As published in Toledo Business Journal - November 1, 2010

Blade ombudsman challenged

On Sunday, October 10, 2010, The Blade published an article by its ombudsman, Jack Lessenberry, with the headline, Mistakes occur, but they don’t constitute a secret plot.

In the article, Lessenberry tells readers that he has never seen a case where the editorial management at The Blade has ever used conduct that would be considered a “major ethical failing.”

Lessenberry also discusses The Blade’s conduct concerning the political process in our area. “… I’ve never seen a case where I thought a reporter or editor was injecting their personal partisan political bias into a story.”

Lessenberry’s comments in this article, shared with the newspaper’s readers, could not be ignored. His claim, as an ombudsman, that he has never seen a reporter or editor of The Blade inject their “personal partisan political bias into a story,” does not allow other media to remain silent.

We understand that Lessenberry spends a significant amount of time in Michigan. Is it possible that he is not aware of actions by The Blade in the Toledo region?

Is he not aware that the newspaper has been used over the years to damage the reputation of individuals and organizations that do not follow its direction? Is he not aware that its publisher and editor-in-chief has used the newspaper to satisfy his need for power and control?

Is Lessenberry not aware that many political leaders in the area and others are scarred to death of “crossing” The Blade and its publisher and editor-in-chief, John Robinson Block?

Is Lessenberry not aware that many political leaders and others have acted against their will in order to comply with the wishes of The Blade and Block?

Is Lessenberry not aware that allegations have surfaced that public officials have been threatened with the destruction of their reputation and their career if they did not comply with the alleged wishes of The Blade and Block? Is he not aware of the role that Jerry Chabler, an associate of Block, has played in the past? Is he not aware of allegations from community leaders that Chabler has delivered threats that The Blade would be used to damage their reputation if they did not comply with the wishes of Block and the newspaper?

Is he not aware that such alleged threats put political leaders in a position of deciding whether to be “smeared” in a campaign of articles and editorials to be published in The Blade or comply with the threat?

The Blade and Lessenberry represent that he is an Ombudsman. One definition of this role is an individual charged with the duty of investigating and redressing the sources of complaints lodged by private citizens against the newspaper.

Is it appropriate that Lessenberry be challenged to investigate the use of the newspaper to conduct personal vendetta campaigns?

Is it appropriate that Lessenberry be challenged to investigate the alleged threat of the use of the newspaper to harm community leaders in order to attempt to force them to act against their will?

Is Lessenberry not aware that The Blade and Block have used the newspaper to conduct personal vendettas against community leaders who do not comply with their direction?

Is Lessenberry not aware of the damage and destruction The Blade and Block have done to leadership in the region? Is he not aware of the significant cost the region has incurred as a result of the actions and the practices of The Blade and its publisher and editor-in-chief?

Some of the actions and practices of The Blade and Block have been documented in detail in a series of articles published by Toledo Business Journal titled, Personal Vendetta Exposed. Lessenberry and others can find this information and documentation at www.toledobiz.com.

In one of the articles in the series, documentation was provided of a threat made by Block, in public, to the board members of the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority who did not comply with his wishes. There is extensive documentation of the actions of The Blade and Block following this threat. Documentation is provided concerning the use of the daily newspaper to conduct a vendetta campaign aimed at the destruction of the personal reputations of community leaders who were the target of Block’s public threat.

In another article in the series, documentation was provided of a vendetta campaign against the leadership of the YMCA of Toledo. The campaign of articles and editorials designed to destroy the reputation of the YMCA and its leadership was unleashed after the organization failed to comply with the direction given to it by The Blade and Block.

In Lessenberry’s recent column, he advised that he has never seen a case where the editorial management at The Blade has ever used conduct that would be considered a “major ethical failing.”

Would Lessenberry consider the use of a daily newspaper to conduct personal vendetta campaigns against community leaders who do not comply with the wishes of the newspaper and its publisher to be a “major ethical failing?”

In his recent article, Lessenberry advised readers that reporters and editors are very busy and they do make mistakes, but the conduct does not constitute “a secret plot.”

Does Lessenberry consider the use of The Blade to conduct personal vendetta campaigns to be the mistake of busy editors and reporters?

Or does Lessenberry recognize The Blade and Block’s conduct to be a “major ethical failure” that does great harm to our region?