, Columnist
America’s Depressing New Culture War
A list of some of the top recipients on the membership site Patreon shows an obsession with the ordinary.
A philanthropic cause of another era.
Photographer: Angela Weiss/AFP
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There is a new culture war in America, between the ordinary and the transcendent. And the ordinary is winning.
That was my thought upon seeing this list of the 50 largest-grossing recipients of funds through Patreon, which includes only those who agreed to share information about how much they have raised. Patreon, in case you don’t already know, is a membership platform that allows anyone to donate money to participating performers or institutions (recipients have to pay Patreon a percentage). It is the true democratization of philanthropy.