Arshinkoff bullies everyone. That's what he is… nothing but a big bully. I can't believe the ABJ would back down from him of all people.

Unless you work directly for him, I can't for the life of me figure out what makes people shimmy and shake when he yells anymore. He doesn't have any juice anymore. He is more of a liability to anyone than an asset. There are more anti-Arhinkoff elected Republicans in Summit County than their are those who remain in his grasps…. and it's only a matter of time until they are either anti-Alex or no longer an elected Republican.

If Ben is a good Republican blogger…. and he is, then cut these guys loose. It's an exciting political year. Please do not take away this forum to get into the meat and bones of local politics because Ben just so happens to prefer Coughlin over Arshinkoff.

Good luck finding a conservative Republican blogger with any talent who would say a good thing about Arshinkoff.

The Plain Dealer and Cleveland.com went through this exercise recently when it took down it's political blog exchange when it was revealed one of the bloggers supported candidates with their wallet; now the Beacon Journal and Ohio.com are in the middle of it.

The ABJ's efforts should be commended; building a website to encourage political debate is a good thing. Providing commentary from a variety of backgrounds and viewpoints is exactly the point, and those who opine shouldn't be disqualified from doing so because they take their politics personally, even to the point of working as candidates.

If Ben Keeler feels strongly enough to take not only an editorial stand on the web but also to put his time, money and effort into that passion — and is honest and transparent to his readers — isn't that the greater good of the political debate?

There's a big irony here in that Keeler and the Ohio.com blog are placed on hiatus because Alex complained to the editors behind the scene while the blogger in question was open about his stand.

The political debate in Akron isn't helped by shutting down the conversation between opposing parties. The editors at the Beacon Journal should realize the chairman of the county party, his supporters and his opponents should (and can) speak up for themselves, just as Keeler does.

Consider this political free speech math: you can't add to the debate by subtracting voices.

Don't blame your cowardice on Ben's honest effort at full disclosure.

Let me get this straight, you say:

"We also asked that they take care not to use our site to further their personal political interests."

As far as I can gather from your "About This Site" blurb, you hired these guys specifically because their involvement in local politics made them perfect candidates to 'represent their respective parties' and 'to open up a new corridor in opinions, perspectives and conversations' with their 'insight, analysis and commentary' on local and state politics.

And you expected them to do this without discussing their "personal political interests?"

[Head spins 180 degrees]

Squelching this blog at the first hint of establishment blow-back would be a terribly embarrassing black eye for the ABJ. I cannot think of a better way of alienating bloggers and ensuring that the ABJ misses the new media bus.

ABJ – you said it yourselves. You shouldn't censor your own beliefs. Ben's discussion of his views lead to the free flow of ideas, and educated discussion about an issue that is very real for Republicans in Summit County.

Mr. Arshinkoff is an adult and should act the part. If he can't take a little criticism, he probably shouldnt be in politics anyway.

Get back to what you believe and get on with the blogging…

I'm not going to waste anyone's time reiterating what my fellow commenters have eloquently stated in defense of this site, because each of those who have lobbied against your decision thus far make excellent points.

So instead, let's focus on why it is to your utmost benefit to allow this site to continue:

Fact: Your medium is suffering. Goldman Sachs predicts a 7.9% drop in revenue against printed newspapers this year, compounding a 1.8% decline in 2006. (source: MediaPost, 1/10/08) Circulation across printed newspapers continues to decline year-over-year as younger generations expect instant gratification and look to more immediate, cost-effective forms of media as sources of news.

But this news isn't tragic. The Newspaper Association of America reported an online audience boom in 2007:
Unique audience for newspaper Web sites: +9% (4Q'07)
Average users/month: 62.8 million
Average time spent on site: 44 minutes
(sources: Nielsen Online, MediaPost 1/25/08)

As the official online home of the Akron Beacon Journal, you have a lot to gain by allowing existing readers (and potential readers) to read, digest, and engage in political discourse. Why? This site is the future of your medium. It may not be the cash cow of your business now, but keeping your audience engaged – particularly during a pivotal election year – will ensure that you are looked upon as an authoritative news source.

