 "Photo: Glennon Simmons")
A small group of concerned Austin residents took part in the All-American Presidential Forum Thursday night during a viewing at the LBJ Library. The candidates covered 10 key issues featured in The New York Times best-seller "Covenant with Black America." The issues covered in the debate included health care and well-being, education, jobs, wealth and prosperity for blacks.
Texas Forums, an Austin-based political Web site, held a discussion at the LBJ Library before the 1.5-hour forum aired on PBS. A handful of the residents who attended the viewing kept live blogs about the issues discussed.
"The bulk of what we will be doing is trying to capture what people are saying and making sure that those voices are heard," said Taylor Willingham, founder of Texas Forums.
About 20 bloggers across the country were accredited by the Media Bloggers Association to cover the forum on-site at Howard University in Washington, D.C. The association asked Texas Forums to cover the event from a regular citizen's point of view. Texas Forums also organized a second viewing location at the George Washington Carver Library in East Austin. Both sites hosted bloggers whose posts will be available at Mediabloggers.com.
"We need more smart people talking about policy," said Rod Amis, a freelance journalist. "Austin is a hub for this. There are a lot of smart people here."
The eight democratic presidential candidates at the event included former Sens. John Edwards and Mike Gravel, Rep. Dennis Kucinich, Gov. Bill Richardson and Sens. Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton and Christopher Dodd. The candidates had a chance to give their thoughts on key issues that black people in America face. The forum was moderated by Tavis Smiley, public radio and television host. He is also author of "Covenant with Black America."
The debate marked the first time a presidential panel of black journalists were represented in prime time. The panel included Michel Martin, reporter for National Public Radio and former corespondent for ABC News' "Nightline," Ruben Navarrette Jr., a member of the editorial board of The San Diego Union-Tribune and columnist for The Washington Post Writers Group, and DeWayne Wickham, columnist for USA Today and the Gannett News Service.
To give the bloggers an idea of how the average citizen might feel about the issues covered, viewers who came to watch the forum discussed a few of the topics. Many of the viewers were active in the discussions.
"I came to a discussion early in this administration when people didn't think there were problems," said Austin resident Beverly Lawson. "The people who still don't think there's anything to worry about, worry me."
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