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{{Short description|English philosophy educator (born 1999)}} |
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{{Short description|English philosophy educator (born 1999)}} |
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{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2025}}{{Use British English|date=January 2026}} |
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{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2025}}{{Use British English|date=January 2026}} |
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{{Other uses}} |
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{{Other uses}} |
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{{Infobox youtuber |
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{{Infobox youtuber |
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| youtube_subscribers = 1.9 million |
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| youtube_subscribers = 1.9 million |
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| youtube_views = 382.1 million |
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| youtube_views = 382.1 million |
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| stats_update = 13 March 2026 |
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| stats_update = 13 March 2026 |
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| module = {{Listen |
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| module = {{Listen |
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== Early life and education == |
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== Early life and education == |
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Alex O'Connor was born on 27 March 1999.[{{Cite tweet |number=1773121428277096804 |user=CosmicSkeptic |title=It's my birthday today, but I have a gift for you [...] |first=O'Connor |last=Alex |date=27 March 2024 |access-date=17 March 2025}}][{{Cite ]magazine |last=Kornhaber |first=Spencer |date=23 January 2025 |title=America Is Divided. It Makes for Tremendous Content. |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2025/01/jubilee-media-profile/681411/ |access-date=17 March 2025 |magazine=[[The Atlantic]]}} He grew up in [[Blackbird Leys]], a [[Civil parishes in England|civil parish]] and [[Ward (politics)|ward]] in [[Oxford]], with divorced parents.[{{Cite news |last=Prosser |first=Eirian Jane |date=18 November 2020 |title=Student Alex ]O’Connor finds TikTok fame with video about Oxford's Blackbird Leys estate |url=https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/18879232.student-alex-oconnor-finds-tiktok-fame-video-oxfords-blackbird-leys-estate/ |access-date=15 November 2025 |work=[[Oxford Mail]] |archive-date=13 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230313084546/https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/18879232.student-alex-oconnor-finds-tiktok-fame-video-oxfords-blackbird-leys-estate/ |url-status=live}} He attended [[St John's College, Oxford|St John's College]] at the [[University of Oxford]] and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy and [[theology]] in 2021.[{{Cite ]magazine |last=McKee |first=Samuel |date=30 September 2024 |title=The new faces of unbelief for Generation Z: the rise of the British social media atheists |url=https://freethinker.co.uk/2024/09/the-new-faces-of-unbelief-for-generation-z-the-rise-of-the-british-social-media-atheists/ |access-date=17 March 2025 |magazine=[[The Freethinker (journal)|The Freethinker]]}}[{{Cite web |title=Alex O'Connor {{!}} Speaker |url=https://iai.tv/home/speakers/alex-oconnor |access-date=17 March 2025 |publisher=[[Institute of Art and Ideas]]}}][{{Cite news |last=Norman |first=Matthew |date=10 October 2023 |title=Peter Hitchens storms out of Oxford Cosmic Skeptic podcast |url=https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/23845400.peter-hitchens-storms-oxford-cosmic-skeptic-podcast/ |access-date=17 March 2025 |work=[[Oxford Mail]]}}] |
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Alex O'Connor was born on 27 March 1999.[{{Cite tweet |number=1773121428277096804 |user=CosmicSkeptic |title=It's my birthday today, but I have a gift for you [...] |first=O'Connor |last=Alex |date=27 March 2024 |access-date=17 March 2025}}][{{Cite news |last=Kornhaber |first=Spencer |date=23 January 2025 |title=America is Divided: It Makes for Tremendous Content |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2025/01/jubilee-media-profile/681411/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250123164935/https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2025/01/jubilee-media-profile/681411/ |archive-date=23 January 2025 |work=[[The Atlantic]]}}] He grew up in [[Blackbird Leys]], a [[Civil parishes in England|civil parish]] and [[Ward (politics)|ward]] in [[Oxford]], with divorced parents.[{{Cite news |last=Prosser |first=Eirian Jane |date=18 November 2020 |title=Student Alex O'Connor finds TikTok fame with video about Oxford's Blackbird Leys estate |url=https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/18879232.student-alex-oconnor-finds-tiktok-fame-video-oxfords-blackbird-leys-estate/ |access-date=15 November 2025 |work=[[Oxford Mail]] |archive-date=13 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230313084546/https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/18879232.student-alex-oconnor-finds-tiktok-fame-video-oxfords-blackbird-leys-estate/ |url-status=live}}] He attended [[St John's College, Oxford|St John's College]] at the [[University of Oxford]] and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy and [[theology]] in 2021.[{{Cite news |last=McKee |first=Samuel |date=30 September 2024 |title=The New Faces of Unbelief for Generation Z: the Rise of the British Social Media Atheists |url=https://freethinker.co.uk/2024/09/the-new-faces-of-unbelief-for-generation-z-the-rise-of-the-british-social-media-atheists/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240930092125/https://freethinker.co.uk/2024/09/the-new-faces-of-unbelief-for-generation-z-the-rise-of-the-british-social-media-atheists/ |archive-date=30 September 2024 |work=The Freethinker}}][{{Cite web |title=Alex O'Connor {{!}} Speaker |url=https://iai.tv/home/speakers/alex-oconnor |access-date=17 March 2025 |publisher=[[Institute of Art and Ideas]]}}][{{Cite news |last=Norman |first=Matthew |date=10 October 2023 |title=Peter Hitchens storms out of Oxford Cosmic Skeptic podcast |url=https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/23845400.peter-hitchens-storms-oxford-cosmic-skeptic-podcast/ |access-date=17 March 2025 |work=[[Oxford Mail]]}}] |
