Mayor Stephens chosen to blog for Huffington Post

Springfield Mayor Bob Stephens has been selected to blog for The Huffington Post as a part of the newspaper's new "Opportunity: What is Working" section.

The section features blog posts from government officials -  including mayors, governors and other elected officials - with a noted interest in bringing jobs to their constituents, according to a city news release.

“To change the narrative away from a fatalistic acceptance of our unemployment crisis, The Huffington Post is launching a site dedicated to what is working - including small businesses creating jobs, state and city initiatives, social entrepreneurs, job creation and training programs, internships and many other innovative solutions, big and small,” Huffington Post founder Arianna Huffington wrote in a letter Stephens received, according to the release. “As a leader in this field, we would love to include your voice in this conversation.”

Stephens' first post, "What Makes a Community Economically Resilient?" - published on Huffington Post's Web site yesterday - focuses on Springfield's ability to maintain an unemployment rate lower than the nationwide average and continue to add jobs. His reasoning: Springfield is a collaborative community, has a strong work ethic and focuses on social capital.

In the letter, Huffington also wrote the section is a prelude to an event the newspaper is holding at the Democratic and Republican National conventions, which will include a spotlight on solutions being implemented across the country that are rarely covered by the media.