Midwest
Harley-Davidson board of directors silent on future, fate of 'woke' CEO and chairman
![Harley-Davidson board of directors silent on future, fate of 'woke' CEO and chairman Harley-Davidson board of directors silent on future, fate of 'woke' CEO and chairman](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Harley-split-circle-BK2-8-24.png)
Harley-Davidson accused of going ‘woke’
‘America Reports’ panelists Taylor Riggs and Jackie DeAngelis discuss the controversy surrounding the iconic motorcycle company and the importance of political neutrality in businesses.
The leadership of Harley-Davidson is facing questions following a series of curious strategic decisions and public relations moves that have attracted widespread attention.
The “woke” internal agenda of CEO Jochen Zeitz, and the shocking comparisons he made of himself to the Taliban, the global terror group, in his quest for “sustainability” have damaged the motorcycle maker’s brand integrity, many say — plus sparked outrage on social media and launched a rebellion among Harley-Davidson’s loyal customers.
Just two days ago, the company released a statement renouncing DEI and other controversial initiatives it had put into place in recent years.
HARLEY-DAVIDSON CEO COMPARES HIMSELF TO ‘TALIBAN’ IN EFFORT TO REMAKE MOTORCYCLE BRAND
“It is critical to our business that we hire and retain the best talent and that all employees feel welcome,” the company noted.
“That said, we have not operated a DEI function since April 2024, and we do not have a DEI function today. We do not have hiring quotas and we no longer have supplier diversity spend goals.”
Jochen Zietz, chairman and CEO of Harley-Davidson, has compared himself to the Taliban, the global terror group, in his quest for “sustainability.” Inset: a biker with an American flag on his Harley. (Reuters/Brendan McDermid | Reuters)
In late July, filmmaker and conservative political commentator Robby Starbuck tweeted, “@harleydavidson has been one of the most beloved brands in America but recently on CEO Jochen Zeitz’s watch, they’ve gone totally woke.” This week, Starbuck celebrated the company’s change of heart.
“Recently on CEO Jochen Zeitz’s watch, they’ve gone totally woke.”
Given this and more, there are increasing concerns about the direction of the Milwaukee motorcycle maker, one of America’s most beloved brands.
Zeitz is both Harley-Davidson’s CEO and chairman of the board.
HARLEY-DAVIDSON SLAMS BRAKES ON ‘WOKE’ POLICIES AFTER SPARKING BIKER AND SOCIAL-MEDIA OUTRAGE
Fox News Digital this week attempted to reach Zeitz and Harley-Davidson, as well as each member of its board of directors, to discuss their versions of recent events, as well as other issues.
![Jochen Zeitz](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Harley-Davidson-board-of-directors-silent-on-future-fate-of-x27wokex27.jpg)
Jochen Zeitz is seen in Nuremberg, Germany, in 2008, years before he became CEO and chairman of the board of Harley-Davidson. (Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)
Here is the result.
HARLEY-DAVIDSON ‘USED’ BIKERS BEFORE ‘WOKE’ CONTROVERSY, FORMER OUTLAW RIDER CLAIM
Jochen Zeitz
Board bio: Chairman, president and chief executive officer, Harley-Davidson, Inc.
Additional bio: Became CEO of Puma at age 30, founder of Team B with a mission to define business by social agenda, and opened the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art in South Africa in 2017.
“We are trying to take on traditional capitalism and trying to redefine it,” Zeitz told executives at a globalist business summit in Switzerland in 2020, the year he became CEO of Harley-Davidson.
Reply to Fox News Digital: Did not respond to phone or email requests from Fox News Digital.
![Harley-Davidson rider](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/1724426245_430_Harley-Davidson-board-of-directors-silent-on-future-fate-of-x27wokex27.jpg)
Festival participants are shown on their Harley-Davidson bikes at the big ride in Saxony, Dresden, Germany, in July 2023. (Matthias Rietschel/picture alliance/Getty Images)
Troy Alstead
Board bio: President and CEO, Ocean5 and Table 47, founder of Harbor 05, LLC, and former chief operating officer, Starbucks Corporation
Reply to Fox News Digital: No response.
Jared Dourdeville
Board bio: H Partners Management, LLC
Reply to Fox News Digital: No response.
James Duncan Farley Jr.
Board bio: President and chief executive officer Ford Motor Company
Reply to Fox News Digital: No response.
Allan Golston
Board bio: President, United States Program for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Reply to Fox News Digital: “I’m not able to comment,” Golston said, and hung up the phone. Also, an out-of-office message arrived via email.
