Why is Iowa often seen as being very exemplary of American culture and society? (Des Moines: neighborhoods, living)

[Mathguy]

Originally Posted by Doughboy1918

But surely somewhere like Ohio or Indiana is a better example of this than Iowa? Both states have all of what you describe while also having a population density closer to that of the national average. When I said most Americans live in a metro area of at least 2 million, I didn't mean somewhere as urban as New York or LA, but rather somewhere like the Cincinnati or Indianapolis metro (between 2 and 4 million people).

I have *a lot* of friends that grew up in the Chicago Metro area, for the most part suburban living for them is going to be a whole lot like growing up around the quadcities or DesMoines etc. Very very similar day to day life.

When you mention "the city" realize that a lot of kids will have bus trips or school trips to cities like Minneapolis, Chicago or Kansas City or go with their parents. Most of Iowa's population is with 3 hours of one of those.

So, the Iowa kids are often seeing "cities" as much as metro kids which is a couple times a year.

Like I mentioned before, especially with the internet things are just really connected. I get this vibe that you think the Iowa kids live on farms and ride a buggy to school.

[JONOV]

It's relatively educated without being Elitist.

You neither think of spectacular wealth nor poverty when its mentioned.

It's somewhat rural without being backwards or racist.

It has two great public Universities and a lot of good private institutions.

It's on the edge of the great plains but not sparsely populated like the Dakotas or Wyoming.

It's not an eastern state, and it's largely an agricultural state, without the same complications that places in the mountain west have (water rights, BLM land, etc...)


^^All of that to say that Iowa makes a convenient poster-child for middle-Americans and their concerns and attitudes when the media wants to oversimplify things into a nice little box.

Just my .02.

[JONOV]

Originally Posted by Doughboy1918

Personally I don’t think ‘Middle America’ is somewhere that represents a place where relationships are kind and well-fastened, where family patterns are easily repeated, where marriages endure etc. just somewhere that represents the national condition as a whole, whether that be good or bad. Places like Illinois, Indiana and especially Ohio, embody this more than Iowa, in my opinion.

Having spent significant amounts of time in all of those places, I'd say you're really splitting hairs. Indiana is very similar to Iowa. Much of Illinois is too.

[Mathguy]

I looked it up and the current population cent of the US is in Hartville, Missouri now.

Not that it really matters, but was curious.

[Doughboy1918]

Originally Posted by JONOV

Having spent significant amounts of time in all of those places, I'd say you're really splitting hairs. Indiana is very similar to Iowa. Much of Illinois is too.

I said they were all similar myself. I just think Iowa is a bit too sparsely populated due to lacking any metro area with a population larger than a million people, and for having less of an industrial influence throughout its history.

[JONOV]

Originally Posted by Doughboy1918

I said they were all similar myself. I just think Iowa is a bit too sparsely populated due to lacking any metro area with a population larger than a million people, and for having less of an industrial influence throughout its history.

To be fair, I think Ohio and Iowa get equal playing time when it comes to the media (especially political media) looking to portray "middle America." If they want to portray blue collar/manufacturing middle America, they use Ohio, if they don't want a focus on manufacturing/industry, they like Iowa.

[riffle]

Doughboy: it looks like you are from England, is that right? What is a place which is exemplary of English culture and society?

[Doughboy1918]

Originally Posted by JONOV

To be fair, I think Ohio and Iowa get equal playing time when it comes to the media (especially political media) looking to portray "middle America." If they want to portray blue collar/manufacturing middle America, they use Ohio, if they don't want a focus on manufacturing/industry, they like Iowa.

Ohio has plenty of agriculture as well, though.

[Doughboy1918]

Originally Posted by riffle

Doughboy: it looks like you are from England, is that right? What is a place which is exemplary of English culture and society?

Are you asking that provocatively in the sense that I’m coming off as smug or condescending, or are you genuinely curious to know?

If it’s the former, I’m just simply interested in American culture and geography, always have been, and the Midwest in particular because I had an aunt who’s since passed away and lived in Iowa. If it’s the latter, I’d maybe say somewhere in the Southeast Midlands, probably Sheffield.

[riffle]

Originally Posted by Doughboy1918

Are you asking that provocatively in the sense that I’m coming off as smug or condescending, or are you genuinely curious to know?

If it’s the former, I’m just simply interested in American culture and geography, always have been, and the Midwest in particular because I had an aunt who’s since passed away and lived in Iowa. If it’s the latter, I’d maybe say somewhere in the Southeast Midlands, probably Sheffield.

Neither, or both

I was wondering what it means to you for a specific geography to be exemplary of the culture and society of a larger geography, in order to answer your question. Why would you choose Sheffield?

With modern mass media and migration/immigration, culture and society (at least in the United States) are arguably more uniform than in the past, and more segmented by local population density than by state. I.e. the suburbs of Des Moines have a great deal in common with the suburbs of Columbus or Little Rock or Denver.

I have previously read that Iowa (particularly central Iowa) was known in broadcasting as an area with few distinguishing characteristics to the local accent. Perhaps this is what you are thinking of. In terms of media representation, I'd argue that Iowa, Indiana, and Ohio are represented as pretty much interchangable. There are of course differences known by the people who live there or statistics in your internet research, but if you ask most Americans outside of the Midwest it's likely that they would struggle to tell you anything differentiating Iowa from Indiana.