Letter: 'Hit Piece' by Editorial Board Against Mayoral Candidate is Unprofessional

Really?

It’s a sad state of affairs when a supposedly unbiased editorial board for a local newspaper starts making personal attacks against the husband of a mayoral candidate in what was supposed to be an endorsement of their choice for mayor.

I was embarrassed to see how far the Elmhurst Independent stooped this year in their endorsement article published Thursday, March 28.

From dragging the life of a private citizen into the conversation to taking things clearly out of context for shock value, this clear hit piece against Diane is nothing but the desperate ploy of a newspaper editor starved for attention. Writing a sensationalist and overly personal attack on Diane is not the stuff of real journalism. And if not a ploy for attention I fear it may be the undue influence and friendship of a campaign to an editorial board that got this article published.

Not only was their treatment of Diane Gutenkauf deplorable, their endorsement of another candidate was extremely unprofessional. Among their top reasons for endorsing their choice for mayor was that he “dresses the part and comes off very mayoral."

He’s got the looks to be mayor but none of the substance. I’m voting for Diane because she has the knowledge, experience and commitment to Elmhurst that we need. Not someone who merely dresses the part.

—Sid Whitten, Elmhurst