Ultimately, Mr. Keeler and Mr. Kutuchief attract visitors. Visitors allow for impressite site metrics. Site vitality attracts advertisers, and advertiser revenue will ensure that the Akron Beacon Journal remains a well-oiled machine.

Beyond all of the statistics and points I've articulated above, I have known both of these bloggers for many years and can attest to their passion for politics and their devotion to reporting their views with as much fairness, accuracy, and disclosure as possible. They know facts, they know platforms, and most importantly, they know how to engage even the least politically-interested person in intelligent discussion – a person who may be a future ABJ or ABJ.com reader. You know, the person who will ultimately control the vitality of your business.

In short, you have suspended two incredibly smart political bloggers who have their finger on the pulse of Northeast Ohio's political landscape. Shame on you.

As Peter Pattakos mentioned above, if Mr. Arshinkoff takes issue with this particular site, by all means – allow him to control his own destiny by posting his responses in a proactive manner instead of childishly (and foolishly) using baseless methods of coercion in an attempt to advance his own interests.

In this situation, Ben working to have Arshnikoff unseated is not significantly different from a newspaper endorsing a candidate. At the very least, ABJ/Ohio.com must explain why it is different enough for them to justify pulling the plug on Ben and Kyle.

Anyone that ABJ/Ohio.com would hire as a blogger would undoubtedly have her/his own political affiliations and support one candidate over another in any given race. They're better off with Ben out there disclosing who he is working for than having someone in his place who would keep his affiliations secret. Otherwise we're left to wonder just what agenda this hypothetical replacement would have, a problem that affects much of the content that appears in newspapers and a primary factor contributing to why newspapers are losing their market share.

If the ABJ/Ohio.com is concerned with independence, an easy and invigorating solution is to allow Arshnikoff to submit his own responses on the site. Let them appear as main posts rather than as comments. This would provide exacly the kind of dialogue that the site should want to create, and would only allow for readers to make a more informed choice at the ballot box.

And then scurries behind the ACLU to help him out of the legal jam?

Mr. Arshinkoff, like the posters above have pointed out, is free to refute or correct any claim made on this website. By having the website come to a halt, one can easily infer that he lacks either the capacity or the grounds to support his position. Is Mr. Arshinkoff's grip so tenuous that he has to resort to enforcing his seemingly dictatorial will on an experimental website that openly discloses any agendas or affiliations of the posters? Perhaps Mr. Arshinkoff should remember that the debate and discussion of ideas is a cornerstone of any functioning democracy and the mere fact he does not like the ideas is no grounds to cry foul. Also, he should examine how he arrived at this political battle: heavy-handed management, poor electoral results, and a disregard for those who do not toe his exact line.

What Are You Going To Do About It?

As anyone reading this blog could see, that in no way did it ever say that the blogger was being paid by the ABJ to promote himself in any way, and to cave in to pressure after one day is ridiculous. Please get this blog up and running so these individuals can get back to the job that you are paying them to do, which is to inspire discussion amongst friends and strangers and promote the healthy debate of issues concerning the country and the great state of Ohio. Also to my fellow KPR and TCS readers and contributers, only 5 comments left so far? Come on people and voice your opinion and pledge your support for Ben and Kyle and get this site back up and running strong!

Second, did you really take all this time to conceive, plan, design, staff and launch "the best site in providing robust and newsworthy information," just so you could shut it down the first time some GOP stooge gets a bee in his bonnet?

Heaven forbid we hear about politics from someone involved in politics. If you let a Republican talk about things that matter to Republicans, who knows what waits down that slippery slope?

Next thing you know, your community calendar will be nothing but press releases sent by the people holding the events!

And volunteers for presidential candidates will be writing letters to the editor asking people to vote for them!

And columnists will be telling stories about their own families and trying to convince everyone to join their religion!

How about this: If Knight-Ridder won't let you hire enough employees to cover the news the way it's supposed to be done, get the job done another way.

Stop the navel-gazing.

Stop treating us like idiots.

Give us something to read.