Restoring the West by Ayaan Hirsi Ali

Restoring the West by Ayaan Hirsi Ali

Deep Dive

#1 When Ignorance Goes Viral: A Warning from the Whatever Podcast

The Whatever podcast exposes some of the worst tendencies of online Gen Z culture: performative, ignorant, and obsessed with gender-war debates.

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Jenna A. Robinson
May 26, 2026
∙ Paid

Why this list matters: A free society depends on citizens who possess the civic knowledge and habits of mind necessary for self-government. Sadly, too many young people lack these important dispositions—and often show little concern about acquiring them. What’s more, they are often “influencing” the generation that comes next via social media. The Whatever podcast doesn’t represent all of Gen Z, but it does reveal a visible and influential slice of it.

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A guest post by
Jenna A. Robinson
Jenna A. Robinson, Senior Editor of Education at Restoring the West, is president of the James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal. Follow her on X @jarobinson1. Views and follows are my own.
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