Let’s bring the social network to Iowa

As many have probably seen this weekend, in papers or in the news, Mark Zuckerberg, co-founder and CEO of Facebook has been making his rounds throughout the country, more specifically to the Midwest and several towns in Iowa. His trips are part of his new year’s resolution to travel more, and interact with more people. It dates back to Zuckerberg’s manifesto published earlier this year about Facebook’s contributions to the polarization of the nation.
Many pundits have called Zuckerberg’s sudden desire to make facial appearances with all walks of life across the country a canvasing for a potential election bid, whether as president, governor or senator. That may or may not be true, but regardless of whether or not Zuckerberg will run for office, his quest outside his home in Silicon Valley, and beyond the paradigms and culture of his hometown of White Plains, New York should be met with skepticism.
Zuckerberg made a Facebook post about visiting Wilton, Iowa, and described the state’s culture as one that encourages success by moving to go get it, and that the citizens of Wilton embodied that. He spoke of residents who moved their careers out of state, then make a return to their hometown to use what they’ve learned.
Zuckerberg’s a celebrity, we know this. He helped invent the thing that dominates most of our lives, how we share our photos, what we read every day and how we speak to friends. But he’s also a business owner with heavy influence in the technology sector; he’s also a titan of industry whom many follow.
Zuckerberg’s visits are great for the opportunity to meet someone influential and one-of-a-kind, but, at least we hope, Zuckerberg takes his visits more seriously than just hand shaking. On his journey’s we hope the Zuckerberg sees the heartland as more than just the people, but as a business opportunity.
A majority of technology companies are located in “Silicon Valley,” California, or on coastal cities. Not to mention, much of the U.S. industry is located in coastal cities, with high densities of populations receiving the economic benefits, all while footing the bill for high costs of business and living. In places like Iowa, were the space is available and the cost of doing business is less than in developed city blocks, maybe headquarters for the social network can be decentralized and spread across the country, to places like Iowa, Nebraska, Missouri.
The same can also be said of several government entities that voluntarily locate themselves in Washington, D.C. While a majority of the bureaucracy is needed close to the White House for quick travel and access points, not all departments of the government need to be located in the area. For instance, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), in Bethseda, Maryland, doesn’t need to be there. Just as the Center for Disease Control is located in Atlanta, Georgia, other non-essential arms of the bureaucracy could benefit to move to different areas. The wealth of employees that such arms of the government would attract creates favorable conditions to states that have long been considered “fly over country.” Not to mention the amount of people that Facebook, Google, Tesla, etc. employ and the companies’ associated hype would help foster pride in the communities that they set up shop in.
What do these technology giants have to lose? There’s a plethora of space, surely there are accommodations by the state that can be made to help the community who gets such a giant. We can appreciate Zuckerberg and the influential people like him taking the attempt to broaden their horizons, but learning the lives of those across the country is more than a handshake; it’s about becoming involved with communities. Only then will people truly understand.