Although it has been only a few days since PQI launched its search to find the Prettiest Painted Places in America, our competition has already struck a chord with both the national press and local media across the country.
USA Today, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal have already published articles on the competition, as have CBS, NBC, ABC, and Fox websites. So have newspapers large and small, including such notables as the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Sacramento Bee, Miami Herald, Columbus Dispatch and Kansas City Star. And things are just getting underway!
Why such a high level of interest?
Curiosity is undoubtedly one reason. We all have mental images (real or imagined) of perfect little towns and neighborhoods resplendent in beautiful exterior paint colors. Do those places still exist? And where, exactly, are they?
Community pride is likely a factor for the local newspapers and radio stations. What a great story it would be if the hometown were cited as one of the “Prettiest Painted Places in America!” But a town has to enter to win. Publishing an article on the competition might just motivate the local Chamber of Commerce or even a civic-minded resident to toss the community’s hat into the ring.
Another reason: Many in the media likely welcome the chance to run a positive, uplifting story to counterbalance the more somber news of the day.
Finally, we suspect that the Prettiest Painted Places competition is just plain fun for everyone, including the journalists who report on it. Like their readers or listeners, they too wonder: Which communities will enter? Which will win? What do the prettiest places look like? Do I live in one of them? Have I visited any of them? So many questions. . .all to be answered over the next few months.
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