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== Career == |
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== Career == |
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O'Connor started his career by uploading videos on [[skateboarding]] to YouTube.[{{Cite news |last=Khan |first=Harris |date=16 March 2025 |title=Alex O'Connor on the importance of saying 'I don't know' |url=https://www.varsity.co.uk/interviews/29354 |access-date=17 March 2025 |work=[[Varsity (Cambridge)|Varsity]]}}] He started the ''Within Reason'' podcast (formerly called ''The Cosmic Skeptic Podcast'') in 2019. His guests include [[Richard Dawkins]], [[David Deutsch]], [[Sam Harris]], [[Carlo Rovelli]], [[Alain de Botton]] and [[Slavoj Žižek]]. |
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O'Connor started his career by uploading videos on [[skateboarding]] to YouTube. By age seventeen, he was making videos on his channel CosmicSkeptic commenting on philosophy, religion and political topics like the [[2016 United States presidential election]].[{{Cite news |last=Khan |first=Harris |date=16 March 2025 |title=Alex O'Connor on the importance of saying 'I don't know' |url=https://www.varsity.co.uk/interviews/29354 |access-date=17 March 2025 |work=[[Varsity (Cambridge)|Varsity]]}}] He started the ''Within Reason'' podcast (formerly called ''The Cosmic Skeptic Podcast'') in 2019. His guests include [[Richard Dawkins]], [[David Deutsch]], [[Sam Harris]], [[Carlo Rovelli]], [[Alain de Botton]] and [[Slavoj Žižek]]. |
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In October 2023 he interviewed the [[Conservatism in the United Kingdom|conservative]] journalist and commentator [[Peter Hitchens]] about [[drug decriminalisation]], [[secularism]] and the [[British monarchy]]. Hitchens abruptly ended the interview and expressed his "active dislike" of O'Connor before leaving. |
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In October 2023 he interviewed the [[Conservatism in the United Kingdom|conservative]] journalist and commentator [[Peter Hitchens]] about [[drug decriminalisation]], [[secularism]] and the [[British monarchy]]. Hitchens abruptly ended the interview and expressed his "active dislike" of O'Connor before leaving. |
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==Views== |
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==Views== |
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O'Connor identifies as an [[Agnostic atheism|agnostic atheist]]; he is known for his critique of theistic belief systems and for his long-form conversations on the subject.[{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/shorts/GtVCi8Ev4Ro |title=Is Alex ]O’Connor Spiritual? #atheist #agnostic #religion #spirituality #soulboom |language=en |access-date=2025-06-16 |via=www.youtube.com}} He is a [[Republicanism in the United Kingdom|British republican]], a subject he has spoken publicly on, including with [[Piers Morgan]].[{{Cite web |last=O'Connor2023-05-04T15:19:00+01:00 |first=Alex |title=Why ]I’m an atheist anti-monarchist |url=https://www.premierunbelievable.com/articles/why-im-an-atheist-anti-monarchist/15506.article |access-date=2025-07-08 |website=Unbelievable |language=en}} O’Connor is a former [[Veganism|vegan]].[{{Cite web |last=Ellinas |first=Alex Fasseas, Marcus |date=2021-12-05 |title=The Case for Veganism: An Interview with Alex ]O’Connor (Part 1) |url=https://brownpoliticalreview.org/the-case-for-veganism-an-interview-with-alex-oconnor-part-1/ |access-date=2025-07-08 |website=Brown Political Review |language=en-US}}[{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLDxzKvuESk |title=]I’m Not Convinced Veganism Will Work - Alex O’Connor |date=2025-04-13 |last=More Alex O'Connor |access-date=2025-07-08 |via=YouTube}} |
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O'Connor identifies as an [[Agnostic atheism|agnostic atheist]]; he is known for his critique of theistic belief systems and for his long-form conversations on the subject.[{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/shorts/GtVCi8Ev4Ro |title=Is Alex O'Connor Spiritual? #atheist #agnostic #religion #spirituality #soulboom |language=en |access-date=2025-06-16 |via=www.youtube.com}}] He is a [[Republicanism in the United Kingdom|British republican]], a subject he has spoken publicly on, including with [[Piers Morgan]].[{{Cite web |last=O'Connor2023-05-04T15:19:00+01:00 |first=Alex |title=Why I'm an atheist anti-monarchist |url=https://www.premierunbelievable.com/articles/why-im-an-atheist-anti-monarchist/15506.article |access-date=2025-07-08 |website=Unbelievable |language=en}}] O’Connor is a former [[Veganism|vegan]].[{{Cite web |last=Ellinas |first=Alex Fasseas, Marcus |date=2021-12-05 |title=The Case for Veganism: An Interview with Alex O'Connor (Part 1) |url=https://brownpoliticalreview.org/the-case-for-veganism-an-interview-with-alex-oconnor-part-1/ |access-date=2025-07-08 |website=Brown Political Review |language=en-US}}][{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLDxzKvuESk |title=I'm Not Convinced Veganism Will Work - Alex O'Connor |date=2025-04-13 |last=More Alex O'Connor |access-date=2025-07-08 |via=YouTube}}] |
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== References == |
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== References == |
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