Recently we received two complaints regarding Aaron Crowley’s June column. The heart of the complaints were that the column was “right wing, wrong, and had no place in the Slippery Rock Gazette.”

Both individuals wanted to know if Aaron’s comments reflected “the position” of Braxton-Bragg, its management/owners, and/or the Slippery Rock Gazette. One individual said that he would never buy from Braxton-Bragg because we published Aaron’s column. Since my “day job” is president of Braxton-Bragg, and our profits are used to finance the Slippery Rock Gazette, this, of course, got my attention.

I believe that if one person takes the time to criticize, you can figure that several others feel the same way and did not take the time to write. I also believe that criticism can be a blessing if you take the time to think through what is said and then try to use it to improve. After re-reading the article twice and discussing the issue with our staff, here are my thoughts.

  1. The mission of the Slippery Rock Gazette is to inform, educate and especially to entertain. The mission of Braxton-Bragg is to distribute tools better, faster, and cheaper than our competitors. It is not our objective to write a political commentary magazine. The owners and employees of Braxton-Bragg represent both ends and the middle of the political spectrum, as well as some who want no part of the spectrum at all. We do not have a litmus test for religion or politics; we do have a litmus test regarding customer service.
  2. Aaron’s charge is to write about the real life experience of running a stone shop. The legal environment of business is obviously part of that experience. Aaron’s view seems to be that the government is intrusive and is hurting the economy and industry. He clearly believes that President Obama’s rhetoric is not helping to educate people. He is advocating that business owners fill that gap.
  3. I think that the underlying issues of both complaints involves our responsibility to provide “fair and balanced” comments and the issue of determining what is appropriate for the magazine. I don’t believe that presenting “fair and balanced” views by a publication is possible or desirable. We simply don’t have the wisdom to provide that. We do, however, offer space for all points of view in our “soap box” section, and we publish letters to the editor. This is a forum available to all, and I would urge you all to write in with your views.
    The issue of appropriate is a little more tricky. The SRG is a family magazine. As publisher, I have no trouble censoring words or pictures that are inappropriate. If they appear in the SRG, it means we have failed to do our job properly. I do, however, have doubts regarding my wisdom to determine what is or is not an appropriate political view for others to have.
    My understanding of history is that the country’s founders viewed the free expression of ideas to be important for the republic. Furthermore, they viewed the press as a viable forum for expressing ideas, not as an arbiter of the value of the ideas expressed. I think that is the safest way to leave it.
  4. So, if this leaves you confused regarding the “position” of the SRG, Aaron’s views are Aaron’s views. We are happy to publish alternative views. Politics and government are now so intertwined with business, to artificially say what is and what is not appropriate is not something we feel capable of doing. We have confidence in the marketplace, including the marketplace of ideas, and we would urge all to join in and, of course, we hope that you will consider purchasing from Braxton-Bragg and supporting the advertisers of the Slippery Rock Gazette.

Sincerely,
Rich Hassert

CEO, Braxton-Bragg

Publisher, Slippery Rock Gazette

Responses from our avid readers to any of the articles appearing in the Slippery Rock Gazette are always encouraged, and we will try to print as many as possible. If you would like to comment, please send an email to publisher@slipperyrockgazette.net or just simply click "contact" to leave a comment with your contact information, in the boxes provided.