Pittsburgh Polished: The Attention from the G-20 Reversed Stereotypes

Let's get real: Pittsburgh is the nation's misunderstood stepchild. The one that is ignored at family reunions because everyone assumes that his little hygiene problems with a perpetually dirt-streaked face and garbage breath can't be reversed. But they can, and have been, thanks to the shiny-toothed docs at the world-class medical center he created. And the top-notch school that trained them (ahem, yes, Pitt.) But if no one looks at him and sees with an exclamation and dropped wine glass that yes, in fact, Pittsburgh is okay!--then it stays a secret.

Which is why, regardless of your feelings toward the side effects or aftermath, the G-20 was great for Pittsburgh. I'm talking in one specific way--not economically or politically, but because of attention. Because Pittsburgh was a buzzword all over the web and the TV and the papers and the world, and not just in passing reference to the G20, but full discussions about what Pittsburgh was and has become.

I mean geez, if this doesn't show it, than nothin' can: My mom texted me several times to tell me Cleveland news broadcasts had shown feature stories about what Pittsburgh has done to bounce back from the collapse of the steel industry and--this is the kicker--how Cleveland could learn a thing or two from it. Now while this makes me grin malevolently as I remember passing comments from high school friends ("But, isn't Pittsburgh like really dirty and smelly?" and "Hey, how's Pissburgh doing?"), the truth is that no one in the 'Burgh even saw this praise because, well, we don't live in Cleveland.

But that's okay, because there was so much more out there. Of course, most of it wouldn't necessarily be classified as "praise", at least initially. The G-20 brought the stereotypes of Pittsburgh held around the nation to the bubbling surface but, thanks to a resounding indignant cry of "HEY!" from our community, they were shot down.

This occurred in a May 2009 blog post by a business and economics writer for The Atlantic, Derek Thompson, entitled "Why in the World is the G20 Meeting in Pittsburgh?" In three brief paragraphs, the word "steel" is mentioned five times, as Thompson wonders if the G-20 has a sense of humor or irony by taking place in "America's national mascot for steel subsidies." He also said that since our unemployment rate is below the national average, they should have considered holding it somewhere like Philadelphia that needs more economic help. He didn't seem to wonder why it is that our unemployment rate is so low. This would explain why words like "health care" and "education" are mysteriously absent in the post.

Upon reading it, I was confused as to whether Thompson was living in some warped wormhole where it's the 1960s again and the steel industry is still relevant to Pittsburgh, but also the 2009 G-20 Summit and President Obama are coming to town. Apparently I'm not alone--a backlash of comments ensued, all but one of which pretty much said "Um... have you ever been here? Because your stereotypes are outdated." (The one that didn't support Pittsburgh was from a user called Fat Man who said "Because, Pittsburgh is to [sic] unhip to attract protestors." I'll just let that one stew.)

To his credit, Thompson did the honest blogger thing and added an update in which he corrected his "shallow observation" and said, "not only has the city manifestly emerged from its rusty reputation as a tech leader, but also that very reemergence would seem to make Pittsburgh not an ironic choice for a G-20 meeting, but an appropriate one, given the international debate about how subsidy-reliant cities and regions can transform themselves to compete in a 21st century environment."

Why thank you. This little blip on the blogosphere shows perfectly what a little attention can do to improve our city's image and maybe, just maybe, get that formerly smelly guy a hug or two.