If someone in Iowa sees this, please bring it to the attention of the editors of your local newspapers. The job of every newspaper is to report the news. That means all the news, not what you think people want to hear. I produced and directed Twelfth Night, by William Shakespeare, in Cedar Rapids, out of my own pocket. I called the paper and asked them to send a reviewer to the show. They refused on the basis that all their reporters were busy covering the Sweet Corn Harvest Festival.
For those of you not aware, this is an annual event in Iowa in which the farmers harvest their corn and sell it on roadside stands. Having nothing better to do, the people of Iowa sing, dance, and drink in a two-week long celebration of the event. Every paper, tv, and radio station covers this event. People look forward to it, and wait in eager anticipation for its inception.
Considering the volume of time and effort already devoted to reporting it, I would think that the paper could spare one reporter to cover an unusual and little known event, just to let people know that there is a bit of culture in town, albeit brought to you by an outsider. Since I could think of no way to tie myself or my production to Eastern Iowa, I was not deemed newsworthy enough to garner attention.
I present my own case as one example, but I saw many examples of xenophobia exhibited by the press in Iowa. There is a whole world out there, filled with people who have as much or more to contribute than native Iowans. Give them your attention as well. You might learn something or be enriched by the experience.
Naughty Nobles was an idea I came up with, inspired by a couple of sword-slingers from Chicago called The Swordsmen. I asked Jason if he wanted to create such a group, he agreed, and we have recieved equal credit for founding the group since. Naughty Nobles would not exist to entertain in Iowa, if a non-Iowan hadn't had the inspiration to give it a shot.
Naw, I'm not bitter.