Meet The Cartoonist Who Keeps 'Snuffy Smith' In The Funny Pages

The hillbilly stereotype is frequently used to shame mountain people, but there are gentler versions, like Snuffy Smith, the long-running comic strip character. Snuffy Smith originally started out as a supporting character in his comic strip, which first launched in 1919 when Billy DeBeck created Barney Google. Artist Fred Lasswell was brought in during the ‘30s to create Snuffy Smith and his friends. And now the strip is written and drawn by John Rose, who lives in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley.

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Arts & Culture Mason Adams, Feb. 16, 2026

WVU Student Art Inspired By Appalachian Stories

In December, West Virginia University art professor Joseph Lupo tagged Inside Appalachia in an Instagram post that showcased four-color reductive relief prints made by WVU students — each one inspired by a story or episode they heard on the show. Inside Appalachia host Mason Adams spoke with three of Lupo’s students and asked them to describe their work and its connection to the show.

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Arts & Culture Bill Lynch +, Feb. 06, 2026

Printmaking Inspired By Appalachian Stories, Inside Appalachia

This week, some of the stories on our show inspired college student art — including a vivid image of a bear smashing a clarinet. Also, a Hare Krishna community in West Virginia serves vegetarian food made in three sacred kitchens. And, COVID-19 exposed the contempt society has for marginalized people. One author says, these folks are anything but passive.

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Health & Science WVPB Staff, Jan. 09, 2026

A Look Inside Quick Response Teams, This West Virginia Morning

Appalachia has had high rates of substance abuse and mental health disorders for years. After the problem reached a boiling point during the COVID-19 pandemic, a few communities tried using crisis response teams, and so far, that seems to be working. Last year, Inside Appalachia’s Mason Adams spent several months with some of these teams and has this story.

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Government Mason Adams, Oct. 06, 2025

How The Pandemic Exposed America's Disdain For Marginalized People

More than one million Americans have died from COVID-19. Some groups of folks died at much higher rates than others. And those deaths tended to follow lines of race, class, age and disability. A new book digs deeper; it’s titled "Disposable: America’s Contempt for the Underclass." It’s written by Sarah Jones, a reporter at New York Magazine who grew up in Appalachia.

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Arts & Culture Bill Lynch +, Oct. 03, 2025

'Disposable,' Accessible Climbing And Memes, Inside Appalachia

This week, COVID-19 exposed the contempt society has for marginalized people. The author of a new book says these folks are anything but passive. Also, rock climbers with disabilities have found a home in Kentucky’s Red River Gorge, which offers some pumpy crags. And, the online world of Appalachian memes and what they tell us about the folks who live here.

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Health & Science WVPB Staff, Sep. 09, 2025