Dolly Parton has done wonders for changing people's perception of the South. Matthew McConaughey has been vocal about progressive issues. And of course there are a number of activists from the South. But you're right, they're usually depicted in media as either ignorant racists, stupid, or evil rich people.

I think Southern ladies sound so sexy when they talk. I love their intonation.

My wife and I started doing it because we were backpacking once and ran into a couple of women from Louisiana who warned us not to go down a trail because they saw some bears down there. At the end of the conversation they reminded us not to go down there because of "them bears!". We thought the way they said it was hilarious, and it started an internal joke for us surrounding that dialect. Then it was reinforced by The Office and the "I do declare" scene, and just about every scene of the Tombstone movie. So we had a lot of quotable material that goes along with a Southern accent, and over the years it started sneaking its way into our normal speech.

That is a personal story I don't usually share online, but what the heck. Hopefully you enjoyed it.