Mississippi gets the word out.

For decades, one state has always seemed to get the worst score in every category: Mississippi. At various times, it has been cited as the nation's poorest, least educated, and most corrupt state. Mississippi has long chafed at these perceptions--which in some cases spring more from stereotypes than statistics--and it has now introduced an ad campaign called "Mississippi, Believe It!" A series of posters and T-shirts addresses old cliches and seeks to turn them into a more positive image. One poster features notable Mississippi writers like William Faulkner and Eudora Welty. "It's kind of a way of fighting back, because we do get hammered," says best-selling author John Grisham, whose picture also appears on the poster. "But things aren't all hopeless down here. There is some life and culture and education and football and stuff like that."