The only people who speak about “Honey Boo Boo” are urban leftists.
I am convinced the show was created for them. They watch this exaggerated and ridiculous show to simply get easily digested confirmation of their own warped ideas and prejudices about what life in “middle America” is like.
That's why so many people have heard of it. But I suspect more people in Middle America/Flyover Country watch the show than Harvard or Columbia professors or urban activists.
Three million viewers is a big hit for a cable show. If you can get one American out of one-hundred to watch the show you're a success, but it still means most people in all parts of the country the country aren't watching it.