Uploaded August 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Did Councilmember Bobby Burns Make a Telling Slip of the Tongue? At the July 28, 2025 Special City Council Meeting, Councilmember Bobby Burns made what some might call a telling slip of the tongue - referring to Evanston Roundtable reporter Alex Harrison as “staff.”
Mayor Daniel Biss quickly joked: “Is the Roundtable now staff?”
It might have sounded light in the moment, but it raises a fair question: how independent is local political coverage in Evanston?
Concerns about the Roundtable’s political coverage go back years. During the last election, Councilmember Tom Suffredin openly questioned the Roundtable’s decision to publish a sharply critical candidate column from his opponent, Candance Chow - who had a long-standing business relationship with Roundtable Executive Director Tracy Quatrocki. The Roundtable also carried campaign ads for Chow.
Tracy stated that the Roundtable does not take sides in politics. Still, many residents question whether coverage always reflects that standard. Consider this: Alex Harrison’s reporting on Mayor Biss and certain council members has been consistently favorable, even when those officials faced major, documented controversies:
Biss refused to support a Gaza ceasefire resolution to stop the killing of children. He refused.
The Firefighter Pension Fund President presented documented proof the City budget had been overstated by tens of millions over multiple years - Biss stayed silent.
$330,000 requested from the federal government for housing is unaccounted for, and despite residents repeatedly asking where it went, Biss has shown no urgency or public concern.
The reparations program, widely criticized as too small, saw no push from Biss for improvement or greater impact, despite the City having the means to do better. But reportedly promises to do it at the Congress level. Would you trust him to do that at a higher level when he didn't do it a local level?
Longtime Parks & Recreation leader Leonard Woodson, who served the Disabled community for over 35 years, was forced into early retirement. Many in the community felt the coverage of Woodson’s departure overlooked his decades of achievement and carried an uncomfortable undertone that didn’t reflect the value of his service.
A Public Works Department investigation has been completed, but Biss refuses to release it. Instead, he is expected to issue a sanitized summary that protects the City rather than revealing the full findings.
Mayor Biss has been quick to speak out for the Latino community and to pose for photos in support of reparations, but for the Disabled community? Crickets.
For a democracy to function, local press must scrutinize power without fear or favor. And when a reporter is referred to, even jokingly, as “staff,” the public has every right to ask questions.
So, was Burns’ “staff” remark just a harmless slip of the tongue? Or does it hint at something deeper...a closeness that undermines the watchdog role voters depend on? Is Alex Harrison truly an independent journalist… or something closer to “staff”?
📌 Watch the 19-second clip.
📌 Consider the patterns.
📌 Decide for yourself.
#EvanstonPolitics #MediaAccountability #EvanstonSpeaks #TransparencyMatters #NotBiss #DanielBiss #MeleikaGardner #AlexHarrison #EvanstonRoundtable #Evanston #9thCongressionalDistrict
Did Councilmember Bobby Burns Make a Telling Slip of the Tongue? At the July 28, 2025 Special City Council Meeting, Councilmember Bobby Burns made what some might call a telling slip of the tongue - referring to Evanston Roundtable reporter Alex Harrison as “staff.”
Mayor Daniel Biss quickly joked: “Is the Roundtable now staff?”
It might have sounded light in the moment, but it raises a fair question: how independent is local political coverage in Evanston?
Concerns about the Roundtable’s political coverage go back years. During the last election, Councilmember Tom Suffredin openly questioned the Roundtable’s decision to publish a sharply critical candidate column from his opponent, Candance Chow - who had a long-standing business relationship with Roundtable Executive Director Tracy Quatrocki. The Roundtable also carried campaign ads for Chow.
Tracy stated that the Roundtable does not take sides in politics. Still, many residents question whether coverage always reflects that standard. Consider this: Alex Harrison’s reporting on Mayor Biss and certain council members has been consistently favorable, even when those officials faced major, documented controversies:
Biss refused to support a Gaza ceasefire resolution to stop the killing of children. He refused.
The Firefighter Pension Fund President presented documented proof the City budget had been overstated by tens of millions over multiple years - Biss stayed silent.
$330,000 requested from the federal government for housing is unaccounted for, and despite residents repeatedly asking where it went, Biss has shown no urgency or public concern.
The reparations program, widely criticized as too small, saw no push from Biss for improvement or greater impact, despite the City having the means to do better. But reportedly promises to do it at the Congress level. Would you trust him to do that at a higher level when he didn't do it a local level?
Longtime Parks & Recreation leader Leonard Woodson, who served the Disabled community for over 35 years, was forced into early retirement. Many in the community felt the coverage of Woodson’s departure overlooked his decades of achievement and carried an uncomfortable undertone that didn’t reflect the value of his service.
A Public Works Department investigation has been completed, but Biss refuses to release it. Instead, he is expected to issue a sanitized summary that protects the City rather than revealing the full findings.
Mayor Biss has been quick to speak out for the Latino community and to pose for photos in support of reparations, but for the Disabled community? Crickets.
For a democracy to function, local press must scrutinize power without fear or favor. And when a reporter is referred to, even jokingly, as “staff,” the public has every right to ask questions.
So, was Burns’ “staff” remark just a harmless slip of the tongue? Or does it hint at something deeper...a closeness that undermines the watchdog role voters depend on? Is Alex Harrison truly an independent journalist… or something closer to “staff”?
📌 Watch the 19-second clip.
📌 Consider the patterns.
📌 Decide for yourself.
#EvanstonPolitics #MediaAccountability #EvanstonSpeaks #TransparencyMatters #NotBiss #DanielBiss #MeleikaGardner #AlexHarrison #EvanstonRoundtable #Evanston #9thCongressionalDistrict