![Harley-Davidson Motorcycles sign](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/1724426245_759_Harley-Davidson-board-of-directors-silent-on-future-fate-of-x27wokex27.jpg)
A Harley-Davidson logo is seen near a store in Krakow, Poland, in January. (Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Sara Levinson
Board bio: Co-founder and former director of Katapult Studio, former executive, Clubmom, Inc., NFL Properties, Inc. and MTV: Music Television.
Reply to Fox News Digital: No response.
For more Lifestyle articles, visit foxnews/lifestyle
Norman Thomas Linebarger
Board bio: Former executive chairman of Cummins, Inc. and former chairman and chief executive officer of Cummins, Inc.
Reply to Fox News Digital: No response.
![Zeitz of Harley-Davidson while making a speech](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/1724426245_699_Harley-Davidson-board-of-directors-silent-on-future-fate-of-x27wokex27.jpg)
Jochen Zeitz, then-CEO of Puma, is shown in Berlin in 2009. (Michele Tantussi/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Rafeh Masood
Board bio: Chief growth and digital officer of Royal Caribbean Group
Reply to Fox News Digital: Unnamed individual answered phone, said Masood was not available.
Maryrose Sylvester
Board bio: Former executive, ABB Group, General Electric Intelligent Platforms, and General Electric Lighting
Reply to Fox News Digital: No response.
Fox News Digital’s Hannah Grossman contributed to this report.
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Detroit, MI
Position Battles to Watch in Lions’ Preseason Finale
![Position Battles to Watch in Lions’ Preseason Finale Position Battles to Watch in Lions’ Preseason Finale](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_5014,h_2820,x_0,y_0/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/all_lions/01j5zm4p7g2vbvnjshgh.jpg)
The Detroit Lions are nearing the end of the preseason, and as a result the time to make key roster decisions is running out.
Dan Campbell and Brad Holmes have seen plenty since training camp opened in mid-July, as players have made their pitches for a roster spot over the last month with their performance. Though the Lions have much of their starting lineup locked into stone, the depth behind those starters will be key.
Several position groups have ongoing battles for important depth roles. With starters unlikely to play in Saturday’s game against Pittsburgh, the game itself will be a showcase for players looking to make the final roster.
Here are three position battles to watch in the Lions’ preseason finale.
Backup quarterback
If all goes according to Dan Campbell’s plan, Hendon Hooker will be the starting quarterback in Saturday’s game. He said he hopes to start the Tennessee product during the week, and actually planned to in Week 2 had he not gotten injured and missed practice time.
As a result, Hooker’s final preseason audition for the backup job could be an extended one. Campbell is likely weighing multiple options as far as how long to play. Nate Sudfeld will likely get reps at some point, but it remains to be determined just how much both passers play.
Campbell offered some clarity on the backup job, stating that Sudfeld has “the upper hand” over Hooker in terms of experience and time with the system. It may not be finished, however, as Hooker has the opportunity to make a strong case for the backup job in Saturday’s game.
Detroit appears to be being patient with Hooker’s development, and while Campbell wouldn’t 100 percent commit to keeping three quarterbacks, he seemed to imply that was the direction it was going during his press conference Tuesday.
Wide receiver 3/4
The wide receiver position has been one that has caught plenty of attention throughout camp, particularly for the lack of clarity on the spots behind Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams. Campbell named Kalif Raymond as WR3, but admitted the team would prefer not to play him a heavy workload because of his ability as a returner.
Plenty of players have stood out at points in practice, such as Kaden Davis, Daurice Fountain, Isaiah Williams and Donovan Peoples-Jones. However, Campbell has said that they are still missing the necessary consistency that would allow the staff to feel confident in their options.
Williams could be the biggest benefactor of a big game Saturday. He has been the top playmaker for the offense each of the last two games. Though he may face an uphill climb toward a roster spot, the Illinois product has made a strong case and can continue building it with another good showing.
Tight end 3/4
With Sam LaPorta dealing with an injury and Brock Wright not playing in the preseason, Saturday will be the last of three opportunities for the Lions’ depth to compete for the third tight end role.
This competition has been one that is unique, because the players competing for the third tight end role all have vastly different skill sets. Shane Zylstra and James Mitchell have the pass-catching profile, while Sean McKeon and Parker Hesse are more known for their blocking ability.
In the end, the Lions could elect to keep four players at this position. It could shake out to be one receiving and one blocking tight end that stays alongside LaPorta and Wright, so Saturday’s game will carry a lot of weight at what could be one of the final positions with available roster spots.
