Poverty in the Triad
Last month, reporter Dick Barron wrote an article about a Brookings Institution report on suburban poverty and the Triad. It was a significant national report to us in particular -- it ranked Guilford, Randolph and Rockingham counties among the 10 regions with the most suburban poverty in the nation.
During the holidays, CJR Daily took a critical look how media outlets covered it. We actually came out pretty well, comparatively speaking.
Yet there was one story that made the subject come alive more than the others: a thoughtful piece from the Greensboro News & Record which reported that its area's spike in suburban poverty "is the worst fallout yet from the region's battle with continual textile layoffs and a slow economic recovery. It underscores the fact that manufacturing built the region's small communities and that its loss is now squeezing the people who want to stay and build new lives."
The News & Record's skillfully written piece best explained why suburban poverty has risen in its area, and several closely observed, on-the-mark quotes ("We've got more and more of the character or the symptoms of a 'have not' county, and I think that's a hard thing to come to grips with") brought the issue home -- but if it had included a few of the stories of those Piedmont Triad residents struggling with poverty, it would have been even better.
Today a reporter with The Nation called Dick to ask about Rockingham County specifically.
Dick told me: He wants to come talk to poor people and advocates for the poor. He was especially interested in the character of the community. I told him it was a strong, family-oriented, conservative county where the folks want to make a living without having to move away. And he wanted to know about the rural character -- I told him about the rolling terrain and farms interspersed with small towns. I told him plenty of people live there and work in Greensboro as well.
Why the interest in Rockingham? Dick's story had these two paragraphs:
Rockingham County, with about 90,000 people, has lost more than 4,000 manufacturing jobs since 2000. It's a significant blow to the area's tradition, culture and economy because generations of residents could land these jobs and support families with minimal training or education.
In the past five years, the population has remained steady, but the economy has not grown to replace lost jobs. The number of jobs in the county has decreased from 33,000 in 2000 to about 30,000 last year. That gives workers few places to turn.
And about getting a few of the stories about residents struggling with poverty. He's right, although we turned around what we had in less than two days. We're not finished with the story.
Comments (3)
To report abuse of the comment feature on this site, please use the feedback form at the bottom of any page.
Ah, classism is alive and well -- are you sure you aren't actually being paid by John "Breck Girl" Edwards to promote his "Two America's" agenda?
From the link below where the truth lives:
In one sense, John Edwards is correct: There is one America that works a lot and pays a lot in taxes and another that works less and pays little, but the reality is the opposite of what he suggests. It is the higher-income families who work a lot and pay nearly all the taxes.
Belive it.
Full report http://www.heritage.org/Research/Taxes/bg1791.cfm
Executive summary: http://www.heritage.org/Research/Taxes/bg1791es.cfm
Posted on January 5, 2007 6:59 PM
John:
We know Rockingham County is poor and lacks educations and thrives on the homespun. I've only lived here four years and you've told us that over and over and over. I'll pull your clip files if you don't believe me.
I recently was talking with an executive in the area who said they were so tired of you folks telling the same stories to death. If you trot out another Wal-Mart worker to lead off a poverty story this year I may laugh before I cry.
On sheer numbers alone, Guilford has more poverty and ignorance than Rockingham.
We also have a core of dedicated community activists and entrepreneurs in the area as well.
Pillowtex shut down about two years ago. We know how many thousands of jobs we lost. We also know about the myriad of efforts in the private and public sectors aiming to create wealth and vibrancy.
How about getting a reporter to dig into that element of the county's master narrative before you promote them to the downtown office.
I know Mr. Barron is a veteran editor/reporter. He could have written that story from background and one phone call. Not much to write home about.
Posted on January 6, 2007 10:04 PM
Jeffrey:
What makes this story different is that we're all accustomed to thinking about poverty as an urban thing, or something for remote, rural counties.
The fact that it is growing so rapidly in our suburbs here was a surprise to me, despite the fact that I study our economy for a living. This was most definitely not a one-call story.
Further, pull our clips, mine included, and you'll see scores of stories about things people and organizations are doing to boost our troubled economy: Business incubators, regional training programs, grants for high-tech research at local colleges, the list goes on.
And yes, in sheer numbers, Guilford County has more ignorance and poverty. But the story is about the suburban areas as classified by the Brookings report. And Rockingham figures prominently in our local numbers.
I would urge you to take a closer look at our coverage and you'll see a wider variety and balance than you suggest.
Posted on January 8, 2007 11:03 AM