And so does everyone else who says anything bad about Detroit. Just so you know… In case you haven’t seen it, Dateline did a segment on Detroit. And if you watch it, it’ll be obvious to you too, that NBC hates Detroit.

Of course I’m being sarcastic. I thought it was actually a pretty good piece on Detroit, and it wasn’t too one sided. If you read the comments by Detroit’s defenders, the media hates the city, and they just keep taking cheap shots. I think mistake number one, is taking this personally. Sure Detroit is easy to make fun of, just like the awkward kid in elementary school (that was often me). But getting angry won’t change the perception others have. Heck, it’s not just those outside of the area that have a bad perception of Detroit, it’s people in the city, and the surrounding suburbs. “The best is all gone”, was a quote from the segment on Dateline, and it wasn’t from the media or someone outside of Detroit. In fact Chris Hanson asks what things the subject likes about the city. The subject is stumped, and asks his friend the same question. His friend is un-prompted when he says there is nothing good left in the city.

Changing Detroit, is the only thing that will change the perceptions of others. Constantly crying foul and saying how unfair such perceptions are, just makes Detroiters look bitter. Which of course many are. I can’t blame them if they are. But bitterness, won’t change opinions. Make Detroit into the kind of city you want others to see it as. Forget about what others think of Detroit. It’s not what’s important. What everyone wants is for others to know how great Detroit is. Problem is, it isn’t. And it’s not the media’s fault. Slow’s is cool. Yeah, we all know. Roast is cool. We know that too. Everyone knows about Detroit’s highlights, but unfortunately those things aren’t enough. As one email I received recently stated, “if Detroit was as lively as it’s blogosphere, it would be one happening place.” If the area was really as good as many of the boosters make it out to be, the media would move on. Even the biggest train wreck eventually becomes boring.