Target stores in the Hamptons? Lattes in Peoria? Avenue Q in Vegas?

Just as the Interstate Highway System once bridged the gap between industrial and agricultural societies, now the information superhighway is merging the sensibilities of urban and suburban cultures.

For decades, media appealed to the flyover states by employing the lowest-common denominator approach (remember Roseanne?). But with the democratization of taste, fueled equally by the Internet and the multichannel universe, consumers are more receptive than ever to what used to be considered sophisticated, urbane ideals.

Today, when networks search for common ground, they often land in New York City – home to Friends, Will & Grace, Sex and the City, The Apprentice and the Fab Five of Queer Eye. Toto, we’re not in Kansas anymore.

The middle has moved. As marketing leaders and influencers, we need to firmly understand just where that is.