YouTube atheism

Internet atheism saw a decline due to the New Atheism movement seeing a decline and the atheist movement seeing a recent decline (see: Internet atheism and Decline of militant atheism in the West).

Chuck Norris endorses the Total Gym exercise system.

Previously, in 2007, WorldNetDaily featured a column by the Christian Chuck Norris which declared:

“

Atheists are making a concerted effort to win the youth of America and the world. Hundreds of websites and blogs on the Internet seek to convince and convert adolescents, endeavoring to remove any residue of theism from their minds and hearts by packaging atheism as the choice of a new generation. While you think your kids are innocently surfing the Web, secular progressives are intentionally preying on their innocence and naivete. What's preposterous is that atheists are now advertising and soliciting on websites particularly created for teens. YouTube, the most popular video site on the Net for young people, is one of their primary avenues for passing off their secularist propaganda.

”

Atheism internet outreach efforts, however, have been ineffective.

In October 2016, a video entitled What Killed YouTube Atheism? was released which gave a few reasons why YouTube atheism saw a big decline.

A December 2015 video entitled How Feminism destroyed 'New Atheism', YouTube atheist/evolutionist Thunderf00t pointed out that merely 2 out of 7 YouTube atheist/evolutionist channels that he plugged in the past are now active.

YouTube videos with an atheistic, classical liberalism, political viewpoint see a decline from 2017 to present

See also: YouTube videos with an atheistic, classical liberalism, political viewpoint see a decline from 2017 to present

YouTube atheist/skeptic videos which have a classical liberalism, political perspective see a decline in views from 2017 to present while conservative YouTube videos see a marked rise in views during this same period as can be seen above.

According to the academic paper A Supply and Demand Framework for YouTube Politics by Kevin Munger & Joseph Phillips. Penn State Political Science, October 1, 2019:

“

The second segment of the AIN [(Alternative Influence Network, who belong politically to classicial liberalism)] include people in what we describe as the "Skeptic" community. These include people like Carl Benjamin ("Sargon of Akkad"), former candidate for European Parliament; Jordan Peterson, known for his opposition to a bill adding gender expression and identity as protected under the Canadian Human Rights Act; and Dave Rubin, a former affiliate of the progressive Young Turks. This segment of the AIN agrees, in principle, with most liberal values, and often "Skeptics" say they used to consider themselves part of the mainstream left. Where Skeptics define themselves in contrast to the mainstream left is through opposition to certain practices, namely explicit appeals to marginalized racial and gender identities and the use of no-platforming against far-right speakers. However, unlike further-right segments of the AIN, they also strongly criticize the far-right for its own use of identity politics to bolster white supremacy."

”

Secular leftist YouTube atheist vs. anti-social justice warrior YouTube atheists

See also: Atheist factions and Atheist movement

The secular leftist, atheist Martin Hughes indicates about YouTube atheism:

“

So many atheists are hypocrites. The same atheists who will shame Christians into oblivion for racism, classism, blind cult-like followings, misogyny, and the like, will defend their own “right” to engage in all of the above ferociously. I had no idea about this, before. Here in the writing/blogging world and in much of the convention world, most atheists are compassionate and vocal on these issues, and nearly always on the side of defending marginalized populations. But these people seem, largely, to have a smaller online presence than the YouTube atheist community, which is often unapologetically and proudly callous when it comes to attitudes towards marginalized populations. ,,,we writers have, for the most part, tried to ignore them over the years (with a few notable exceptions). And as a result, this YouTube community seems to have been the unencumbered face of atheism... Those who go on YouTube and look into atheism are going to see that the highest-rated videos are those that are, too often, the ones most spiteful of marginalized groups and those who fight for them... This is the face we’re putting forward on YouTube as a community. It’s also fairly bad if you type in something like “black people atheism” (as I’ve covered in previous posts). We’ve more than earned our “Atheism and Racism” section in Wikipedia.

