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Cleveland's anti-surveillance activists urge City Council to reject Mayor Justin Bibb's proposed switch from Flock Safety to Axon license plate readers.

Why it matters: The Flock No Cleveland campaign writes in a new letter that replacing one surveillance vendor with another ignores growing public opposition to AI-powered mass surveillance.

Catch up quick: Council introduced legislation Monday authorizing a one-year Axon contract, with four renewal options, to replace the city's roughly 100 Flock cameras.

Council voted in July to extend the current Flock contract for six months as the city considered new vendors. 

The intrigue: The proposal does not currently specify a contract price nor the total number of cameras.

"They're essentially asking you to write them a blank check," Flock No writes.

What they're saying: "Swapping out Flock for a different vendor is not going to magically erase public opposition to having our movement history and everyday activities being logged in a massive database," the group tells council members.

The other side: The Bibb administration says Axon offers stronger privacy safeguards while preserving a valuable law enforcement tool, Ideastream reports.

And though the issue has divided City Council, some members say they and their constituents support these cameras on safety grounds. 

Between the lines: Last week's election vividly illustrated the mounting skepticism toward powerful technology companies and their physical buildouts, with Ohio voters overwhelmingly approving local restrictions on data centers.

What we're watching: Council will consider the proposed Axon contract in committee in the coming weeks, though a hearing has not yet been announced.

The last word: "To authorize a new ALPR contract with Axon, whose technology operates on the same principle as Flock's and whose ties to the federal government go much deeper, would show a concerning lack of understanding of the political moment and the will of Clevelanders," the Flock No letter reads. 

Flock No to Cleveland: Axon isn't the answer

Anti-surveillance activists urge City Council to reject a license plate reader contract with a new vendor.

Photo illustration of a streetlight camera tilted at an angle, with a red bullseye pattern centered over the lens.

Photo illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios. Photo: Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images

Cleveland&#x27;s anti-surveillance activists urge City Council to reject Mayor Justin Bibb&#x27;s proposed switch from Flock Safety to Axon license plate readers.Why it matters: The <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Flock No Cleveland campaign" data-vars-click-url="https://www.flocknocle.com/" data-vars-content-id="4c131d5f-4be2-4ec9-855b-42841875dfd0" data-vars-headline="Flock No to Cleveland: Axon isn&#x27;t the answer" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.flocknocle.com/" target="_blank">Flock No Cleveland campaign</a> writes in a new letter that replacing one surveillance vendor with another ignores <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="growing public opposition" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/cleveland/2026/09/02/cleveland-flock-fight" data-vars-content-id="4c131d5f-4be2-4ec9-855b-42841875dfd0" data-vars-headline="Flock No to Cleveland: Axon isn&#x27;t the answer" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/cleveland/2026/09/02/cleveland-flock-fight" target="_self">growing public opposition</a> to AI-powered mass surveillance.

Politics

News

Public Safety

Journalists at the Akron Beacon Journal are withholding their bylines for two weeks to protest an AI tool they say is generating false information and undermining their reporting.

Why it matters: The labor action illustrates growing tensions between journalists and corporate publishers over the use of artificial intelligence in newsrooms.

Driving the news: Members of the Northeast Ohio NewsGuild began withholding their bylines in late October after USA Today Co. introduced DeeperDive, an AI-powered audience engagement tool featuring article summaries, bullet-point takeaways and a chatbot-style search function.

What they're saying: "The overall aim is to get corporate to understand our concerns about how forward-facing AI tools affect us as journalists," ABJ reporter and Guild spokesperson Bryce Buyakie tells Axios.

Buyakie says the tool has fabricated information across USA Today sites, including errors absent from original reporting and others that persisted even after corrections.

"In one egregious case in October," notes a NewsGuild statement, "DeeperDive substituted the name of a murder suspect with the reporter covering the case."

State of play: USA Today Co. has subsequently suspended DeeperDive's AI summaries and restricted its availability to only a small portion of readers for beta testing, Buyakie says.

