Hamilton Books
Pages: 201
•
Trim: 6 x 9
978-0-7618-6624-4 • Paperback • July 2015 • $49.99 • (£38.00)
978-0-7618-6625-1 • eBook • July 2015 • $47.50 • (£37.00)
Tom Dawson spent some 23 years as a writer and editor on two Ohio daily newspapers, including seventeen with The Blade of Toledo, owned by Block Communications, Inc., which also owns Buckeye CableSystem. In 1986, he transferred to Buckeye. During his career there, he coordinated design and construction, new business development, community affairs, and government relations dealing with all regulatory and compliance issues for the cable company. In 1994, Dawson was named vice president/regulatory affairs of Buckeye TeleSystem, a sister company.
He retired in 2009 after 40 years with the Block organization, but went back in 2010 as a consultant dealing with the same issues as before he retired.
Foreword
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Part I: The Early Years
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Part II: Building for the Future
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Part III: What to Provide the Viewers, and at What Cost?
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Part IV: The Future
Chapter 13
Appendix
[This book] is full of fascinating history and anecdotes. . . .It is a book that ought to appeal to anyone in the cable industry, especially if they need to figure out how to cope with the bewilderingly fast changes in technology and viewer habits and preferences.
— The Blade
Building Blocks offers a glimpse into local history . . . thrown in with anecdotes about the 50 years of growth.
— The Senior Partner
Dawson’s readable, fast-paced writing style makes Building Blocks a must read for anyone interested in how the cable industry got started and is a great read for those wanting to learn more about the cable business. It is a great all-American story of how an immigrant family becomes a leader, and stays a leader, in the media business and is a great reference for anyone interested in Toledo business history. The story of Buckeye and the Block family businesses is closely intertwined with the vibrancy of the Toledo community. While Building Blocks is a well-researched piece on the cable industry, its lessons in how to run a customer-friendly business can be applied to any industry.
— Jonathon McGee, Executive Vice President, Ohio Cable Telecommunications Association