News & Politics
America is a treasured tapestry of towns and cities. On this week’s City Voice Podcast I’ve enlisted the help of James and Deborah Fallows. With their help, we hear about that tapestry. What does it really look like? Is it frayed? What does it's future look like? They spent the better part of five years immersing themselves in small and medium-sized town and cities across America. They did all this traveling in their small single engine airplane. The combination of both on the ground and birds-eye perspective gave them a unique look at America. The aerial insights inform how and why towns were built where they are and what their natural strengths are going forward. Getting to know the people on the ground gave them and now us a more immediate read on where America is and where it's likely headed. They are the authors of, Our Towns, A 100,000-Mile Journey Into The Heart Of America. Our Towns reads like a modern-day Lewis and Clark single-engine airplane travel log for Cond'e Naste. It’s also bit of an urban planning enthusiasts guide to placemaking in small to medium size American cities and towns, it’s a keen observer’s take on the fabric of America, it’s a reporter's account of economic development in the heartland, and it’s an America political analysis during the times of Presidents Barak Obama and Donald Trump. James Fallows has been a national correspondent for The Atlantic for more than thirty-five years, reporting from China, Japan, Southeast Asia, Europe, and across the United States. He is the author of eleven previous books. He has provided commentaries for NPR since the 1980s. For two years he was President Jimmy Carter’s chief speechwriter. Deborah Fallows is a linguist and is the author of two previous books. She has written for The Atlantic, National Geographic, Slate, The New York Times, and The Washington Monthly, and has worked at the Pew Research Center, Oxygen Media, and Georgetown University. Thanks and don’t forget to subscribe to City Voice and share with your friends. SHOW LINKS "Our Towns" Amazon Link To Purchase the book James Fallows Deborah Fallows Their blog American Futures