For years, Portland was national shorthand for urban decline. Crime. Homelessness. Downtown in crisis. By 2023, only 49% of residents said they were proud to live there.
Today, that number is 75%.
What changed? First, thoughtful policies that actually worked—downtown foot traffic is up 54%, crime has dropped significantly, and new businesses are opening at rates not seen in years. Second, Portland built the infrastructure to match perception to reality, developing unified messaging that allows the city to tell its own story with one clear, confident voice.
The Approach: Strategic Narrative Management
Working alongside Travel Portland, advocates, the business community, and city, county, and state leaders, EMC Communications helped develop infrastructure for strategic narrative management.
We built a cross-sector coalition. Monthly Reputational Recovery Working Group meetings bring together representatives from city, county, and state government, the police bureau, business associations, and community organizations. Around 25 stakeholders show up consistently, month after month, united by a shared goal: telling Portland’s story with pride, clarity, and coordination.
We developed unified messaging. The “Portland: A City on the Rise” messaging framework gave everyone—from the governor to small business owners—a consistent, authentic way to talk about Portland’s positive trajectory. It’s messaging that acknowledges challenges while emphasizing resilience, innovation, and forward momentum.
We trained spokespeople across sectors. We recruited, vetted, and prepared more than 25 diverse voices who could speak authentically about Portland’s progress—from substance abuse counselors to police officers to downtown business owners. When the media came calling, we connected them with the right people to tell compelling, credible stories.
We got proactive with media outreach. Instead of waiting to respond to negative coverage, we pitched positive stories about the real success Portland was achieving through compassionate, innovative policies that are driving economic growth, cultural vitality, and innovative approaches to urban challenges. We crafted human-centered narratives that gave journalists something fresh to cover.
The Results: A Narrative Transformed
The numbers are even more striking:
260 positive media placements in 2024, reaching 16.3 million unique viewers
75% of Portlanders now say they’re proud to live here—up from just 26% two years ago
90% of residents encourage friends and family to visit—a 29% jump
Negative impressions of downtown dropped 15 percentage points
54% increase in foot traffic since the pandemic low point
44 consecutive weeks of increased hotel occupancy compared to the prior year
Public safety is improving: In the first half of 2025, Portland recorded the largest drop (17%) in violent crimes of all major cities nationwide. Homicides fell 51% year-over-year.
Here’s what changed: Portlanders now have the confidence and language to talk about what is actually happening in their city. When attacks come, they don’t land the same way because residents push back with data, stories, and civic pride.
Because of this work, EMC is a finalist for the Ragan Communications and PR Daily Awards in the Brand Reputation Campaign category. But the real success is the sustainable infrastructure EMC built for reputation management that will continue to propel Portland forward, with a stronger foundation to confront the next challenge and seize the next opportunity.
That infrastructure proved critical in September 2025, when the Trump Administration threatened to deploy federal troops to Portland, characterizing the city as dangerous and out of control. National media outlets contradicted that narrative directly—not because reporters were biased toward Portland, but because our year of proactive storytelling had given them the data, sources, and on-the-ground reality to fact-check the claims. Reporters could see for themselves: the attacks weren’t based in reality. The city they encountered matched the recovery story we’d been telling. Headlines from Rolling Stone to Good Morning America and the Wall Street Journal told the truth: Portland is recovering, improving, and moving forward—not a city in crisis requiring federal intervention.
Our work armed journalists and Portlanders with the facts, data, and voices needed to counter federal overreach with truth. The jabs don’t land; instead, they bring out the best of Portland, costumes and all!
Major credit goes to city, county, and state leaders who led this work the Portland way—with compassion, thoughtfulness, and authenticity. It’s been an honor helping national and local media understand the path Portland is on, and proving that strategic narrative management can reshape perceptions, even in the toughest circumstances.
At EMC Communications, we specialize in helping mission-driven organizations navigate complex reputation challenges. Our work with Travel Portland and city leaders demonstrates how strategic narrative management can create measurable impact—even in the most difficult circumstances.