Hillbilly No More

Born and raised in central Appalachia, Shawn Grim is a walking hillbilly cliché. His mother has no teeth, none of his relatives graduated from high school and there's a gun rack on the wall of his family's ramshackle trailer. But he was still shocked last year when his brother, "Little Man," was caught in flagrante with his half-sister. "That is really disgusting in my book," said his mother of the incident, apparently not a one-off.

The scene, one of several shockers from ABC's recent documentary "Children of the Mountains," was shot on the Kentucky–West Virginia border, where the poverty rate is three times the national average, decay-ravaged "Mountain Dew mouth" is widespread and the life span is shorter than almost anywhere in America. But chances are that the stigma of these hoary Appalachian stereotypes will tar West Virginia far more than its less-mountainous neighbor. That's because while we know Kentucky for Louisville, bluegrass and basketball, West Virginia's perceived backwardness has been one its most durable cultural memes—an unshakable label for a state that lacks a big city, a famous musical heritage or championship team to offer as an alternative.

That may soon change. Shedding the state's hillbilly image has become a personal crusade of Gov. Joe Manchin, a charismatic Democrat who has authorized a multimillion blast of cash and marketing aimed not only at rehabilitating the region's reputation, but also stemming a three-decade exodus of the state's best and brightest residents.

In the next few weeks he will announce a "Come Home to West Virginia" spokesperson—the face of a new campaign to cast the state as a destination for families, entrepreneurs and young leaders. The larger initiative includes temporarily revamping the state slogan (out: "Wild and Wonderful"; in: "Open for Business!"), plowing money into state universities and pushing through tax breaks to encourage in-state filmmaking. Last year the state also launched a $5.5 million wave of splashy national advertisements—appearing on CNN Airport Network, the Golf Channel and in magazines like Fortune and BusinessWeek—touting the international companies that operate locally and flagging the state's economic health. (The unemployment rate is among the lowest in the country, and exports grew 41 percent last year, more than three times the national average.)

"You don't turn it overnight, but we're turning it," says Manchin, with justifiable caution. After all, it is possible to change a state's reputation. Just look at North Carolina, which managed to turn its image around from a perceived backwater at the start of the 20th century to the home of the vaunted Research Triangle today—including the highest concentration of Ph.D.s in the country.

West Virginia seems to be aiming for a similar outcome with the governor's "Bucks for Brains" program, which showers $50 million on state universities in an effort to help create 1,000 research-related jobs. He is also hoping to retain more of West Virginia's college-educated residents by highlighting the state's unique appeals—including country roads, small towns, low crime rates, outdoor activities and rich natural beauty. This year Manchin plans to sweeten the deal by proposing free in-state tuition for students who commit to working within the state after graduation.

But while you and I can reinvent ourselves by revamping our Facebook page, West Virginia's overhaul may require a deeper, more delicate approach, not least because many of the state's stereotypes are both longstanding and rooted in at least some fact.