Jehovah Witnesses question?

Can one be a witness of Jehovah, but take no part in the Watchtower? I always hear non JWs saying "anyone who denies the Watchtower will be persecuted, or shunned" And, that's not true, that the WT is the "head" of the religion, it is the Bible, is it not? One doesn't have to listen to WT but if they listen to the bible..that's what matters, right? Does the Watchtower really serve any significant importance in the actual beliefs of Jehovah Witnesses? I have always seen it as a company for printing out pamphlets used to PARAPHRASE what Jehovah Witnesses want to say during preaching. That's all.