The Devil Strip

Who we, the people of The Devil Strip, aspire to be for the people of Akron About 100 (out of 450 at our founding) newly minted co-owners of The Devil Strip Local News Co-op making faces after our inaugural shareholders meeting, held at the Akron Civic Theatre on Feb. 19, 2020. (Photo by Ashley Kouri/The Devil Strip) What we believe is important. T... o remind myself of this pretty simple fact, I keep this Simon Sinek quote by the door in our office: People dont buy what you do; they buy why you do it. And what you do simply proves what you believe. Belief is the origin of our actions. Though our wee team started this process in conversation amongst ourselves, we want to build this next version of The Devil Strip with you beginning with what we believe. This is a living document so tell us what you think. This is who we aspire to be. This is the standard to which well hold ourselves. But is this how you see us? Is this who you want or need us to be? Please highlight what you like or dislike, make notes, post comments. This is practice for whats coming up next. Thank you! Chris Horne chris (at) thedevilstrip (dot) com We believe the most important stories are the ones we tell ourselves about ourselves, and that this is as true for cities as it is individuals. For better or worse, every citys chief storyteller is its media. We take responsibility for our work because we know it shapes the way Akronites see each other, and the way we see each other influences how we treat one another. This is our reason for existing, not merely our editorial angle for stories. We are advocates for the city of Akron and allies to its people, so we may be cheerleaders, but that wont keep us from challenging the citys flaws. Whats the point of being part of the community if we cant help make it a better place for human beings to live? We would rather build trust through cooperation and collaboration than authority. Our place in the community is alongside it, not the outside looking in or trying to stand above it looking down. ...Read More