For Bridgestone Americas, the tournament provided a key place to build relationships with new customers and suppliers as well as significant brand exposure (the company estimates over 700 million references to their name through the tournament's coverage in the media).  The tournament also showed Bridgestone/Firestone's increasing investment in golf.  They currently make golf balls (which contain rubber) and other related golf products.  As Bridgestone Americas Holdings, Inc. and Bridgestone North American Tire CEO Mark Emkes said to the Akron Beacon Journal:

''Many years ago, you'd buy a bowling tournament,'' Emkes said. ''Now, it's golf. Lots of upscale cars, tremendous interest.''

Bridgestone's
research revealed that there are 27 million golfers in the United
States. The average age is 45, the average income is $83,000. At the
typical PGA Tour stop, about 30 percent of the fans will come from
households earning more than $100,000.

''That's a very attractive demographic,'' said Emkes, noting that those consumers spend money.

Clearly, Emkes and the rest of the Firestone crew are more interested in wooing the US upper class than taking care of the workers who extract the resources that keep the company running.

Tiger Woods was the winner of the tournament.  Emkes' response: ''What Tiger did gave us tremendous exposure all over the world, and I give him a big thank you."  We hope that Tiger Woods, who prioritizes the health, education and welfare of US children in his charitable giving, will extend his compassion to the children who are forced to work on Firestone's rubber plantation and let Firestone know that ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!

You can help out by joining the Stop Firestone Picture Protest!

For a different view of Firestone, check out this video about their plantation in Liberia (as well as the rest of the videos on the Stop Firestone You Tube channel).