The MSM of the day treated the Jonestown saga as yet another example of the evil of organized religion. Still do. They concealed Jones' militant atheism, his mocking of "the Sky God," etc. In short, business as usual. IIRC, Rosalyn Carter was another very public fan of JJ's.
Your post #13 is probably relevant to my #19. Things may not have been as rosy as the MSM made it out. Then again, it's still possible to create that illusion temporarily on a bad foundation.