Are America’s role models increasingly coming from the digital realm? With the advent of social media and internet platforms, the answer is undeniably “Yes.”
From the red pill space to the trad wife phenomenon currently playing out on the interwebs, it is hard to deny that online influencers are making a tremendous impact, for better or for worse, on American society.
This is likely what prompted The Blaze’s Jaimee Marshall to pen a thought-provoking op-ed in which she argues that women need an influencer who can do for them what the Daily Wire’s Jordan Peterson has done for countless numbers of men across the globe.
In the article, Marshal points out that things have been getting better for women when it comes to career advancement and education. However, women are still facing their own battles.
Why, then, do women seem less happy than ever? They may be thriving materially, but spiritually, they’re lost. Women are navigating uncharted territory, growing up in an overtly sex-positive society where “professions” like prostitution and pornography have been destigmatized if not outright encouraged. A wide ideological gap is forming between the sexes, with dates resembling uneasy diplomatic negotiations more than romantic meet-cutes.
Every week, a new “normie” woman seems to go viral on X by posting a video in which she confesses, often in tears, that she’s at the end of her rope. Trapped in unfruitful cycles of self-sabotage intermixed with unsavory digital footprints, a short-term mating strategy that won’t lead to long-term commitment, and an absence of deeper meaning beyond dopamine hits via social media, they have a mass psychosis of learned helplessness.
The author observes that for women, “Healthy role models are in short supply” due to “Girlboss caricatures, shameless hypergamous sugar babies, and raunchy podcasts encourage young women to have fun and ignore those nagging fears about age and fertility.”
Marshal suggests that perhaps “women need the kind of firm but empathetic authority that cuts through the nonsense and offers them straightforward, time-tested advice on how to live.”
“In other words, women need a Jordan Peterson of their own,” the author writes before giving a list of influencers who could fill this role.
Marshal isn’t wrong. More positive leadership is definitely needed for both men and women. In an age where outrage porn and actual porn dominate the airwaves and interwebs, there also must be voices willing to stand for what is right.
However, I believe that true leadership must come from the communities in which people live. Whatever happened to the hometown heroes who modeled the right way of living for the young generations growing up in their neighborhoods? What about clergy, coaches, teachers, business leaders, and others who could be stepping up to lead men and women in the right direction?
Perhaps, as Americans, we should be looking more toward the real-life role models in our own backyard, building them up so they can lead future generations. Those already involved in a community can have far more of a real-life impact than someone making YouTube videos.
Community leaders already have a deep and personal connection with their neighborhoods. The face-to-face interactions provide a more intimate and tangible mentorship that can’t be emulated by a digital influencer.
Local leaders can also provide in-person, practical, real-life examples of how younger generations can navigate challenges and achieve the success they desire. They can share the benefit of their own experiences and also link them up with others who can provide guidance as well.
This would lead to stronger communities in which people are supportive of one another without the need for state intervention. When kids have real-life role models to look up to in their own areas, they don’t need to seek someone out online. This would require people to take more responsibility for their immediate surroundings while modeling the appropriate behavior for those who need guidance.
A great example of community leadership in action is a young man named King Randall, founder of The X for Boys, a private school that serves disadvantaged youth in Albany, Georgia. Through his program, he mentors dozens of young boys. They learn basic skills like changing oil, fishing, hunting, and other important abilities.
Of course, this is not a jab against digital influencers. Their work is certainly important – especially when it comes to young men who don’t have other role models. Marshal is right in concluding that female influencers could benefit from a female version of Jordan Peterson. But from where I sit, what the younger generations need is something that online content alone can’t fix. By stepping up in our local communities and providing authentic leadership, we can offer men and women the guidance and support they need to find purpose, fulfillment, and success in their lives.