”

The anti-social justice warrior atheists who are critical of feminism and/or Islam are Thunderf00t, TheAmazingAtheist, Carl Benjamin, Jaclyn Glenn and Pat Condell

Atheist PZ Myers on YouTube atheism

PZ Myers

The secular leftist PZ Myers wrote about YouTube atheism:

“

I haven’t been on YouTube for quite a while... I stopped bothering because I didn’t want to be associated with these goons, and it didn’t matter what I said…any video would be swarmed with abuse. Every once in a while I tell myself I shouldn’t surrender the medium so easily and that I should at least make a little effort now and then, but meh…I’d have to come up with a vainglorious name, figure out how to animate a goofy avatar, and learn how to overlook a lot of gross logical fallacies.

”

Mythcon 2017 and anti-progressivism YouTube atheists

At Splice Today, Dylan Green wrote about the Mythcon 2017 Conference and the atheist movement: "If there’s a point in time where atheism’s cold war of progressive versus reactionary flavors came into being, it would be the day when Mythcon was held." At Mythcon 2017, Carl Benjamin and other anti-progressive YouTube atheists spoke which upset many progressive atheists.

Example of a secular leftist video and an atheist rebuttal video

Secular leftist atheist:

• 5 Toxic Things About YouTube Atheism

Response video:

• 5 Toxic Things About Youtube Atheism - Response

Atheist video entitled Questions White Men Have For SJWs

On July 11, 2016, the white, male, atheist YouTube channels TheAmazingAtheist, Sargon of Akkad, Undoomed, Armoured Skeptic, Atheism is Unstoppable, Kraut and Tea, Chris Ray Run, Anthony Fantano, Mr. Repzion, Cult of Dusty came out with a video entitled Questions White Men Have For SJWs.

In response to the video, PZ Myers wrote a dissenting response blog post at Freethought Blogs.

Thomas Westbrook on atheist fundraisng among YouTube atheists

See also: Atheist fundraising vs. religious fundraising and Atheism and charity

The atheist Thomas Westbrook, a full-time YouTube atheist, declared about himself and other YouTube atheists: "Finances are still kind of tight for most of us."

YouTube atheist Cult of Dusty on the atheist community

See also: Atheist Alliance International's hiring of David Silverman and Firing of David Silverman from the American Atheists organization and Atheism and the Me Too Movement

On December 9, 2019, in a video about David Silverman, who is being accused of inappropriately touching several women (see: Atheist Alliance International's hiring of David Silverman), the atheist YouTuber Cult of Dusty said the atheist community is "cringe" and he doesn't want to have anything to do with it anymore. See also: Decline of the atheist movement

Christian YouTube responses to the peak period of YouTube atheism

Logo for the Shockofgod YouTube channel

During the peak period of YouTube atheism some of the Christian YouTube channels which offered a response were: Shockofgod, PNN News and Ministry Network, drcraigvideos, TheAtheistAntidote, the Militant atheism YouTube channel, ReasonableFaithOrg and the Ravi Zacharias YouTube channel.

In addition, there were a few Christian YouTube channels which succumbed to atheist cyberbullying and closed down their channels.

Quotes from the Shockofgod YouTube channel

See also: Attempts to dilute the definition of atheism

• "I received another email about someone becoming a Christian and leaving atheism... Now as you guys know, the atheist community on YouTube and also on radio and TV...They are in panic mode. It is obvious. Everyone on YouTube can see that this question that we are asking atheists that they cannot answer is really panicking the atheist community....Here is the question and then we will get to these awesome emails of atheists leaving atheism because the atheists cannot provide proof and evidence that atheism is accurate and correct...The question is: What proof and evidence can you provide that PROVES that atheism is accurate and correct?...You see I left atheism because the lack of proof and evidence that it is accurate and correct. The proof and evidence is for Jesus Christ."

• "The hostility I am getting over this question is unbelievable...It's like..picture this...Atheism is a clown and it didn't know it. And then I got the clown and I walked it over...I forced it to look itself in the mirror. And it sees itself in all its red hair, big nose, big shoes, polka dot glory."

• "An email from an atheist: 'There is no proof and evidence that atheism is accurate and correct. Happy now?' Ha! Ha! Ha! And he goes on and on about Santa Claus. Oh atheists, feel the sting." See also: Santa Syndrome

New atheist Richard Dawkins and YouTube

• Richard Dawkins and YouTube

See also

• Freethought Blogs

• Reddit atheism

• Internet evangelism: Christians vs. atheists

• Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science website

• Richard Dawkins and Twitter

• Western atheism and race

• Atheism and women

• Atheist feminism