The Dispatch Podcast: When the Left Became an Online Mob
Date: March 10, 2025
Host: Russell Berman (standing in for Steve Hayes)
Guest: Brianna Wu (Democratic fundraiser, Exec. Director of Rebellion PAC, trans rights activist, former congressional candidate)
Main Theme:
A candid, nuanced conversation with Brianna Wu about the evolution of online mob dynamics on the left, progressive activism’s unintended effects, the fallout from Gamergate, the left’s reckoning post-October 7, the state of liberal democracy, and the state (and perils) of contemporary trans rights discourse.
Episode Overview
The episode centers on Brianna Wu’s personal and political journey from Gamergate to the collapse of dialogue within progressive spaces, culminating in a public break with “the online left” following the campus and activist response to Hamas’s October 7 attack. Wu shares reflections on mob dynamics, identity politics, antisemitism in progressive circles, the dangers of all-or-nothing thinking, and her critique of rapid, unscientific changes in trans healthcare standards. The hosts and guest discuss whether there’s hope for a centrist, coalition-driven politics to break the fever of culture wars.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Gamergate & Online Mob Tactics
[03:35 - 07:28]
- Gamergate as a Turning Point: Wu recounts launching her career as an indie game developer with a focus on women protagonists, just as Gamergate surged—a campaign marked by personal attacks, misogyny, and online mob tactics.
- “Gamergate was the moment that American politics changed forever. It really was this toxic version of politics where we could no longer talk to each other that permeates everything today.” (Brianna Wu, 03:30)
- Gamergate to Trump Pipeline: She highlights how Gamergate’s online radicalization paved the way for alt-right figures and Trump’s rise, noting Steve Bannon’s own explicit view that Gamergate radicalized young men:
- “You bring these young men into the Right through Gamergate or whatever, you radicalize them … and then you bring them into Trump. And that's exactly how Trump won in 2016.” (08:10)
2. The Progressives’ Overreach and Wu’s Disillusionment
[09:00 - 12:49]
- All-or-nothing Ideological Packages: Wu critiques how left/progressive movements evolved to demand adoption of totalizing views:
- “If you want to support getting more women into gaming, then you also have to buy into this entire package of critical theory and completely reimagining the mind of young men.” (Host paraphrase, 10:20)
- “It's all or nothing thinking and Gamergate was very much the start of that.” (Wu, 11:00)
- Cultural Censorship & Progressive Drift: Wu expresses regret about her role in creating a culture “where we’re the ones sending rape threats and death threats … progressives are the villains now.” (04:11)
- Her Personal Political Path: Wu ran for Congress, entered Democratic fundraising/organizing, but observed activist overreach and an unhealthy ideological package drifting from policy goals.
3. The October 7th Break—Antisemitism & the Progressive Left
[12:49 - 18:43]
- Early Warning Signs: Wu recalls anti-Semitic attitudes in progressive orgs (e.g. Women's March leadership), but initially stayed silent for the “greater good.”
- Personal Shock Post-October 7: Friends and movement leaders embrace (in her words) “bizarro anti-Semitic conspiracy theories" after Hamas's attack, denying accounts of sexual violence or espousing claims of Israeli deception.
- “I realized I really needed to sit down and start reading about the history of Israel, Palestine, like something was really, really wrong here that I needed to understand.” (Wu, 15:39)
- Break with Progressivism: For Wu, the left’s reaction revealed “a cancer of antisemitism” and a willingness to excuse horrific acts, leading to a painful, definitive break with her allies.
4. Why Wu Cares—Democracy, Civil Rights, and Geopolitics
[18:43 - 20:55]
- Not a Jewish-American Perspective: Wu stresses she’s not reacting out of tribal affinity but out of democratic stakes:
- “Democracy is what gave me my civil rights as a trans woman and that is fundamentally under attack here.” (Wu, 20:27)
- She frames the Israel/Palestine issue within broader threats to liberal democracy—from illiberal actors, both Islamist and authoritarian.
5. Fallout: Social and Professional Costs of Dissent
[25:10 - 28:23]
- Enormous Costs: Wu estimates over $100,000 in lost contracts, “setting every friendship in my life on fire,” after staking a contrarian, pro-Israel position.
- Irreparable Personal Rifts: She recounts the pain of losing close friends, especially over Israel, describing a “derangement and double standard” toward Jews within the left.
6. Zionism, Accusations, and Internalized Politics
[29:05 - 31:51]
- Wu refutes the “anti-Zionist, not antisemitic” dodge, calling it “obviously coded language.”
- “If you're not a Zionist, you're in favor of a second holocaust, in my view.” (29:05)
- Discusses Jews on the far left embracing anti-Zionist causes—a phenomenon she attributes partly to dynamics of minority stress, family/community trauma, and a wish to distance oneself from communal conformity.
7. The Fate of Liberal Democracy, the “Exhausted Majority,” and New Alliances
[32:23 - 38:37]
- Despair vs. Optimism: Wu sees reason for hope through the “exhausted majority” who are disaffected by extremes on both sides, and sees opportunity for centrist coalition-building, even with Republicans disaffected by Trump.
- “I actually think there is a really rich opportunity now for the reasonable people in the middle to talk to each other and move us forward if we can just get past this culture war nonsense that isn't getting anyone the policy they want.” (Wu, 32:38)
- Host expresses skepticism, noting rising illiberalism and civic pessimism across the spectrum.
- Wu: “At some point, we're going to have to put down a gun ... try to talk to the other side... it does not get us anywhere.” (37:28)
8. Trans Rights: From Conservative Standards to “Social Contagion”
[39:17 - 45:37]
- Wu describes the evolution of trans healthcare:
- Old Standards (Conservative, Rigorous, Careful): “There was a really, really, really long list of stuff I had to go through to transition from male to female... It really set me up for success.”
- Current Standards (Progressive, Lax, Unproven): “There's been a progressive political project to take that document and tear it to shreds in the name of instant access... I could take you to Planned Parenthood literally right now and get you on antiandrogens that would destroy your testosterone in your testes today.” (39:17)
- She critiques the lowering of clinical standards, likening this to a reckless ideological project that harms both trans people and public trust.
- “This comes into the conservative argument because that document, the Standards of Care, was at its core a conservative document... And there has been a progressive political project to take that document and tear it to shreds…” (39:40)
9. Social Dynamics, Healthcare Fallout, and WPATH Critique
[45:43 - 51:05]
- Wu accuses activist organizations of politicizing and lowering standards, particularly WPATH.
- “They're communists, they're anti Semites, they're just nuts. They're absolutely crazy. And they are fundamentally not interested in science...” (45:43)
- She warns that bad science and uncritical acceptance of non-binary identities or mass adolescent transition will fuel backlash, worsen outcomes, and undermine access for people like herself.
- “We don't have adults running this ship for trans health care.” (50:13)
10. The Difference Between Transsexual and Transgender Debates
[52:07 - 57:52]
- Wu advocates for honest distinctions—between classic transsexuals and younger individuals exhibiting gender nonconformity or underlying comorbidities like autism:
- “They don't meet the DSM standards in the same way. They've got comorbidities... They transition for different reasons. They don't experience gender dysphoria in the same way.” (43:45)
- Clarifies most non-binary identities likely reflect either social contagion, pedestrian nonconformity, or poorly understood phenomena.
11. Wu’s Own Trans Story: Certainty, Sacrifice, and Success
[59:15 - 61:54]
- Shares her early clarity—“I've never had a second of doubt in my entire life”—and the dramatic, positive effects of transition, despite immense personal cost (family estrangement, homelessness).
12. Concerns About the Right's Response to Trans Issues
[61:54 - 64:10]
- Wu distinguishes between reasonable corrections and Trump’s overreach:
- “For me, I had a healthcare issue. I went and got health care, and it made my life better. … That happened because I had a pathway to go have a normal life and move on once I transition. Those are the things that are being taken away by the Trump administration.”
- Warns Republicans: You risk creating a generation of “broken progressive activists” if you shut the door to medical transition altogether.
13. Blind Spots of the Left and Right: Wu’s Final Word
[64:10 - 65:54]
- Wu invokes Chesterton’s Fence as a metaphor for the left’s habit of destroying institutions without understanding their purpose.
- “The left, in our rush for things, tends to tear down institutions in the name of progress without asking ourselves if there's value.” (64:35)
- On the right: “I see as a lack of compassion sometimes … there's a real sense that you can just tell people to ignore a problem and it will go away. And that's just not the way the real world works.” (64:45)
Notable Quotes (with Timestamps/Attribution)
- “Gamergate was the moment that American politics changed forever...so many of the key people from Gamergate, me, Steve Bannon, Milo Yiannopoulos, Candace Owens...got our start there.”
— Brianna Wu [03:35] - “I didn't sign up to usher in some fringe progressive censorship over everything that is said and done. And that, unfortunately, is a lot of the direction that the industry has gone in the last decade.”
— Brianna Wu [09:55] - “There's this cancer of antisemitism that is growing in the progressive movement. It's getting louder and bigger and worse...October 7th...I just lose my shit.”
— Brianna Wu [15:39] - “Democracy is what gave me my civil rights as a trans woman and that is fundamentally under attack here.”
— Brianna Wu [20:27] - “If you're not a Zionist, you're in favor of a second holocaust, in my view.”
— Brianna Wu [29:05] - “At some point, we're going to have to put down a gun. ... There's no public policy I can point to the Gamergate accomplished.”
— Brianna Wu [37:28] - “There was a really, really, really long list of stuff I had to go through to transition from male to female. … And there has been a progressive political project to take that document and tear it to shreds in the name of instant access...”
— Brianna Wu [39:40] - “They're communists, they're anti Semites, they're just nuts. They're absolutely crazy. And they are fundamentally not interested in science...”
— Brianna Wu, on WPATH [45:43] - “I've never had a second of doubt in my entire life.”
— Brianna Wu [59:18] - “The left...tends to tear down institutions in the name of progress without asking ourselves if there's value. … On the right...I see as a lack of compassion sometimes.”
— Brianna Wu [64:35]
Timestamps for Major Segments
- Gamergate Era and Online Radicalization: 03:35 – 11:00
- Wu’s Break with Progressivism Post-October 7: 12:49 – 20:55
- Personal Fallout from Speaking Out: 25:10 – 28:23
- Liberal Democracy and Exhausted Majority: 32:23 – 38:37
- Trans Rights: History, Standards, Backlash: 39:17 – 51:05
- Trans Identities and Clinical Debates: 52:07 – 59:15
- Blind Spots on Both Sides: 64:10 – 65:54
Memorable Moments
- Wu’s frank admission of regret over her own contribution to the left’s toxicity and her sense of betrayal by former activist friends post-October 7.
- The emotionally charged description of losing close friendships and large contracts over her Israel stance.
- Her striking optimism about a growing exhausted American center and her call to move past culture war intransigence.
Tone and Style
The conversation is deeply personal, unsparing, at times raw, and often intellectually bracing. Both host and guest maintain empathy—even when expressing hard critiques of their own, or each other’s, political camps. Wu’s reflections blend policy insight, personal memoir, and trenchant criticism of the excesses and blind spots of modern activism.
Conclusion
This episode offers a rare, introspective look at ideological movement-building, disaffection, and coalition politics from the inside. Wu’s candid critiques—of both the right and left—combine with personal narrative to illuminate the costs of online mob mentalities, ideological drift, and the perils/opportunities for trans rights in a polarized America. The hope, according to Wu and echoed by the host, may rest with a yet-unrealized, sensible “exhausted majority” hungry for compromise, science, and decency.