Valley PR Blog

5 Questions for Jon Talton

By Linda VandeVrede on January 29th, 2008 In Media

Jon Talton was one of my favorite Arizona Republic columnists because he called it like he saw it. He wrote about Arizona in his columns and novels with an objective distance - not an easy task for someone who grew up here.

He moved to Seattle this past year, and I was happy to catch up with him.

1. Why did you move to Seattle, as opposed to somewhere else? What attracted you to Seattle? I faced a situation where there were no jobs available in Arizona, since I wasn’t a realtor or contractor, and the newspaper industry was in freefall. Plus, I didn’t want to go just anywhere for a job. So Susan and I decided it was time for us to move to the place we really wanted to be, and that was Seattle. It has everything we want: a real city; vibrant downtown; tons of energy; not hot all the time; a deep tradition of stewardship; a real economy with world-class knowledge sectors and plugged into the world economy; one of America’s most literate and highly educated populations; an environmental ethic, and a beautiful place in both the natural world and the human-made space. It hasn’t disappointed. If anything, it is much better than we had even hoped. As a native Phoenician, the rain is wonderful, but the secret is that it doesn’t rain anymore than, say, Charlotte. The weather is always changing, and we don’t have ghastly summers — – a real consideration in a warming planet. Of course, we don’t want people to notice; they might move here. So, Arizona, believe your prejudices: cold as hell, rains all the time. We enjoy a lifestyle of wonderful quality living downtown, with everything in walking or transit distance.

2. What are the top differences you see between Seattle and Phoenix from a business view? There’s a real economy here. It’s like being back in the United States, where you actually see all this commerce going on that’s not just related to building and selling houses. Corporate headquarters ranging from Microsoft to Starbucks; Boeing and aerospace; a huge biotech sector; cranes all over the skyline (not one or two). The smartest and most talented people the world choose to come here, and not for “the climate.” The city is tolerant; there’s none of the hate that infests my hometown.

3. Are you focusing full-time on the books, or splitting time between journalism and novels? (Click here to read background on his Mapstone series). I’m splitting my time. With the newspaper industry in a self-inflicted death spiral, I am living by my wits: freelancing for the Seattle Times; trying to build a freelance business in other areas; working on two books, a mystery and a thriller, before returning to the Mapstone franchise, and the blog.

4. Any observations on Phoenix PR people as compared to Seattle PR folks? There are two kinds of PR people, and it’s true in every city: those with integrity and those without it; those who understand and respect the calling of (real) journalism, and those who are just tools of venal bosses. I so respect the good PR people. I just had a good experience with one from Weyerhaeuser; she completely served her employer’s needs, but didn’t lie or dissemble. And this from a big company with lots of sensitivities.

5. What do those in Seattle think of Phoenix - what’s their image of Phoenix? What can/should Phoenix do to improve upon this image? They don’t think of Phoenix, except as a place for Mariners’ spring training, and “it’s hot there.” The first step is to decide the identity of the place is Phoenix, not the meaningless “Valley.” Seattle is less a proportion of this metro area than Phoenix is of its area, but in the competitive world economy our identity is clear: Seattle.

Check out Jon’s new blog at www.roguecolumnist.com.

Comments

I mean no disrespct to Jon, whom I believe was the best columnist this city ever had in my time here, but he sure seems bitter about Phoenix. And while I don’t disagree with his full assessment of the valley (ha!), I think maybe he’s still pissed about not getting the job he wanted at the Republic. It’s the Republic’s loss, and of course our loss as a community that needs a Jon Talton, but I think his bitterness is misguided toward the city and should be focused more on the Republic.

I don’t think Phoenix will ever be metropolitan like Seattle, or progressive like Seattle, or even tolerant like Seattle. But I live here and love it here and am still trying to make the best of it. Progressives like Jon and I can get frustrated in Arizona because there are so many conservatives and religious nuts, but I’m not willing to give up on us yet. We have the best Governor in the country, a growing creative class, urban renewal including a downtown campus for ASU, and great weather (in months with an R). And I believe Arizona will help elect Barack Obama in November.

I ran into Jon in front of Starbucks at 7th and McDowell one morning right after he left the Republic and I asked him what he was going to do. He said there were no jobs for him here and he blasted Phoenix. I can’t believe a writer with his talent couldn’t have survived in the nation’s 5th largest city as a freelance writer. Seems to me Jon wanted to leave Phoenix more than he wanted to stay and help save his hometown. I wish him well in Seattle and hope the folks up there appreciate him more than Phoenix did.

