The first thoughts that come to mind when people from other states think of Nebraska is corn and dirt roads, if they think of our state at all.

It’s no surprise that our state ranked last place in states people are most interested in visiting, according to a study done by The Portrait of American Travelers, making it known that our state really has a negative image issue.
All over the country, we’re seen as boring and lacking in entertainment.

To try and counteract that, the Nebraska Tourism Commission decided to ditch our previous slogan of “Nebraska Nice,” which only emphasized our role as nothing but a state to drive through and not to visit. The proposed new slogan “Honestly, it’s not for everybody” is definitely turning heads.

New advertisements are set to roll out sometime next spring, but even now they’ve grabbed the attention from all over the country, including CNN and The Today Show. One of the ads feature bold letters saying “famous for our flat, boring landscape,” in front of people jumping between rock formations, and many others that could definitely be intriguing to people who never give our state a second thought.

While most of the reception has been positive, a poll done by Omaha World Herald shows that there are some that don’t approve of the new slogan. Most of the criticism about it is that it’s too edgy, or that it just confirms that Nebraska truly is a state with nothing to do.

The motto means so much more than being just a self-deprecating joke. It’s meant to be taken as a challenge. When people from other states see the billboards with the new slogan, they’ll want to see why it isn’t for everyone. It really shows that we are more than what outsiders perceive us to be.

Our state needs to be more than a forgotten state. A slogan like this will make us more memorable, which will in turn boost our image.

Nebraskans know that it seems that there isn’t much to do here. The goal of the ad campaign is to let us laugh at ourselves and show that regardless of our uninteresting landscape and lack of attractions, we can still make the most out of where we are. We make up our own adventures here, and should strive to bring like-minded people to come and see what we can offer.

Joking about our state shows that we don’t take ourselves too seriously.

Nebraska can truly be a wonderful place to visit, and with more tourism comes more people experiencing the amazing place we call home. This new slogan is needed to attract the people who can see behind the stereotypes, and want to experience something only our boring, flat state could ever give.