For decades, the three counties of Massachusetts along the Connecticut River -- Franklin, Hampshire and Hampden -- have been collectively known as the Pioneer Valley, but some boosters of the region decided the moniker is old-fashioned and confusing. So the Greater Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Economic Development Council of Western Massachusetts spent $80,000 to hire a consultant from Oklahoma to re-brand this region. The result: "West Mass." It was launched with a two-minute video.
That video, and the brand, have been met with criticism and mockery on social media.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-CyaLzVL9k
I find no words to convey how skin-crawlingly bad this is. #notmywestmass
— Godric's Challah (@GodricsChallah) February 23, 2017
Hey, #WestMass, how about The 413? 413 Pride? Or even #WesternMA, which people actually say?
— 867-5309 (@RUFauxRlz) February 22, 2017