A Sprinkling of Dolly Dust
Financial Times July 11 2009
Tagged: Interviews for the Financial Times
Posted on 10th July 2009.
Last changed at 08:47 UTC, 30th January 2010.
Rob Blackhurst
RobBlackhurst.com/2009/dollywood
Rob BlackhurstRobBlackhurst.com/2009/dollywood
Financial Times July 11 2009
Tagged: Interviews for the Financial Times
Posted on 10th July 2009.
Last changed at 08:47 UTC, 30th January 2010.
3 Comments
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Rob,
Overall I found this to be an interesting article. However, please do not compare Dollywood/Pigeon Forge to the State of Tennessee. I know it probably made for a better sell to the uninformed reader seeking a reinforcement of a preconceived stereotype, but such a comparison is beset with error and inaccuracy. Also, there are plenty of places to find a drink (if you are not staring at Dolly's enhancements) and Dollywood is not the states biggest employer.
As someone who is about to move to Nashville, I read the piece with a mixture of fascination and fear. Overall I enjoyed it but, as noted, Dollywood is not the state's largest employer – and the workplace options are not simply sharecropping or Ms. Parton's theme park. Nissan's plant at Smyrna employs 8,100 people; Vanderbilt University employs 17,000, and the State of Tennessee, the largest employer in the state, has 20,000 on its payroll.
Not to mention Eastman Chemical, Oak Ridge National Lab (one of the most advanced science research facilities in the world) and a small company named FedEx. Does the author believe all of these people came straight out of the backwoods?