Yes it was a rebrand by white ethno nationalists because it's more accurate to their ideology which was for an ethno stateYou give this monolithic 'media' far too much credit. The reason the dipshits are doing it is because they always let others define the terms, not because it is some conspiracy.
There are instances where people are unfairly labeled as white nationalists. But I'm talking about referring to actual white supremacists as white nationalists. The 'media' didn't start that - it was a deliberate branding strategy by the white supremacists themselves and the media just went along with it.
Wanting an ethno state and white supremacy are not the same thing
Japan, Poland, and Korea are ethno states...do you call them supremacists?
The Richard Spencer types who think that the United States can become an ethnostate are idiots but it is a more accurate description of their position
And the media does conspire to conflate white people who are nationalists with the ethnos staters and if you disagree with this you're not paying attention