Sarah Palin's Alaska

I’m struck by the recent slew of reality shows set in Alaska (and/or Canada), viz. Alaska Wing Men, Alaska: The Last Frontier, Bering Sea Gold, Deadliest Catch, Flying Wild Alaska, Gold Rush, Ice Road Truckers, Tougher In Alaska, Yukon Men.

These shows are designed to evoke the vicarious admiration of city slickers whose greatest adventure is driving their hybrid down to Starbucks. Shows like this glamorize man and women battling the elements. Living on the edge. The pioneer spirit in a technocratic age.

Because they’re produced or hosted by outfits like National Geographic and the Discovery Channel, they target the same Green-cuddly demographic niche as the audience for Whale Wars.

What I find striking about all this is how it stands in stark contrast to how Sarah Palin was reviled. Liberals had a visceral reaction to Palin. I’ve never known what, exactly, they found so unbearable about her. Apparently it had something to do with her brash, tomboyish demeanor (aka "Sarah Barracuda").

Now, I don’t have any firsthand knowledge of Alaska, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Alaskan women who are used to hunting, fishing, chopping wood, changing tires in the snow, &c. develop a pushy, scrappy personality like Palin’s. That’s a survival trait.  It’s hard to envision Caroline Kennedy skinning a moose.

Why is it that TV networks and target viewers who can’t stand Sarah Palin tune into shows about men and women who brave the Alaskan wilderness?