St. Louis, called the "Gateway to the West," has experienced a series of ups and downs throughout its history. Today, however, the city is on an upswing.Since the 1980s, St. Louis has prospered. Institutions and corporations such as the Federal Reserve Bank for the 8th District, Washington University, St. Louis University, Anheuser Busch, McDonnell Douglas, General Dynamics, Ralston Purina, and a number of automobile manufacturing plants such as Ford, General Motors, and Chrysler, give St. Louis a strong and diversified economic base. St. Louis has recently been called the Silicon Valley of the Midwest, and is home to over 1,200 high-tech companies, representing a more than $2 billion investment and 150,000 jobs.Other notable employers include AG Edwards & Sons Inc., Arch Coal Inc., Southwestern Bell, SBC Communications Inc., Watlow China Inc., and Maritz Performance Improvement Co.,The St. Louis Business Journal is in the Saint Louis, MO DMA. The St. Louis Business Journal is part of the City Business Journal Network and offers ROP and insert advertising opportunities in its daily circulation. Echo Media has direct relationships with over 7,500 newspapers providing tremendous local coverage.