(Almost) Everyone Hates OKC

[Townsend]

http://thislandpress.com/roundups/almost-everyone-hates-okc/

Oklahoma City is one of the least liked places in the U.S., according to a new survey.

The Atlantic Cities recently published the findings from a "city sentiment survey" conducted by researchers at the Kauffman Foundation and Harvard University to discover whether or not urban statistics affect public opinion of places.

Samuel Arbesman, one of the researchers, wrote:

There's no shortage of information about cities. From population and unemployment to crime and traffic statistics, urban and regional data is swirling all around us. We're exposed to ranking after ranking, from the best places to raise families, to the metro areas with the best public transportation or local restaurant scene, all the way down to less tangible measures like say, the worst-dressed cities.

The researchers surveyed 310 respondents, found via Amazon Mechanical Turk, "an online labor market designed to allow the completion of tasks that are hard for computers to do but easy for people," asking them for their mental reactions the 50 largest cities in the U.S.

Oklahoma City ranked No. 4 on the list of cities with the highest percentage of negative reactions. Detroit, Michigan, was the least liked city, and Seattle, Washington, topped the list of most-liked places.




From The Atlantic: "The overall rankings by all 310 respondents are mapped above. Blue indicates a more positive opinion, while red is more negative. The size of the circles are scaled according the actual ratings."

Respondents' zip codes were recorded in order to determine whether or not geographic location affected opinion. Those in the Midwest had a slightly higher opinion of OKC than did those in the Northeast, South, and West.

Arbesman wrote:

What we found is that our initial perceptions about cities are in fact often grounded in statistical reality. The positive or negative opinions of our survey respondents were correlated, often quite strongly, with such metrics as change in population, housing prices, and cost of living, and inversely correlated with measures like crime and unemployment. On the other hand, measures such as sales tax and traffic congestion appear to have little influence on people's perceptions of different cities...

While certain cities are positively viewed by all regions, each region has a better view of its own cities than those cities of other regions. The South likes southern cities, the West western cities, and so forth. The Midwest appears to be the most self-hating (or at least the least positive toward itself) of the Census regions.

Not every man's poll is every man's opinion, though. In September of 2011, a survey of 1,370 OKC residents found that most of them are happy with where they live. "Nearly 85 percent of those polled said Oklahoma City is an excellent or good place to live," The Oklahoman reported. "The national average is 78 percent."

OKC is working to better its national image, according to a press release issued last month. "In 2010, only 26 (percent) ranked Oklahoma City as an 8, 9, or 10 as a place to live or do business," the release stated. The Oklahoma City Chamber promoted "aspects of the city that scored negatively in the survey, such as nightlife, business and job climate, quality of life, and education," especially on the West Coast. "Post-test results showed that of those who had seen the campaign, the percentage ranking Oklahoma City as an 8, 9 or 10 increased from 26 percent to 52 percent," the release said, noting the campaign would continue in 2012.

There's a music video too.

[Hoss]

http://thislandpress.com/roundups/almost-everyone-hates-okc/

There's a music video too.

I *KNEW* it wasn't just me!

[Conan71]

I *KNEW* it wasn't just me!

Where's Laramie?

[AquaMan]

I like OKC. And a cursory scan of the article tells me others do too. In fact most OKC people like it there. The negatives seem to have come from the West Coast and were subject to improving with the COC's urging with a campaign. Otherwise, I doubt many people on the West Coast have a positive image of anything in the South.

Save me some time. What did us Tulsan's think of our city? What did others think of us?

[TheArtist]

  Apparently they didn't even think enough of Tulsa to include us in the "50 largest cities in the US" list.   

[JCnOwasso]

Considering Seattle was at the top of the list of most liked places, it doesn't surprise me that OKC is one of the least liked.  OKC took Seattles BBall team and they will never forgive the NBA or OKC for that.

[Teatownclown]

Oklahoma is damn lucky to have OKC. Talk about enormous progress over the past 20 years.

I'm glad it's down the pike and we are not like them despite many here who wish to replicate it.

What Chambers of Commerce's do to politic their own towns at the expense of other cities. Do not pay much mind to these articles of popularity.

Hate is a bad word.

[Ed W]

Since the respondents were self-selected via Mechanical Turk, the results have as much validity as similar 'polls' taken by self-serving AM radio stations, advocacy groups, and others with an agenda rather than true unbiased inquiry.  It's mildly interesting and genuinely provocative, but the deficiencies make it a dubious basis for a story, even in This Land.

(Full disclosure: I'm still listed as a contributor on This Land, though the last published piece was over a year and a half back.)

[heironymouspasparagus]

I still like Tulsa better.

But don't hate OKC, either.  It's just not as nice a place to live. 

[DolfanBob]

Tulsa, "The pretty Oklahoma City" Actress Megyn Price.

[Hoss]

Tulsa, "The pretty Oklahoma City" Actress Megyn Price.

I remember her in 'Mystery, Alaska'....