When disinformation makes sense: Contextualizing the war on coal in Appalachian Kentucky

Abstract

Recent scholarship indicates that populist rhetoric can profoundly shape commonsense understandings of global energy crises. While scholars often depict rural, working‐class communities as objects of right‐wing disinformation, posttruths, and alternative facts, how rural communities interpret or experience populist narratives is far from adequately understood. This research examines the recent coal industry recession in coal‐producing areas of Appalachian Kentucky, which contributed to ten thousand job losses since 2010. Amid the downturn, politicians and pro‐coal lobby groups riled the public by blaming the recession on an alleged “war on coal.” This article illustrates how neoliberal disinformation underpins war‐on‐coal narratives claiming that deregulating industry is the only way communities can save the industry and access economic well‐being. Drawing from qualitative interviews, participant observation, and discourse analysis, I explore how war‐on‐coal disinformation becomes a commonsense explanation for many dealing with coal industry recession. While findings suggest that the war on coal “makes sense” for many living in coal‐mining communities, this does not indicate an indeterminate embrace of the industry or pro‐coal rhetoric. Communities negotiate commonsense narratives against complicated relationships with the industry, the many dangers of mining, and the challenges coal poses for alternative economic futures.

“We ain't never stolen a plant”: Livelihoods, property, and illegal ginseng harvesting in the Appalachian forest commons

“…Rural populations were once sustained by the promise of “good jobs” in industries like coal mining, timber harvesting, or manufacturing that enabled (mostly) men to support a family without a need for education beyond high school (Maggard 1994; Scott 2007). These industries have become less profitable; mines and factories have closed, while ones that remain tend to rely on mechanization and no longer employ large numbers of people (Biesel 2021; Hodge 2016; Scott 2010). “Good jobs” for the working class that pay a living wage are scarce.…”

Contemporary Populism and the Environment

“…Post-truth politics ushered in through social media and new media exacerbate the situation by polarizing public opinion, particularly around climate change action, sustainable energy transitions, and migration (15). These disinformation campaigns build "commonsense" explanations of complex realities that often favor big industry (16), just as mass media manufactured antiworker commonsense in the past century (17). Hart (14) counters Bernstein and argues that thinking about the rise of specific, located authoritarian regimes only makes sense when we think about them together, globally.…”

“…Organized movements have advocated for pro-farmer policies 1. 16 Ofstehage that increase access Green Revolution technologies, cementing in place the advantages of elite farmers. Landless farmers and workers have protested that platform, arguing for greater land distribution and local food sovereignty rather than engaging with global commodity markets.…”