I would guess that some of Jon’s bitterness is the regret one has when seeing the dramatic transformation of the place where you grew up. Living in Phoenix is like time-lapse photography - you go away for a week and come back, and a whole neighborhood has sprung up. I believe that moving away from where you grew up is always advisable - like T.S. Eliot said, “And the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time.”

I used to believe that Jon Talton was well-intentioned but misguided. After reading his rants here and on his new “Rogue Columnist” blog, I now think he’s just a bitter crank. Why do people in Phoenix even give him the time of day? Let him enjoy life in Seattle. I enjoy life in Phoenix and think we’re better off without Talton’s exaggerated naysaying.

I don’t mean to sound bitter. I do tell it like it is. For nearly seven years, I had one of the best jobs in journalism, and in my hometown. I’m grateful for that, and for all the friends I made going back to Phoenix.

I also had to weather tons of threats and nastiness — fine, that come with the job — and the sadness that Phoenix had lost so much of its soul. Now that can be said of many places, but unlike the most successful of them, it hasn’t replaced the loss with new, great assets.

Honestly, I doubt I could have made a living there. But it is true that I wanted to move to a place that was more my style. So, happy endings all around.

I wish Phoenicians could grow up enough to understand that an honest critique of their city is not “negative” or “bitter,” and thus to be ignored. Phoenix will never be a Seattle, but it can’t keep going down its current path without consequences.

So hello to all my friends, and I hope you will read the blog.

[...] Republic columnist Jon Talton has moved on — or has he? There seems to be some debate on Linda VandeVrede’s post yesterday, to which Talton responded: I don’t mean to sound bitter. I do tell it like it is. For nearly [...]

I was surprised at the vitriolic tone of Talton’s remarks. Having lived in the Land of Perpetual Gray Skies (Great Lakes version) as well as the Valley of the Neverending Brightness, I can appreciate the value of a nice change of scenery, particularly when good coffee is part of the deal. But I do think JT has pulled a Reverse California, otherwise known as a Full Laake.

The problem with comparing the cultural life of Phoenix to some place like Seattle, Philadelphia or even Minneapolis is one of pancakes vs waffles or even Mac vs PC — very different methods of solving a problem.

Phoenix is auto-focused (so to speak), distressingly early-rising, outdoors/hiking-oriented (how many Philadelphians take off work early for a 40-minute up and down on something like Squaw Peak…how many Bostonians can ski a 10-thousand foot peak on Saturday, wash their car in the driveway on Sunday and fit in a Native American Pow Wow and a game of tennis in between.)

Phoenix will never have the kind of culture that Seattle or New York or San Francisco has. So when Cali’s come here and complain about our backward freeway system or Empire Staters come and complain about our backward public transpo, it may be just the obverse of Talton going to Seattle and complaining about our uncosmopolitan flair.

Phoenix didn’t get to be the 5th largest city without some serious compensating benefits (and that’s even including the worst sports franchise in the history of the universe in the tally)

I divide my time between Phoenix and Seattle. I am just delighted to know that Jon is in Seattle — the Seattle Times is very fortunate to be able to use his observational talents! I talked to Jon when Phoenix was locating its NFL stadium — and I couldn’t understand why they didn’t want it in downtown Phoenix. Jon probably knows the reason, but it is still a mystery to me! I think it was a mammoth mistake — and I’m so glad that Jon recognizes that the location of Seattle’s baseball and football stadium(s) right downtown is a huge asset to our city.
I have always thought that Seattle and Phoenix are the polar opposites from each other in every way — culturally, politically, economically. I’m so glad to hear that Jon is enjoying all that Seattle has to offer, and folks from Phoenix are probably thinking, as a guy yelled at me the other day, “Why don’t you go back where you came from?!! (He didn’t like my Washington license plates!!) I don’t think that is the solution.

Jon’s combination of vision and perspective usually sets him apart from the masses. The same folks who couldn’t envision $100/barrel oil are those who can’t imagine how the desert southwest is in peril. Jon knew and he cared enough to put his career at risk by writing about it.

Add your Comment

Want Your Picture Icon? Go to gravatar.com and set a picture up to your email address for free. It also works on thousands of other websites, too!