They’re not synonymous with Midwestern, white or conservative. They care about the news. They’re not the only “real” America.

By Christopher Ingraham @ WashingtonPost.com/Business, Jan. 3

[....] The near-singular focus on Donald Trump has yielded a body of discourse that views rural Americans primarily through a white, conservative Republican lens. This is somewhat understandable as a matter of raw numbers — its residents do tend to be whiter and more conservative than people living in more densely populated areas.

But that focus also has perpetuated a number of myths, blurring out much of the messiness and complexity of rural life.

As a Washington Post reporter who has resided in a northwest Minnesota farming community since 2016 — I wrote a book about it — I’ve had the opportunity to watch those perceptions solidify in real time, as well as compare them to the on-the-ground reality.

As the 2020 campaign season gets underway in earnest, here are five myths to keep in mind when you read sweeping pronouncements about rural America [....]