With the explosion in popularity of the NPC meme, the mainstream here is trying to get in on the action. Tons of articles have popped up, trying to explain exactly what this mean is some call it a pro trump mean some say: it's the right wing internet attacking liberals, an one outlet, even called it an election day hoax, they don't seem to understand, means though they get close. They kind of missed the point, and this got me thinking. People often say that the left can't mean and that's kind. It is true at least apparently true. Sometimes they do have means. Sometimes ideas can go viral among the left, but for the most part means that go viral are typically associated with the right in re.

I don't think it has anything to do with right or left, but there is a core issue here. People who are producing means might not be Trump supporters, they might not be right wing, but they are probably more likely to be contributors and to be individualists, and the people are so to the left are more likely to be collectivist and less likely to contribute. Therefore, it stands to reason: not the left can't mean but that those who can't meme tend to lean left. So today, let's take a look at some of these mainstream media stories and then I want to show you some interesting data points or I should say in examples of how meme culture isn't necessarily right wing and the left can't meme or we get started. Let me give a quick shout out today's sponsor virtual shield. Virtual is a virtual private network. This is basically a simple layer of security to help keep more online data private. While you use the internet

hollow in sale, twenty five percent off everything just go to hide with ten dot com and click, get this exclusive deal and you can start a free, thirty day trial and, as I mentioned, twenty five percent off. So if you want to protect yourself and your family, a virtual private network is a simple layer of security to help keep your data private. First, let's take a look at the New York Times. They almost got it, but what they said is what is n, p c v pro Trump Internet's new favorite insult Twitter has barred hundreds of right wing accounts for posing as soulless non playable liberal activists, and they have this amuse photograph of various NPC Twitter accounts and look at this great diversity. People actually spend time signing their own npc meme avatar, and I think, in my opinion, the funniest one is the actual human and it's an anti file and pc mean they say over the weekend. Twitter responded by suspending about one thousand five hundred accounts associated with the end pc trolling campaign. The accounts violated twitter's rules against intentionally misleading election related content.

According to a person familiar with the companies enforcement process, the person who would speak only anonymously was not authorized to discuss the decision if you're confused you're, not alone. Here we try to unpack the npc meme, what it means and why it's causing trouble on twitter. First, they explain what a Nonplayer character is. If you're not familiar its base, clear computer controlled character in a video game, they mentioned that unfortunate. Someone brought up the idea that some people might not have inner monologues, meaning they might be computer controlled, an not sentient beings. However, they say that it was specifically to refer to liberals. That's not really true. The original idea is just referencing automatons people who have canned responses, and they say it long story, but the short version is that a group of young, extremely pro trump internet trolls, have spent the past several years, mocking anti trump people as whiny easily triggered snowflakes, who are primarily motivated by social acceptance rather than by logic and critical thinking right away. I take issue with this article because I don't think this is unique to extremely pro trump internet trolls

when Bill Marr can go on his show and say these people all are insane and say that liberals understand in their private conversations. This kind of behaviour is insane: it's not just pro trump people who recognize It's the New York Times then says it came from the Donald which is kind of not true, but it's not wrong. The Donald did have a bunch of posts about NPC memes, but it's just the internet. They say read its largest pro Trump forum decided to take the NPC mean to a wider audience, but it's kind of just how memes work. There's no central hub determining where an when something will go viral and he points out that they're, probably not trying to influence the they're, probably not russian bots, but he says it suggests there, mostly just attention, starved gamers, looking to impress one another by triggering the libs with edgy memes. We then have the independent, which just published the liberal bashing means sweeping social media ahead of U S mid terms which I believe can on the surface appear to be true, but I also think is not entirely act,

the BBC, wrote about it. What are Np Cs and why are they all over social media? I'm sure many of you watching or listening understand memes, at least on a surface level. I'm sure there are a lot of who don't really understand what's going on, but I want to explain something at least from my perspective. I think it's really hard to quantify. How mean culture actually works there, a bunch of means I have, I just can't even decipher. I have no idea what they what they mean. People were sending me images of like people holding eggs and they're like this is theme- and I'm like I guess so like there is a culture of people who are actively just iterating and making new jokes but there's something interesting about this idea that the left can't meme and I think what actually happens is inside. These means these Np Cs, as we saw in the New York Times story, you have a bunch of different avatars for their twitter, once and these people were making their own versions of the NPC mean. That's what makes the idea funny someone made an Antifa version of the meme.

