Swamp Notes: The Bethlehem Project

I'm walking down Main Street in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and it almost kind of feels like a movie set of an American small town.

You know, tree-lined streets, black lamp posts, brick sidewalks, cute little restaurants and shops and coffee shops.

And not far from where I'm standing in downtown is the rusting remains of the former steelworks.

Bethlehem's a former steel town.

And it kind of feels like the ghost of Bethlehem's past a little bit, very symbolically looming over the town.

It's also just a symbol of pride and like a symbol of, you know, those working class roots.

Bethlehem is a wonderful place because there's so many different people and walks of life

It's a historic town, but I think it's pushing towards the future.

The town has successfully transitioned to other industries like tech, logistics, education and health care.

We actually passed a major hospital on the way into town.

But there's still a lot of economic angst here and political division.

I like what the Republicans are doing compared to the Democrats.

I don't want to pay health care for illegals.

I don't think politicians should be dictating what women should do with their bodies.

I really like the ideas of libertarianism, so basically do whatever you want, marry who you want.

Not only is Bethlehem a case study of how politics has changed in post-industrial America, it's also a critical area in a critical swing state.

Over the next several years, the Financial Times is going to be taking a close look at Bethlehem to try to understand how big political and economic issues are playing out in people's day-to-day lives.

And we're going to bring you an audio version of some of those stories right here on the Swamp Notes podcast.

I'm Sonia Hudson, and this is the first episode of our special series on Bethlehem.

I'm joined by the FT's U.S. news editor, Derek Brower, who has been spearheading the Newsroom's Bethlehem Project.

He's here to talk more about what we can expect from it.

I'm walking down Main Street in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and it almost kind of feels like a movie set of an American small town.

You know, tree-lined streets, black lamp posts, brick sidewalks, cute little restaurants and shops and coffee shops.

And not far from where I'm standing in downtown is the rusting remains of the former steelworks.

Bethlehem's a former steel town.

And it kind of feels like the ghost of Bethlehem's past a little bit, very symbolically looming over the town.

It's also just a symbol of pride and like a symbol of, you know, those working class roots.

Bethlehem is a wonderful place because there's so many different people and walks of life

It's a historic town, but I think it's pushing towards the future.

The town has successfully transitioned to other industries like tech, logistics, education and health care.

We actually passed a major hospital on the way into town.

But there's still a lot of economic angst here and political division.

I like what the Republicans are doing compared to the Democrats.

I don't want to pay health care for illegals.

I don't think politicians should be dictating what women should do with their bodies.

I really like the ideas of libertarianism, so basically do whatever you want, marry who you want.

Not only is Bethlehem a case study of how politics has changed in post-industrial America, it's also a critical area in a critical swing state.

Over the next several years, the Financial Times is going to be taking a close look at Bethlehem to try to understand how big political and economic issues are playing out in people's day-to-day lives.

And we're going to bring you an audio version of some of those stories right here on the Swamp Notes podcast.

I'm Sonia Hudson, and this is the first episode of our special series on Bethlehem.

I'm joined by the FT's U.S. news editor, Derek Brower, who has been spearheading the Newsroom's Bethlehem Project.

He's here to talk more about what we can expect from it.