red·neck (rdnk)
n. Offensive Slang
1. Used as a disparaging term for a member of the white rural laboring class, especially in the southern United States.
2. A white person regarded as having a provincial, conservative, often bigoted attitude.
It would seem to be the case that the very word is seen as offensive regardless of it's context.
It would also seem to be an apt way of describing some of the supporters I have seen on the TV. :D