What is History?

What is history? If we judge by today’s media landscape, history appears to be nothing more than the diaries of powerful individuals. Turn on any news channel, listen to podcasts, or scroll through social feeds. The world seemingly revolves around what presidents and CEOs said today. Currently, Trump and Vance dominate the conversation—even in Korea—as if they’re the only humans who matter, while the rest of us are relegated to passive observers.

This raises a disturbing question: Is this what history has always been?

I’ve attended workshops and watched videos where speakers claim to understand the trajectory of human civilization. They predict increasing violence, religious extremism, and even World War III. Yet these self-proclaimed historians largely regurgitate content from their favorite news sources and YouTubers. They’ve memorized recent events and believe that synthesizing limited data points qualifies as understanding the grand sweep of human experience.

But is memorizing what powerful people did yesterday really the same as understanding history?

History has always been written by those with the largest platforms. Cave paintings, stone carvings, written chronicles, and now follower counts. Unless you were a religious leader, monarch, or military commander, your story rarely made it into the historical record.

Algorithms have accelerated this distortion. They incite political movements and manufacture “historical” moments that serve engagement metrics rather than human understanding. We’re witnessing the creation of “history” in real time, but it’s a history curated by artificial systems designed to maximize outrage and division.

History must mean more than the mere biography of the powerful. I can’t help but admit that I’m Trump-addicted. I know way too much about this man and his ideology. I read and listen to his story almost daily, while I forget to call my mother and chat about what we’ve done today.

I’m afraid that I’ll one day become a victim of the feuds between powerful bureaucrats. I get scared when I think of missiles flying across my town, signaling that my entire life didn’t really matter in the grand scheme of geopolitical progression. At the same time, I feel the urge to resist being compliant and share my honest thoughts and feelings with the world.

While the news celebrates destruction, I want to practice and appreciate the love around us. I want to understand others, even if they are on the other side of my views. Our history’s highlights shouldn’t be wars. We deserve better.