The Internet is Real Life: How Online Culture Now Shapes Politics, Media, and Society

Erik Torenberg argues that internet culture has become upstream of all aspects of American life, with online discourse now shaping news cycles, political messaging, music production, and filmmaking. Politicians increasingly adopt memetic language and form views in online milieus, while traditional media increasingly covers phenomena originating on internet platforms. The internet is no longer separate from reality but has become the primary determinant of how Americans think, speak, and act.