership a secret and used the name of a fictional Native American tribe. The group also appropriated Native Ameri- can rituals and artifacts and used Native Ameri- can nicknames for its members. The society says it has since changed its ways. It recently stopped using the name Mich- igamua and released its membership for the classes of 2006 and 2007. "After discussing it with some people at the Daily and in the group, I decided that this would be an appropriate time for me to join and the right thing to do," Fresard said. Fresard has argued that his membership would not constitute a conflict of interest. Andrew Yahkind, a member of its class of 2007, said Fresard is not currently a member of the society, although there are discussions underway regarding his membership. Fresard said he is not sure when he will join, though he expects it to be soon. Because the time commitment required by the society is not extensive, Fresard said he will be able to fulfill his duties as editor in chief. He said his involvement in the group will also boost his effec- tiveness as an editor at the Daily. "I think that this group serves the benefits of diver- sity in a lot of ways, by pulling together athletes and editors and leaders of multicultural groups - people who have a lot to learn from each other;' Fresard said. "I believe soundly in the group's mission and that it gives me an opportunity to serve the campus in a different way than the past." Dinges and several others have maintained that the editor of a newspaper should not be involved in a group the paper covers heavily, neither should they form close friendships with campus leaders whose own events and groups are also covered, she said. Fresard disagreed, saying that it is more danger- ous for the editor to spend more time holed up in the Daily's offices and not understand what is happening on campus and with student groupsthan it is for he or she to become to close with other campus leaders. As a member of the group's class of 2007,Fresard joins leaders like Interfraternity Council president Jon Krasnov, Panhellenic Association president Lau- ren Kraus and Michigan Student Assembly President Nicole Stallings. "It is really not uncommon for newspaper editors to see a lot of these people in social situations See FRESARD, Page 3 FROM THE EDITOR Because of his pending member- ship in the group formerly known as Michigamua, Donn M. Fresard, The Michigan Daily's fall/winter editor in chief, was not involved in the editing of this article. Fresard will also not edit any articles about the group in the future. - Jeremy Davidson Summer Editor in Chief Improvisers at comreedy clui) use mayor John Hieftjes stories as fuel for humorous act By Sandy Liberman Daily Staff Reporter The typical Ann Arbor summer night crowd was hard-pressed to recognize Mayor John Hieftje coasting down Main Street on his bicycle en route to a popular comedy club last Wednesday night. Hieftje appeared as a guest on the stage of Citizen Improv, a weekly show at Improv Inferno on Main Street that features a different community citizen each week. "Citizen Improv selects volunteer speak- ers to share three short real-life stories that inspire our team of improvisers," said Citi- zen Improv Artistic Director Dan Izzo. "This show is a good chance for the mayor to pres- ent himself to voters in a personal, rather than political context." With the Ann Arbor Democratic Primary See MAYOR, Page 2