Milwaukee, WI
Groundbreaking announced for Downtown MKE Dog Park
The new MKE Dog Park is expected to open later this year at 103 W. Clybourn St. and a groundbreaking ceremony has been set for Thursday, Sept. 5 at 3 p.m.
The 22,000-square-foot dog park – a collaboration between Milwaukee Downtown, Business Improvement District #21 (BID #21) and the Historic Third Ward Business Improvement District #2 (BID #2) – will be built beneath the I-794 freeway, along the west bank of the Milwaukee River, which will also get a new section of RiverWalk.
Adjacent to the park will be the Foxtown Landing development with a restaurant and brewery taproom, as well as copious outdoor space on the riverfront.
The dog park will include separate fenced areas for big dogs and small dogs; synthetic turf with an irrigation system for maintenance; security lighting; decorative fencing; water stations; public art; and RiverWalk access.
“Since announcing plans for Downtown’s first dog park at this underutilized space, excitement for the project has continued to grow,” said Matt Dorner, economic development director for Milwaukee Downtown, BID #21. “Businesses of all sizes, philanthropic partners and thousands of residents have pledged their support for this vital amenity.
“While fundraising efforts continue, their enthusiasm for the project has brought us to this exciting juncture.”
Naming rights for the park were purchased in 2002 by Fromm Nieman Brands, which owns Fromm Family Pet Foods and Foxtown Brewery & Station in Mequon.
The following year, the Admirals signed on as a signature sponsor of the dog park.
“We are thrilled to be the title sponsor of the Downtown Milwaukee Dog Park,” said Tom Neiman, owner of Fromm Family Pet Food.
“As a family-owned business committed to the well-being of pets, we believe this new amenity will enhance the quality of life for both dogs and their owners in the community. We’re delighted to be part of the upward momentum taking place in the greater Downtown area.”
Exploratory work on the adjacent site was undertaken earlier this year to determine whether or not foundations of earlier buildings remained on the future Foxtown Landing site and work is expected to begin there soon.
On July 25, the City of Milwaukee’s Board of Zoning Appeals approved a variance request from the Foxtown Landing developers to allow a design that does not conform to rules for street frontage windows. Next, the Department of City Development will consider the permit to construct the building’s foundation.
By next time this year, if all goes well, the dog park should be in use as the new Foxtown Landing rises to its south.
“The Downtown Milwaukee Dog Park area will be revitalized to meet the growing demands of our residents, employees and guests,” said Paul Schwartz, executive director of the Milwaukee Public Market and BID #2.
“The groundbreaking celebration is an opportunity to thank all of our committed partners, sponsors and those that have supported the project from the beginning, while also engaging new champions on the sponsorship opportunities still available.”
Minneapolis, MN
How did the Minnesota Star Tribune get its start?
![How did the Minnesota Star Tribune get its start? How did the Minnesota Star Tribune get its start?](https://cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/startribunemedia/7ADANGVHEZEHLJP4UEMBJZIOEY.jpg)
A burgeoning Minneapolis had just incorporated as a city in 1867 when the first edition of the Minneapolis Tribune rolled off the presses. The new broadsheet began with an apology.
“The lines being down most all day yesterday, we are without the greater part of our dispatches,” the newspaper reported atop its front page. “No one can regret this accident more than ourselves.”
It was (mostly) all up from there. As the company marks a new era as the Minnesota Star Tribune, it was the perfect time to tackle a question about its history. Curious Minnesota superfan Sharon Carlson asked the Strib’s reader-powered reporting project: “How did the Star Tribune get its start?”
Carlson, who lives in Andover, remembers getting angry as a kid because her parents would read the paper “all day long” on Sundays. She now does the same thing, and thinks of the newspaper as “a rare form of education and entertainment.”
There isn’t one origin story, but several. The Minnesota Star Tribune is the result of many newspaper mergers over the decades. Its primary forbears are the Tribune, the Minneapolis Journal (founded in 1878) and the Minneapolis Star (founded in 1920).
From the early days covering a plague of locusts to the “romance” of Minneapolis’ Newspaper Row, these papers bore witness to the biggest events in Minnesota history.
Minneapolis was home to about 7,000 people when the Tribune launched. The streets were unpaved, the sidewalks were wood planks, and there was “no fire department, no sanitary system, no trained nurses, no city water supply,” wrote former editor Bradley L. Morison in “Sunlight on Your Doorstep: The Minneapolis Tribune’s First Hundred Years.”
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