The Guild filed a grievance Friday challenging the company's decision to restore bylines and is continuing its protest.

The other side: USA Today Co. has not responded to an Axios request for comment.

In correspondence obtained by Axios, USA Today Co. VP of labor relations Amy Garrard told the NewsGuild the action constituted an "illegal byline strike," saying the AI summaries had already been paused.

Between the lines: The Guild's contract permits employees to withhold bylines over journalistic integrity concerns, but prohibits coordinated byline strikes for other reasons.

Garrard told the NewsGuild its objections did not qualify as legitimate journalistic integrity concerns.

 Akron Beacon Journal journalists protest AI tool 

Reporters say the AI tool generates false information. The company calls their protest an illegal byline strike.

Animated illustration of a reporter's flip-pad notebook with the cover made out of a glowing computer chip.

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Stock: Getty Images

Journalists at the Akron Beacon Journal are withholding their bylines for two weeks to protest an <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="AI" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/technology/automation-and-ai" data-vars-content-id="7000ce91-cb33-4997-b542-d92d0ff1a28d" data-vars-headline=" Akron Beacon Journal journalists protest AI tool " data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/technology/automation-and-ai" target="_self">AI</a> tool they say is generating false information and undermining their reporting.Why it matters: The labor action illustrates growing tensions between journalists and corporate publishers over the use of artificial intelligence in newsrooms.

Latest news on Wall Street, Corporate America and financial regulation.

Business

The Press Club of Cleveland inducted three local journalism veterans into its Hall of Fame last week, honoring careers spanning print and broadcast news.

Why it matters: Local journalism's influence and resources have diminished in recent decades, but the awards are an opportunity to recognize those whose work helped shape how Northeast Ohio understands itself.

Zoom in: The 2026 inductees were honored Wednesday at Edwins in Cleveland Heights:

Stan Bullard: A longtime Crain's Cleveland Business reporter who retired in 2024 after 38 years covering real estate, development and the region's business community.

Andy Fishman: Fox 8's vice president and news director, a 32-year station veteran and recipient of 24 local and regional Emmy Awards.

Lynna Lai: WKYC anchor and investigative reporter who became Cleveland's first Asian American TV reporter and later its first Asian American news anchor. Her reporting helped spur a 2024 Ohio law banning unauthorized electronic tracking.

🏆 Plus: Cleveland Guardians communications executive Bob DiBiasio received the Chuck Heaton Award, recognizing journalism and communications professionals who exemplify humility and service to the community. 

DiBiasio has spent 47 seasons with Cleveland's baseball franchise.

Cleveland Journalism Hall of Fame gets three new inductees

Stan Bullard, Andy Fishman and Lynna Lai were honored for careers that helped shape Northeast Ohio's news landscape.

Illustration of a hand holding up a flag made out of newspaper

The Press Club of Cleveland inducted three local journalism veterans into its Hall of Fame last week, honoring careers spanning print and broadcast news.Why it matters: Local journalism&#x27;s influence and resources have diminished in recent decades, but the awards are an opportunity to recognize those whose work helped shape how Northeast Ohio understands itself.

Mac's Backs Books has officially moved across the street in Coventry Village, trading its longtime home for a larger storefront at 1807 Coventry Road.

Why it matters: The beloved independent bookstore has been a fixture in Cleveland Heights for nearly 50 years, and its latest move is designed to keep it thriving for decades to come.

Zoom in: Owner Suzanne DeGaetano told Cleveland Magazine the new space will improve accessibility, expand the store's selection of children's books and poetry and double its event space.

The old store's intimate, multi-floor layout was charming, but increasingly impractical.

What she's saying: "We just felt we needed a bigger space on one floor," DeGaetano said. 

"We want a new generation of booksellers to be able to thrive."

Stop by: The store resumes normal business hours Wednesday after a few days off. 

Mac's Backs has moved across Coventry Road

The beloved Cleveland Heights bookstore is now ADA accessible with much more room for events.

