The Political Scene | The New Yorker Is America Destined for a Future Without Children?
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Feb 26, 2025 Gideon Lewis-Kraus, a New Yorker staff writer known for his deep dives into demographic issues, discusses troubling global trends of declining birth rates. He explores the factors behind fewer children, from cultural shifts to economic pressures, especially highlighting South Korea's record-low rates. The podcast unveils the polarized political landscape in America, where the right embraces the issue as a rallying cry, while the left struggles to address it. Lewis-Kraus challenges myths surrounding childlessness and examines the broader societal impacts of these demographic changes.
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Birth Rates: A Cultural Shift
- Declining birth rates are a cultural, not biological, phenomenon.
- People are choosing not to have kids, they are not physically unable to.
Depopulation vs. Climate Change
- Conservatives view depopulation as a greater threat than climate change, but demographers disagree.
- America's fertility rate is higher than many developed nations and isn't a current crisis.
South Korea: A Glimpse into the Future?
- Gideon Lewis-Kraus visited South Korea to observe the effects of low birth rates firsthand.
- He found empty playgrounds, childless public transport, and schools with no new students.