Goodyear.
It’s one of the few things that nearly everyone in Akron has in common. You’ve either worked at Goodyear, are related to someone who worked there or, at the very least, you know someone who worked there.
Newspaper stories about “Mother Goodyear” touch nearly everyone. As a result, anything that involves the company has a special significance for the Akron Beacon Journal.
And with each new dismal chapter coming out of its headquarters on East Market Street, readers get increasingly vocal about the coverage. Too harsh. Too soft. Too much. Too little.
This e-mail from Akron reader Tom Will illustrates why, good or bad, Goodyear news is big news. In it, he says that many people may not realize “they are seeing their future and the future of Akron going down the drain.”
Specifically, the recent Goodyear retiree wants the paper to do a better job of educating readers about the company’s overall impact on Akron, such as the corporate taxes it pays, its involvement in local charities and civic groups and its employee contributions to city taxes and schools.
“The bottom line is that if we allow Goodyear to fold, it would devastate Akron’s economy, its schools and its standard of living.”
Will sent these final thoughts: “I believe now is the time to tell us what Goodyear means to everyone residing in Northeastern Ohio. Better to be pre-emptive than to have a future series on `What Happened To Goodyear?’
“Time for all of us to be a Goodyear booster; our future depends upon it!!! In the Akron/Canton area there should be Goodyears in every garage and a Hoover in every closet.”
Business editor Steve Berta agrees it would be helpful to examine all the many ways Goodyear is sewn into the fabric of life in Akron. However, he cautions, “research for that story may reveal facts that may or may not reflect positively on the current management of Goodyear.”
However, Will raises some interesting points about the role of the local newspaper in a community. He’s right, we all feel it when Goodyear’s hurting.
Ultimately, a newspaper has a duty to help readers understand the problems along with the solutions. Any newspaper loses credibility with readers when it fails to report the negative along with the positive.
Unlike Will, who simply wants greater awareness of Goodyear’s contributions and appreciation for them, some people expect newspapers to deceive readers to protect local institutions. Like most editors, Berta recoils at that suggestion.
“I can’t imagine a time when it is a good idea for a journalist to squander his or her credibility for the sake of supporting some powerful person or company.
“That’s where a journalist has to draw the line: no lies, half-truths, censorship, spin, period.”
In the search for truth about Goodyear, Berta’s staff talks to the public relations staff, top managers, former executives, retirees, contractors, suppliers, vendors, competitors, financial analysts, stockholders, you name it.
Berta believes the reporting has to be that thorough “precisely because Goodyear is so important to our readers and to the future of the region.”
The company’s importance to the region hasn’t been this evident since 1986, when Akron helped Goodyear fight off a hostile takeover attempt by Sir James Goldsmith. In many ways, that support continues today.
When I asked a group of readers what Goodyear meant to them, their responses were both poignant and pointed.
They valued Goodyear, its history and its influence. They also were clear about one thing: Be fair in covering Goodyear, report the facts, “but don’t persecute the hand that has fed many of us in Akron.”
Next Sunday’s column will examine some of those reader comments. I think you will find many of your own thoughts reflected in their words.
As reader Tom Will said, “I have resided in Akron for 33 years and it has been a wonderful place to raise a family. All of us want to see this continue.”
And that’s precisely why this newspaper sees the ongoing coverage of Goodyear to be of such critical importance. It’s the company that touches nearly everyone.
