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Is the San Fernando Valley not Los Angeles?
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We hit LA Observed daily for Kevin Roderick's take on the news and his insights into LA media. He's the co-author of a cool book about Wilshire Boulevard. All of which is to say that we respect the guy a lot and we're glad he's out there giving blogging a good name.
So we were perplexed by his recent launch of a companion site, The Valley Observed. Last time we checked, the San Ferndando Valley was part of Los Angeles (despite 2002's secession effort). Technically, some of the Valley is outside the limits of the City of LA, but ah, so is Kevin Roderick, who lives "near the Santa Monica airport." So what gives? What could be the motivation for having a site that discusses the Valley seperately from Los Angeles?
Turns out Kevin also wrote a book about the San Fernando Valley, published in 2001. And it seems the book is the reason behind The Valley Observed, which states:
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If you love the Valley, this website is for you. Some news, some links, but mostly observations on San Fernando Valley history, lore and culture. I'm Kevin Roderick, author of The San Fernando Valley: America's Suburb. You'll find historical photos from the book, research from my files and stories from readers. Got a story? Tell me.
We think The Valley Observed may just be a rebranding of a pre-existing site for his book. Is it bad that he's using the more widely-known LA Observed name to promote his book? Surely not. It's his business.But we're still bothered by the new image bug on the top of the page, which creates an artificial division between Los Angeles and the Valley. The San Fernando Valley is not a counterpart to Los Angeles; it's a part of our greater metropolis. Isn't it?
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