Hello everyone! Let’s talk about something pretty interesting, shall we? Recently, Richard Fausset from The New York Times attended a two-day music festival in South Carolina, called Rock The Country. Now, this wasn’t just any music festival—it was headlined by big names like Kid Rock and Jason Aldean, and it was one of seven stops on a tour filled with country music vibes. But here’s the kicker: Fausset, coming from a big city media outlet, found himself scratching his head more than once while observing the crowd and their behaviors. Let’s dive into why that is.
So, Fausset went on a bit of an adventure. He mingled with the concert-goers, checked out the tailgating scene, and even explored backstage. You’d think he was just covering a music event, but the piece he wrote for The Times seems to have been about more than just the music. He was looking at this festival through a very specific lens—one that might’ve been tainted by certain expectations about the folks attending. And what he found didn’t quite line up with what he expected.
You get the sense that this pic was triggering fror the @NYTimes on a few levels. pic.twitter.com/WKNNDjM3kU
— Lie-Able Sources (@LieAbleSources) August 13, 2024
Now, here’s where it gets really interesting. Fausset described the event as a “MAGA movement in pure party mode.” But this wasn’t a political rally—it was a music festival. Sure, the crowd might lean conservative, but the main attraction here was the music, not a political agenda. Despite that, Fausset couldn’t help but focus on what he saw as contradictions in the crowd. He expected anger and division, but instead, he found a bunch of people enjoying themselves, regardless of their differing views on things like politics, religion, or even recreational drug use.
Folks, he was upset that conservatives were having fun and aren’t crazy libs who rage online all day and every day.
For instance, Fausset was puzzled by the fact that in the parking lot, he met people with opposing views on big issues like abortion, yet they were all getting along just fine. He noticed religious expressions alongside beer drinking and even a cannabis tent right there among the festivities. It’s like he couldn’t wrap his head around the idea that conservatives—who, in his view, are usually pretty straight-laced—might also know how to cut loose and have a good time. The idea that people could come together, enjoy some music, and not be at each other’s throats seemed almost foreign to him.
In his reporting, Fausset seemed genuinely surprised by these attitudes. It’s almost as if he expected the crowd to be defined by their political beliefs, yet what he saw was something much simpler—people from all walks of life enjoying a shared experience. This festival wasn’t about politics; it was about music and community, and that’s a powerful thing.
