sam tidmore – the people have spoken

Sam Tidmore has accomplished in a lifetime what most people need three lifetimes to achieve. The former Ohio State University and Cleveland Browns football player who has also worn the hat of franchise owner of both McDonald’s and Burger King restaurants, has experienced as much success off the field as he did as a professional athlete. Now the president and CEO of The Village Television, a nonprofit organization that provides television to more than 650,000 households in six counties in the northeast Ohio area, Tidmore focuses on encouraging conversations about economics, homeownership and education.
“What we must do to get off the bottom of this society is first begin to understand what capitalism is. There are about seven different types of capitalism in the world but this country chooses to practice individual capitalism, and individual capitalism is really ruining our country. Individual capitalists can take their capital anywhere they want – England, China, India, [and] that’s what’s hurting this country right now,” explains Tidmore. 
The Village Television also known as Diversity TV, has now created a new program entitled, “Village Talk Live,” which is intended to better connect black people with the economy and the world around them. “I’ve always been an activist, so it’s very, very important that we understand the system that we live in. Democracy is what most black people understand, but very few understand the true nature of capitalism, and that’s what we must know in the 21st century,” says Tidmore. -jason thompson