And it's a new version is an iteration is an evolution of the idea and it keeps the joke fresh. This then spreads far and wide so first You meet someone who is willing to contribute someone who is confident enough to be like I'm going to make something an share it and then, if that idea is good, it gets shared fart far and wide. But what if someone says? I just want to look- and I don't want to produce these things and they're, not interested

exploring the mean more and being a part of this culture. In my opinion, these people are more likely to gravitate left. That's why people associate the canned response, the automaton, the npc, with the left, not that it's intentionally trying to insult liberals, but some people are it's just an idea that, if you're not critically thinking, then you are a non player character there, a lot of people who just listen to the news and don't post and don't contribute, and because of this they are more likely to just believe what they hear and go with the mainstream narrative. Thus people will call them Np Cs, but the thing about memes, a thing about four Chan and read it and various other internet forums where memes persisten are pervasive is that they also make fun of themselves. This meme isn't meant to specifically target liberals. It does a lot of the time, but it's not a pro trump meme. It's just

a meme about how some people aren't thinking. In fact, here's a version of the meme making fun of trump supporters. They have the same programming, jokes and it's a bunch of non player, characters wearing Trump Maga hats. Somebody made an end pc version of Donald Trump there's an end piece, The version of a Trump supporter, Youtuber Sargon of a card, an avatar and someone made a Nonplayer character version of that too, and then my favorite, the NP, the version of me. This is a photo from my facebook and it's my Youtube avatar and someone made me an npc. Actually I take that back. This is probably my because I have no idea what it's supposed to mean, but this is the canadian flag with the NPC face, and it's just funny. I owe even know what they're trying to convey with this mean it's just funny the Dale, the dot is so out of touch with what's happening. They said Twitter, Sespe is one thousand five hundred accounts as part of election date hoax. They really don't understand it. Said. The New York Times said at the spread of misinformation, came from a group of internet

those who are disguised themselves as pretend to left wing activists. Twitter suspended the accounts for violating its rules regarding intentionally misleading election related contents. According to the report, I think at the core of what the left and the right is, is collectivism verse individualism. When we often refer to the culture war, we say left versus right. It doesn't always mean the same thing colloquially, left and right are kind of nebulous terms that even I can't decipher. But often we see conservatives talk about personal responsibility, we see people like Jordan, Peterson talk about individuality versus collectivism and we see the left talk about collective identity, and thus you can say that at least to some degree, when you refer to left in the right, you do have this idea of individualism versus collectivism. So thin about it. An individual is going to think about what they're doing what they want to do, and they are more likely to be confident, at least in my opinion, and thus produce means an share them because of that they are in on the game of making funny jokes even at their own expense. As I showed you, they make fun of themselves all the time.

This is an attempt to gain the election to hoax people into believing the NPC accounts are actually liberal activists. No, it's meant to poke fun at liberal activists, but the meme itself isn't inherently political. It's just a joke plain and simple, and people in the media don't understand this. In my opinion, there are a lot of people in the media who are left, leaning and collectivist, and thus they are not going to explore these issues. They're going to look at the surface level and say this is what I think it is without actually communicating with those who make the means in the first place. You'd think the New York Times would reach out to people who are making some means and ask them why they did it. They didn't they just probably browsed the internet and said I think I understand what this is. Admittedly, I don't even think I understand the entire t of what's going on simply because it's individualism, it's a bunch of different people with a bunch of different ideas, contributing to those ideas and creating something bigger.

And that's what four Chan and the internet have done for decades. The idea of this anonymous and whatever it was a raging from four Chan's, be bored back in the day that led to all these protests led to these ideas. It's simple: someone create something, and if people like the idea, it rises to the top and then gets more traction and then from that people into right and slowly change it. Creating a rapid evolution of jokes that can persist a lot longer, but there's more than just the idea of individualism collectivism like I said I think if you someone who's just going to follow the pack and you're less likely to engage you'll, find yourself among the left, because you're, just believing what you hear from the mainstream, but there's also the issue of political correctness and not offending the group. People associate with the right has no problem being offensive because they are individuals, they're not concerned with the group, excising them, and then I can start being ostracized. People on the left are so there are less likely to iterate on means an make things that are funny. Because of this, the left is perceived to be unable to meme

Sometimes they have means. Sometimes it works, but typically it's not going to happen, but there you but another video about memes, because I find the whole thing fascinating. Someone sent me this mini doc about how Donald Trump Use means to get elected, and I found it fascinating. So let me know I think, in the comments below and we'll we'll carry on. What's your what your opinions on the left not being able to mean on this mean being called Pro Trump again comment and we'll keep the conversation going, you can follow me on twitter to gas, stay tuned new videos every day at four hundred pm and more videos coming up on my second channel Youtube: dot com, Slash TIM cast news at six hundred pm. Thank you all. So much for hanging out I'll see you next time.