They have to disclaim it as leftist propaganda because to do otherwise would leave room for the upper class to possibly start feeling some empathy for the poor. These states are all places where christian fascism has its strongest grip, and part of maintaining that grip is constantly insisting that all problems that exist in the glorious uberstate are either A) the fault of non-whites / non-christians / gays / communists etc., or B) not really problems, just the fevered imaginings of the Liberal Media that Hates America. Am I gonna listen to what NBC, a company from New York City, has to say about my state? C’mon now.

A huge number of upper class Tennesseans will take any fig leaf offered that lets them believe that everything is mostly fine in TN, just a few ragtag “urban types” making things difficult for the rest of us. It makes it a lot easier to convince yourself that your lifestyle has no negative consequences, it’s just lazy poors who don’t work as hard at their dad’s gravel company as you do.

It’s a shitty and self-sustaining situation, which is why articles like these rarely have much impact. We’ve all already decided who we’re gonna blame when stuff like this gets aired, and we just go through the same motions when it does.