Storefront bookstore with large glass windows and a red awning. Neon reads "MAC'S BACKS" in red, with yellow "New & Used Books" and white "Since 1978." Reflections of trees and the street on the glass; fallen leaves on the sidewalk.

Mac's Backs' new home on Coventry. Photo: Sam Allard/Axios

Mac&#x27;s Backs Books has officially moved across the street in Coventry Village, trading its longtime home for a larger storefront at 1807 Coventry Road.Why it matters: The beloved <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="independent bookstore" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/cleveland/2026/08/12/macs-backs-book-sale-move" data-vars-content-id="a7a91ebe-dd7a-4541-b4f6-b1d644c8ac78" data-vars-headline="Mac&#x27;s Backs has moved across Coventry Road" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/cleveland/2026/08/12/macs-backs-book-sale-move" target="_self">independent bookstore</a> has been a fixture in Cleveland Heights for nearly 50 years, and its latest move is designed to keep it thriving for decades to come.

Culture

Things to Do

Cuyahoga County voters approved two property tax increases last week, but the region's public financing debates are far from over.

Why it matters: Are they ever? Even as county officials celebrate a financial lifeline that will stabilize health and human services and stave off staffing cuts, the twin specters of an RTA levy and downtown sports facility subsidies loom.

Catch up quick: Issues 10 and 11 passed comfortably, securing long-term funding for developmental disability services and the county's broader social safety net.

Together, the measures will cost homeowners an additional $166.50 annually per $100,000 in property value.

The big picture: Two major funding questions are on the horizon:

🚍 Public transit: RTA is considering its first sales tax increase in half a century to address mounting financial pressures. Some trustees have expressed reservations about pursuing a levy as soon as May 2027.

🏟️ Sports facilities: Gateway Economic Development Corp., which oversees Progressive Field and Rocket Arena, says it's out of money for repairs. The Cavaliers are seeking $37 million for scoreboard upgrades and other enhancements.

What they're saying: County Executive Chris Ronayne is urging caution on the RTA levy, telling Signal Cleveland a coherent transportation strategy is needed.

"Without a plan, I don't see an easy path to passage, and so I think we need to take a step back, develop a community transportation plan."

Meanwhile, a funding source for the Cavs upgrades is unclear. Ronayne said county and city officials are meeting with the teams to determine how to divide Gateway expenses.

The goal is to "mete out the cost share between teams, the City of Cleveland and the county," he told Signal Cleveland.

The bottom line: Cuyahoga County's already substantial tax burden makes additional requests politically sensitive — a concern illustrated by the editorial board of Cleveland.com/The Plain Dealer, which opposed Issue 11 as a rebuke to what it characterized as county fiscal irresponsibility.

"You have to live within your means," their editorial chastised. "Ronayne and the council treat us as a bottomless ATM."

Cuyahoga County's next big tax battles are already taking shape

After voters approved two property tax increases, officials face looming funding questions involving RTA and downtown sports facilities.

Illustration of a calculator with a cracked screen showing dollar signs

Cuyahoga County voters approved <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="two property tax increases" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/cleveland/2026/11/04/issue-10-11-cuyahoga-county-levy-2026-election-result" data-vars-content-id="b78e7893-0bd8-4f88-88d4-940d77cd7f72" data-vars-headline="Cuyahoga County&#x27;s next big tax battles are already taking shape" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/cleveland/2026/11/04/issue-10-11-cuyahoga-county-levy-2026-election-result" target="_self">two property tax increases</a> last week, but the region&#x27;s public financing debates are far from over.Why it matters: Are they ever? Even as county officials celebrate a financial lifeline that will stabilize health and human services and stave off staffing cuts, the twin specters of an RTA levy and downtown sports facility subsidies loom.

Sam Allard

Featured stories

Flock No to Cleveland: Axon isn't the answer

Cuyahoga County's next big tax battles are already taking shape

Mac's Backs has moved across Coventry Road

Akron Beacon Journal journalists protest AI tool

Cleveland Journalism Hall of Fame gets three new inductees