Meetings: Minnesota's Hospitality Journal

Just where the heck is the RNC taking place? My beef with national media coverage.

With the RNC held in St. Paul, yet many parties and famous faces staying and partying in Minneapolis as well, the national media has had some trouble keeping our two cities straight. Everyone from Katie Couric to our own Michele Bachmann has misspoke/printed about where the convention is actually held. Here is just one more article from MinnPost that highlights the problem:

Minnesota Nice is quickly shoved aside if you call St. Paul Minneapolis, multiple reporters are observing. Daily Herald correspondent Randy Mink recalls St. Paul's initial yelps of neglect: "St. Paul boosters were annoyed when in 2006 a New York Times headline declared "GOP Picks Minneapolis as '08 Site of Convention."

Katie Couric paints a similar picture in a recent Digg.com message. "Don't say Minneapolis, 'cause they get really mad about that in St. Paul — trust me, I heard from them," she says.

While I know I may just be proving the point, I have to say it: These mistakes are most often being made by reporters. Reporters. Their job is to get the facts straight every time. As a fellow journalist, if this was my mistake, instead of laughing it off as sibling rivarly and sore egos, I'd be printing a retraction and apologizing for my lack of skills. Seriously, how hard is it to get it right, or at least learn the local lingo of "Minneapolis-St. Paul" or "Twin Cities"?

Maybe I'll keep a tally during the coverage next week as to how many reporters and talking heads get it wrong. Or, do you think once they get here and we're finally on the national stage, they'll finally understand geography?

[UPDATE 8-27-08: Two days down for the DNC and so far, so good. Both Brian Williams and Tom Brokaw used St. Paul and Twin Cities in sentences when referring to next week's events. Hillary even mentioned the Twin Cities in her speech last night - though it was conveniently used to paint a picture of the sameness ("twins") of McCain and Bush. Hey, it's a start.]

--Amanda Fretheim Gates
Mangaing Editor

Official RNC Venues Still Waiting for Bookings

Finance and Commerce had a very interesting article yesterday about 45 Minneapolis-St. Paul venues that agreed to be “official” RNC venues almost a year ago, but have yet to see the bookings they expected. The article cites Mall of America, Solera, the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, the Minnesota Centennial Showboat and the River Room restaurant at Macy's in downtown St. Paul as having signed contracts almost a year ago agreeing to hold space for RNC events from Aug. 30-Sept. 4. Now they have fewer events booked than they hoped for and in some cases, none booked at all.

Another interesting feature on the Finance and Commerce Web site is a map showing what venues are rented and who’s renting them. Check back for map updates.

Mall of America photo (right) and Minneapolis Institute of arts photo (left) courtesy of Meet Minneapolis.

--Marni Ginther
Assistant Editor

RNC Update: Watch the Xcel Center Transformation

Complete with groovy music, this time-lapse video shows the first week of the Xcel Energy Center's makeover in preparation for the RNC. Supposedly, weekly video updates will be posted on the Grand Ol' Blog, but right now the most current video they have is of last week's key-passing ceremony and the first few steps of the transformation.
--Marni Ginther
Assistant Editor

RNC Won't be the Only Twin Cities Convention

The Star Tribune reported today that Ron Paul's Rally for the Republic has secured the Target Center in downtown Minneapolis as the venue for its Sept. 2 "counter-convention" instead of the originally planned venue, the U of M's Williams Arena. Apparently, rally organizers have decided the arena isn't big enough, as they are now anticipating 15,000 attendees, for whom they've reserved 900 hotel rooms, according to MinnPost's article.

But there's more! Training for aspiring activists and campaigners will be held at the Earle Brown Heritage Center Aug. 31 and Paul will hold a book signing at Borders in Roseville Sept.1, which will be followed by the "Ron Paul Nation Celebration" concert at the Blaine National Sports Center Stadium. You can find more specific information on the Rally for the Republic Web site.

So 15,000 people added to the 45,000 already expected would mean 60,000 people visiting the Twin Cities. What do you think about the added crowds?

-Marni Ginther
Assistant Editor

RNC Takeover: What's Open or Closed?

The Startribune has posted a helpful article for those of you wondering how the RNC will affect your day to day life in early September. Did you know that the Science Museum and Guthrie have been rented out, or that Brit's Pub will also be dark a few days? This handy guide lists what will be open and closed. Plan accordingly.

--Ellie M. Bayrd
Associate Editor

The New Color of Conventions

An article on CNN.com today takes a close look at the greening efforts of both the Democratic National Convention, set in Denver, and our own Republication National Convention. The article states, "At the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado, biodegradable balloons and recycled confetti will fall on attendees. Convention hall carpeting will be recycled, recyclable or both. And organizers plan on using environmentally friendly paint for the walls. Planning committees for the Republican National Convention in Minneapolis, Minnesota, are working on improving energy efficiency for the event. They have also cut down on paper use by relying more on electronic communication and will use fuel-efficient vehicles in the convention auto pool.”

In the article, Shawna McKinley, a project manager for Meeting Strategies Worldwide, an environmental consulting firm, says that recycling is at the "101 level" of green meeting practices. So where does that put you? Are you still in green 101 or have you moved beyond?

--Ellie M. Bayrd
Associate Editor

More Conventions Close to Home

With the Republican National Convention on its way to St. Paul, and the hoopla that comes with it, its easy to overlook the two other political conventions closer to home. The Democratic and Republication state conventions will be held on back-to-back weekends in Rochester this year. The GOP convention will run May 29-31, while the DFL convention will run June 6-8.

The Rochester Convention and Visitors Bureau (RCVB) says the city’s thriving political environment, coupled with persistent community relations, were key to securing Rochester as the host of the two conventions. 

“Rochester is a great snapshot of the state’s political views,” said Brad Jones, executive director of the RCVB. “Our voters do not vote the party line. They listen carefully to the candidates and evaluate them on their actions and intent. Both parties will have to fight for Rochester’s votes, and a competitive atmosphere is perfect for conventions.”

--Ellie M. Bayrd
Associate Editor