DEI killed meritocracy—and white men in America have paid the price. Victor Davis Hanson breaks down a recent, controversial article from Compact Magazine, which examines how white males have been increasingly excluded from fields like entertainment, journalism, and academia over the past several decades. Hanson explores the effects of early affirmative action, post-George Floyd hiring practices, and who bears responsibility for these changes on today’s episode of “Victor Davis Hanson: In a Few Words.” “I do blame the older white hierarchy, mostly liberal professors, liberal journalists, liberal directors, liberal actors, liberal screenwriters. They all had nice cushy jobs. They earned them. Then they decided in their utopian generosity that they were going to admit people into their guilds without the same criterion that they had had because it made them feel better. “In other words, they didn't accept Tom Sowell's or Shelby Steele's advice or Jason Riley's that says, when you do that, you're going to encourage mediocrity and opportunist, and you're going to deprecate the work of African Americans or Hispanics that are very talented. But that's what you're going to do just to gratify your own sense of ego and shame. And that's exactly what happened.” (0:00) Introduction (0:21) Compact Article (0:57) Affirmative Action and Its Impact (2:50) Meritocracy Loss (4:12) Blame and Responsibility (5:54) Consequences of Lower Standards (7:07) Conclusion We need your help to ensure The Daily Signal can continue to counter the liberal media's lies with the truth. Support The Daily Signal’s work today by becoming a Signal Elite Supporter.    Your tax-deductible monthly gift will help:  👉Help us provide free access to Victor Davis Hanson’s video commentary 👉Fund investigative reporting on the stories the liberal media will not cover  👉Counter the liberal media's lies   👉Keep The Daily Signal free to the public  http://dailysignal.com/donate Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices