The First Zoomer | Nixon & Generation Z
Tristin Kilgore, Founder and Editor-in-Chief
To those who have been paying attention to the right-wing youth on social media, it would be impossible to miss the sharp increase in posts concerning our 37th President, Richard Milhous Nixon. Older generations, who lived through the manufactured destruction of one of America’s most popular Presidents, or those who recall him as merely the only President to resign, will find this development shocking. How could it be possible that the generation raised online, one rooted in appearance and charisma as the foundation for political and social success, would reach back and recover, not the most beloved of our Presidents, not even the best looking, but Richard Nixon, the man that America would not have bought a used car from in 1960?
An undeniable part of this recovery of the Nixon Presidency has been the mastery of the most important medium of our age by the Richard Nixon Foundation: Social Media; the dominant medium of communication for Gen Z. This format places a fundamental emphasis on short-form, high-engagement content that has evolved into the pinnacle art form of the Zoomer Generation, the Edit. The Edit showcases, in typically less than 30-60 seconds, short videos and photos of Nixon with music and his audio overlaid with visual effects. The edit has allowed us to see the man, demonized by the media to the same, if not a greater extent, than President Trump, in a new light. On X, the political class engages with the idea of the Nixonian revival, on Instagram, it is enjoyed by those who remember very little about him, and on TikTok, as this content is built upon and developed, the internet is flooded with more and more videos about Richard Nixon.
It has been said online that Richard Nixon was the First Zoomer. Even the photos of a young Nixon look more at home on the TikTok For You Page than in a 1930s yearbook. This, however, is perplexing as he was born about 100 years before many from Gen Z, yet as one thinks about the ties between this generation and the man, it becomes evident that there was something very unique about him. Nixon came from nothing. He was a poor man. A very young man. A well educated man. And, most importantly, an underestimated man. This was the President who embodied the American aristocracy better than any other, as a man created by a meritocratic rise to the top without giving in to the low temptations of corruption that plague so many self-made politicians. It is no wonder that today’s youth relate to Nixon and always look back with a sense of loss at things they never experienced. Nixon would describe himself as the worst nightmare of a publicist, as he was obsessed with pure authenticity. Nixon was staunchly for speaking his mind and being absolutely transparent with what he believed, which is exactly what the Zoomers hunger for most. He never once tried to pretend to be something that he was not. Nixon recognized his shortcomings in social situations, something many Zoomers struggle with. This is not to overlook his distrust for the same institutions that we today have lost all faith in, during a time when this was out of the ordinary. He recognized that the “unbiased journalism” of the mainstream media was nothing more than a myth, as Gen Z does today. Thus, just as Americans did in 1968, the Zoomers see themselves in him.
The relatability of Nixon also comes from the ideas that he championed throughout his life and Presidency. He was a relentless risk-taker who strove to raise America up, despite our kicking and screaming, to its greatest heights. We have seen what it is like in an America that is free from risk. That is largely the America that we grew up in. Without any chance to fail, we have been deprived of a chance to succeed in the name of safety. Look at the 2024 election. Why, if this generation has become so acclimated to a comfortable existence, has Gen Z become so enthralled by a figure like President Trump? They saw a man who put everything possible on the line to achieve something great, and the magnetism it produced was impossible to resist. Nixon was the same way. He gambled everything, faced crushing defeats, and, despite this, came back to succeed at a level never thought possible. As he once said about this matter: “The greatness comes, not when things go always well for you, but the greatness comes when you are really tested.” Our Generation has an appetite for the great feats which can only be found by taking risks, something that evidently lacks in our world today.
During my schooling, we were taught only a few things about our 37th President. First, the televised debate in 1960 against John F. Kennedy when he was humiliated and lost the election. Second, his responsibility for the worst of the Vietnam War and the protests against it. Third, the accusations made against him in the midst of the Watergate scandal, that justifies calling him the most corrupt President we have ever had. Yet, as I look up at my Time Magazine cover of a victorious Richard Nixon, none of these attacks against him come to mind. What we were taught abandons not only the historical record but also the totalizing grip that Nixon held over the electorate at the time. There are, as Nixon would say, mistakes he has made along the way. It, however, has become increasingly clear to me that he was given a bad shake by the history books. This only increased my own, and the rest of the young right’s, interest in Nixon. The image of Nixon fabricated by the hands of the Boomer Generation may have convinced Gen X and Millennials that Nixon was nothing more than a crook who did Watergate. But that has inevitably given way to questions raised by our generation who have sought a more honest depiction of the President. Zoomers know Nixon as someone who fought day and night for a restored American destiny and a future placed back into the hands of the American people. His charisma, which had enchanted the Nation in his elections, as well as us today, was that of the will. Nixon had the will to do what was necessary, to take risks, and to leverage the Presidency for the benefit of the American people. That is fundamentally who Richard Nixon was and exactly what the Zoomers want. All of this brought him under immense pressure and constant attacks, yet, the unshakable competence that came through his rise from nothing and the faith in his mission drove him forward. This is what draws our generation to Nixon.
He may have been forsaken in his time, but now it’s time for Gen Z to define the future. And Gen Z has decided: It’s Time for Nixon. Now, more than ever.