In short
Gainesboro, Tennessee, where a small Appalachian town (about 1,000 residents) faces a fall 2024 land grab by “outsiders” buying large tracts of property, framed as a social experiment tied to right-wing Christian goals.
Guest backgrounds
No individual guests are named in the transcript; it appears to be an introduction/teaser from Bloomberg News’ Big Take.
Key claims
Developers with right-wing ties purchased hundreds of acres; the stated aim is to create “cities on a shining hill” embodying a “Christian way of life,” not just real estate.
Notable examples
The narrator contrasts local land sales (“sell it to Jim Bob over the holler”) with the new external acquisitions, and describes residents as initially “flat-footed” before deciding to “fight back.”
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Transcript
Automatic transcript. May contain errors.0:00If you drive 90 miles northeast of Nashville, into the foothills of the Appalachian mountains, You'll land in Gainesboro, Tennessee. How would you describe this place? I think raw would be a good word to start. Just over a thousand people live here. Many go back generations. I was related to pretty much everyone here. But in the fall of 2024, a group of outsiders started scooping up big tracts of land. That piques my interest because most of the time he would sell it to Jim Bob over the holler. As the battle for the future of America plays out in one small town. We were all flat-footed. We didn't have a clue.
0:40Developers with right-wing ties have purchased hundreds of acres of land in the area. The first thing you see when it pops up is pioneers in Appalachia. Pioneers in Appalachia. But the goal wasn't just to buy real estate. We need cities on a shining hill that exemplify and embody the healthy, natural, human way of life, the Christian way of life. Stop right there. Is that normal? From Bloomberg News and the Big Take podcast, this is Our Town. A show about what happens when a small town becomes the site of a social experiment. God need men to rule. Great. We're on the cusp of, I think, a land grab in Appalachia.
1:19Our hometown is not a test tube. and decides to fight back. Do not use my hard work to sell your bull****. They're not just opposing what's being planned for here. They feel like they're standing in opposition to an entire administration. Guess you didn't move in on a bunch of dumb hillbillies now, did you? Listen to Our Town starting August 7th on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
1:51Thank you.
From the publisher
Our Town from Bloomberg’s Big Take podcast follows residents of Gainesboro, Tennessee, after a group of far-right Christians moves in with plans for a radical social experiment.
Listen to Episode 1 on the Big Take.
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