Ayn Rand Short Clips’ Popularity Continues to Grow

In recent years, ARI has been successful in expanding its online reach and promoting Objectivism on social media. One outstanding example is our series of short clips featuring Ayn Rand’s answers to questions asked during Q&A sessions at her lectures or during interviews.

Rand’s answers offer a uniquely philosophical perspective on crucial issues, ranging from ethics and epistemology to analysis of current social and political phenomena.

Launched in October 2023, this project has been an instant hit, as we reported last year. The most popular clips have been watched hundreds of thousands of times, and the numbers are still growing. Among more recent clips, “The Feminist Movement: Ayn Rand’s View” has amassed almost 60,000 views. In this clip from a Q&A session following her 1978 Ford Hall Forum address, Rand explains her reasons for being opposed to the feminist movement, including its collectivist roots and its advocacy of government intervention.

Another clip that has done surprisingly well is Rand’s answer to a caller on Dell Shield’s 1969 radio program, Night Call, about whether it’s difficult to abandon ideas you were raised to believe. This clip has been watched more than 25,000 times.

Other popular recent clips include Rand’s answers to questions about the purpose of life, the essence of American exceptionalism, the injustice of affirmative action, and the ethics of “lifeboat” situations.

Our YouTube channel is constantly growing. In October 2023, we reached the 100,000-subscriber milestone and are currently close to 160,000 subscribers. Our most viral video, “Did Israel Steal Palestinian Land?,” reached one million views within a few days, and now has been watched more than 3.3 million times.

“We’re really happy about the few videos we’ve done that have gone viral. They show the enduring appeal of her personality and the timeless applicability of her ideas to today’s world,” says Ben Bayer, ARI’s director of content. “The channel’s steady growth is driven by the persistent work we put into creating new, quality intellectual content and selecting carefully from the best material in the Ayn Rand Archives. Regularly producing high-quality content is what helps us attract a strong following of dedicated Rand fans, while also reaching out to new audiences of curious minds around the globe.”

Subscribe to our YouTube channel so that you don’t miss the clips, our other videos, and The Ayn Rand Institute podcast episodes. A playlist of the clips released so far can be found here.