6. Appalachian businesses embraced and exploited the stereotypes
Throughout the region encompassing Appalachia, businesses are found which play on and even expand on the stereotypes which emerged over time, in restaurants, souvenir shops, ziplines, campgrounds, stage shows, and other attractions. National brands such as Mountain Dew and Kellogg’s Corn Flakes used marketing campaigns based on the 1960s hillbilly craze, which also saw, in addition to The Beverly Hillbillies and The Andy Griffith Show, television programs which capitalized on the stereotypes such as Green Acres; The Gomer Pyle Show; and Hee-Haw. The exploitation of the hillbilly image remains in the south, with whole communities deriving much of their income from the tourism which it attracts.