Investigating The World Of Modern Gurus - Helen Lewis

Helen Lewis is a journalist at The Atlantic and an author Humanity has become much less religious and in the ruins of this fresh, listless world, bereft of traditional insight, a cadre of new gurus have risen to take the high priests' place of dispensing insights about how to live. Helen's new BBC Sounds documentary series delves into this world of secular gurus. Expect to learn why a Canadian man has started drinking his own urine, why Steve Jobs was much more than just a tech inventor, how much it costs to be accused of racism over dinner while being banned from crying, why so many people are turning away from mainstream media, Helen's post-mortem on the IDW, the mortal problem that productivity gurus are helping address and much more... Sponsors: Get $250 discount on Sacred Hunting’s trips at https://www.sacredhunting.com/modernwisdom Get the Whoop 4.0 for free and get your first month for free at http://join.whoop.com/modernwisdom (discount automatically applied) Get a Free Sample Pack of all LMNT Flavours at https://www.drinklmnt.com/modernwisdom (discount automatically applied) Extra Stuff: Listen to The New Gurus - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001g9sq/episodes/player Follow Helen on Twitter - https://twitter.com/helenlewis Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/ To support me on Patreon (thank you): https://www.patreon.com/modernwisdom #gurus #crypto #health - 00:00 Intro 00:24 Helen’s Interest in Weird Internet Sub-cultures 06:13 The Fascinating Case Study of Brian Rose 11:06 Should a Guru Be Flawless or Struggling? 15:00 What Human Needs are Gurus Tapping Into? 24:56 Our Current Lack of Faith in Institutions 34:10 Public Figures Are Remembered By Their Transgressions 39:42 Helen’s Study of a Urine Drinker 46:53 The Worst Sub-cultures on the Internet 54:10 What Helen Learned from Crypto Gurus 1:00:20 Paying to be Called Racist Over Dinner 1:20:42 Steve Jobs & Jordan Peterson as Gurus 1:33:36 Where to Find Helen - Get access to every episode 10 hours before YouTube by subscribing for free on Spotify - https://spoti.fi/2LSimPn or Apple Podcasts - https://apple.co/2MNqIgw Get my free Reading List of 100 life-changing books here - https://chriswillx.com/books/ - Get in touch in the comments below or head to... Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chriswillx Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/chriswillx Email: https://chriswillx.com/contact/

Helen LewisguestChris Williamsonhost

Dec 29, 20221h 34mWatch on YouTube ↗

EPISODE INFO

Released: December 29, 2022
Duration: 1h 34m
Channel: Modern Wisdom
Watch on YouTube: ▶ Open ↗

EPISODE DESCRIPTION

Helen Lewis is a journalist at The Atlantic and an author Humanity has become much less religious and in the ruins of this fresh, listless world, bereft of traditional insight, a cadre of new gurus have risen to take the high priests' place of dispensing insights about how to live. Helen's new BBC Sounds documentary series delves into this world of secular gurus. Expect to learn why a Canadian man has started drinking his own urine, why Steve Jobs was much more than just a tech inventor, how much it costs to be accused of racism over dinner while being banned from crying, why so many people are turning away from mainstream media, Helen's post-mortem on the IDW, the mortal problem that productivity gurus are helping address and much more... Sponsors: Get $250 discount on Sacred Hunting’s trips at https://www.sacredhunting.com/modernwisdom Get the Whoop 4.0 for free and get your first month for free at http://join.whoop.com/modernwisdom (discount automatically applied) Get a Free Sample Pack of all LMNT Flavours at https://www.drinklmnt.com/modernwisdom (discount automatically applied) Extra Stuff: Listen to The New Gurus - https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001g9sq/episodes/player Follow Helen on Twitter - https://twitter.com/helenlewis Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/ To support me on Patreon (thank you): https://www.patreon.com/modernwisdom #gurus #crypto #health - 00:00 Intro 00:24 Helen’s Interest in Weird Internet Sub-cultures 06:13 The Fascinating Case Study of Brian Rose 11:06 Should a Guru Be Flawless or Struggling? 15:00 What Human Needs are Gurus Tapping Into? 24:56 Our Current Lack of Faith in Institutions 34:10 Public Figures Are Remembered By Their Transgressions 39:42 Helen’s Study of a Urine Drinker 46:53 The Worst Sub-cultures on the Internet 54:10 What Helen Learned from Crypto Gurus 1:00:20 Paying to be Called Racist Over Dinner 1:20:42 Steve Jobs & Jordan Peterson as Gurus 1:33:36 Where to Find Helen - Get access to every episode 10 hours before YouTube by subscribing for free on Spotify - https://spoti.fi/2LSimPn or Apple Podcasts - https://apple.co/2MNqIgw Get my free Reading List of 100 life-changing books here - https://chriswillx.com/books/ - Get in touch in the comments below or head to... Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chriswillx Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/chriswillx Email: https://chriswillx.com/contact/

SPEAKERS

Helen Lewis
guest
Chris Williamson
host

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode of Modern Wisdom, featuring Helen Lewis and Chris Williamson, Investigating The World Of Modern Gurus - Helen Lewis explores why We Follow Modern Gurus: Internet Subcultures, Certainty, and Need Journalist Helen Lewis and host Chris Williamson examine the rise of modern ‘gurus’ across the internet—spanning wellness, productivity, crypto, dating, spirituality, and politics—and why anxious, uncertain people gravitate toward them. They argue that as traditional institutions and religion lose authority, individuals increasingly seek certainty, community, and life-strategies from charismatic online figures, some altruistic and some exploitative. The conversation explores recurring guru patterns: reinvention across movements, monetized outrage, in‑group/out‑group dynamics, and a deliberate performance of authenticity and struggle. They also discuss gender dynamics, media trust, male loneliness, self-punitive trends among liberal women, and how to consume both gurus and mainstream media more critically.

RELATED EPISODES