History's John Grabowski reflects on Balloonfest and environmental
Cleveland fundraiser released 1.5M balloons, then everything ‘that could go wrong went wrong’
People Magazine: John Grabowski, the Krieger-Mueller Joint Professor in History, said that Balloonfest ’86—once seen as a feel-good publicity stunt—is now viewed differently as environmental awareness has grown. He noted bad weather caused balloons to fall early, hampering a Coast Guard search. Still, he said Cleveland’s image wasn’t hurt long-term.
