D-G Remembers Hairy Roebuck

It wasn’t much of a surprise when Lucas Roebuck announced on Jan. 10 that he’s seeking the District 97 state representative’s seat, which includes Siloam Springs and the hinterlands of west Washington County. Roebuck left his job as managing editor of the Northwest Arkansas Times at the end of the year because he couldn’t keep working there and run for public office.

But we were a little surprised by the photo of him that was used Jan. 11 in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette with an article about his announcement.

Roebuck, who turned 27 on Jan. 13, shaved his beard off and got a haircut before making his candidacy official. The Morning News and the Times sent photographers to Siloam Springs to cover the announcement and to get fresh photos of the fresh-faced boy candidate. But the D-G used one of Roebuck’s old column photos from the Times instead. (The D-G and Times are in an “alliance” in which the Times serves as a local news section for the D-G in Washington County.)

Maybe it was just laziness on the part of the statewide newspaper, but the photo makes Roebuck look, well, rebellious, which anyone who has read his column knows he is not. A self-proclaimed “evangelical Christian,” Roebuck is perhaps best remembered for a column he wrote for the Times saying Fayetteville Mayor Dan Coody had done the wrong thing by opening the mayor’s prayer breakfasts to people of all faiths. On this one, we happen to agree with Coody.