In 2025, nerds are not the bullied kids hiding in basements - they are the ones who own the basements, the houses above them, and the streaming platforms that beam this cosplay of victimhood into your living room. Silicon Valley billionaires, Marvel’s endless nerd-baiting franchises, the algorithmic chokehold of tech monopolies, the cultural... See more

Every day, professional cultural commentary seems closer and closer to marketing copy, as we slouch deeper and deeper into an era defined by our collective decision that life is too hard and we all should just slip into a warm bath of low standards and perpetual excuses. So often, criticism of any art or media is treated as an assault on the people... See more

As Sanneh points out, music reviews went from involving of a lot of passionate crankiness and meanspirited takedowns to being among the most tepid and uncontroversial of all culture writing. He names some likely causes, many of which boil down to the fact that the internet is an insane place run by insane people; negative criticism of K-pop... See more