Development Channelization, Partisanship, and Populism: Possibilities for Rural Renewal in the Death Throes of Coal

In the last few decades, the United States has experienced several related and significant societal trends—the transition of the energy system away from coal, the intensification of partisan polarization, and the rise of a populist right-wing political ideology, perhaps best exemplified by the elect...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Sociological perspectives 2022-06, Vol.65 (3), p.529-554
Main Author: Mayer, Adam
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Blame
Coal
Coal industry
Conceptual development
Elections
Federal government
Nostalgia
Partisanship
Polarization
Political ideologies
Populism
Renewal
Right wing politics
Wind power
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Summary:In the last few decades, the United States has experienced several related and significant societal trends—the transition of the energy system away from coal, the intensification of partisan polarization, and the rise of a populist right-wing political ideology, perhaps best exemplified by the election of Donald Trump. We build Gramling and Freudenberg’s little-explored concept of “development channelization” to argue that nostalgic right-wing populism, grievances directed toward the federal government, and partisanship converge to potentially thwart efforts to transition and diversify rural economies. Populist nostalgia and blame are associated with support for expanding the collapsing coal industry but do not predict support for other types of development. There are patterns of partisan polarization in support for extractive industries and wind power, but many development options appear to be relatively nonpartisan. We discuss these findings in terms of populism, nostalgia, partisan polarization, and the potential for rural renewal in the United States.
ISSN:0731-1214
1533-8673
DOI:10.1177/07311214211024677