Thread by @digi_hammurabi

“Why should we listen to you? You don’t work at a university, you haven’t published anything - you’re a failed academic who makes videos on YouTube!”

A thread.

We’ve had this kind of comment/criticism leveled at us a couple of times over the past year, and I want to take a minute to address it.

For those who don’t know, Josh graduated with his Ph.D. and then left the academic world. He doesn’t teach outside of YouTube, and he doesn’t

publish in academic journals. I will likewise never hold an academic position, and may also never publish. This is a very real sadness for us both, having spent decades training for research work in fields that we are passionate about.

It is, however, not a reflection of our intelligence or academic credentials. It is entirely down to personal circumstances. We are unable to relocate for work, and in a job market that often requires postdoctoral work (posts that are few and far-between,

last 1-2 years, and often require relocation) on top of full-time positions that also require relocation - often to other countries - our personal lives have made it all but impossible to pursue work in academia.

This brings us to YouTube. Not something either of us previously considered, but an ideal outlet for our passion and our training. Nothing we do there would count for tenure, or be taken into consideration in a job application, but it allows us to continue the work that we love.

Even better, it lets us share our love and knowledge with people who are just as enthusiastic about the ancient world as we are, without having our work hidden behind an academic paywall. It is incredibly rewarding, and we both feel privileged to have such an amazing audience.

All of this isn’t to say that we’d both be tenured at Yale if we were able to move. That’s ridiculous. Just to say that someone’s lack of academic position doesn’t necessarily mean that they are bad scholars. Likewise, you shouldn’t take what we say as gospel just

because of our education. Look at the evidence we present, and make up your own mind. If you disagree with anything we say - fantastic! Leave comments, engage, give evidence. Don’t just write it off because of our personal situation.

I should add that we both believe that what we do on YouTube is incredibly important, and that academia sorely needs more public engagement projects. This isn’t a consolation prize; this is something that we believe in and are very excited to be a part of.