Although Peter Rinaldi’s opponents don’t seem to mind him using his magazine’s Web site to promote his campaign for Natchez city clerk, at least one journalism professor says it’s a &uot;conflict of interest.&uot;

On Saturday, Rinaldi, who publishes Miss-Lou Magazine, posted a column critical of the city’s current administration and advocating his campaign on the magazine’s Web site.

Dr. Louis Hodges, the Knight professor of ethics in journalism at Washington and Lee University, said he sees a conflict of interest when any journalist runs for public office.

Hodges, whose university is in Lexington, Va., an historic town of 7,000 people, said that, especially in small towns, publishers are often &uot;knowledgeable and qualified&uot; to run for office, ethically there can be a problem.

&uot;In principle, there is a serious conflict of interest when any journalist runs for public office,&uot; Hodges said. &uot;In a big city that doesn’t pose too much of a problem.&uot;

Rinaldi is seeking the city clerk’s post along with Billy Geoghegan, Donnie Holloway and Dr. Fredericka Todd.

Among his accusations in the Web site column are that the city currently has a debt service of $30 million and that eight years ago the city had $5 million in reserve.

But Natchez Mayor Larry L. &uot;Butch&uot; Brown said when he took office eight years ago, the city was more than $500,000 overdrawn.

And Brown said the city’s debt service isn’t as high as $30 million. Last summer, the city refinanced the $6 million it owes in bond money and in December borrowed $12 million in bond funds to pay for the downtown convention center project.

&uot;Peter Rinaldi has absolutely no clue as to the finances of the City of Natchez, despite the best efforts of (City Clerk) Frances Trosclair to explain them,&uot; Brown said.

Brown said he has never had a conversation with Rinaldi, but that Trosclair has &uot;spent hours&uot; explaining the city’s budget to Rinaldi.

On the Web page, Rinaldi wrote, &uot;I’ll draw the line on financial mismanagement, wasteful expenditures, conflicts of interest and ‘bone-headed’ projects.&uot;

Rinaldi said he wants Natchez citizens to have an idea about what goes on in government.

&uot;The people need to have an insider’s view of government that they don’t get now,&uot; he said.

On Saturday, Holloway said he had not read Rinaldi’s comments on the Web site. But Holloway said he is not bothered by Rinaldi’s using it to campaign.

&uot;We’re just running our campaign and running on qualifications,&uot; Holloway said.

Geoghegan, who could not be reached for comment Saturday, said Friday that he is also not bothered by Rinaldi’s use of the Web site.

&uot;It doesn’t really bother me,&uot; Geoghegan said. &uot;It might be a little easier for him (to get his message out), but it really doesn’t bother me.&uot;

Todd did not wish to comment on Rinaldi’s magazine or Web site.

&uot;My major theme that I’m concerned about is going door-to-door and trying to meet the people,&uot; Todd said.