Why Nepotism Exists | Decoding the Nepotism Debate | Between the Lines with Palki Sharma

Summary

Nepotism, meaning favoritism towards one's friends and family members, has a long history spanning across industries, governments, and dynasties. Though theoretically positions should be given based on merit alone, in reality nepotism persists across the globe. Data reveals over 60% in Gen Z use connections to get jobs and men tend to benefit more. Though frustration over nepotism is justified as it often replaces merit with privilege, we must acknowledge it as an unfortunate fact of life. Those with unfair advantages should not squander them. Those lacking connections will simply have to work harder, as many examples exist of those succeeding from the ground up.

Takeaways

• 😀 Nepotism has existed throughout history, across cultures and societies
• 👪 Nepotism involves using power or influence to get jobs or advantages for family members
• 🏢 Nepotism is present across many industries and professions, from politics to business
• 👑 Political dynasties are a prime example of nepotism in action
• 🇺🇸 The US passed an anti-nepotism law in 1967 due to nepotism concerns
• 📈 About 22% of 30-year-old American men work for the same employer as their father
• 🙋‍♂️ Men tend to benefit more from nepotism compared to women
• ❓ Nepotism is not always bad if the beneficiaries use their advantage wisely
• ☹️ However, nepotism is fundamentally unfair and works against meritocracy
• 💪 Those without connections must work harder to overcome the nepotism disadvantage

Q & A

What is the origin of the word 'nepotism'?

The word nepotism originates from the Latin word 'nepos' which means nephews. In the Catholic church, popes would often appoint their nephews to important positions like Cardinals. This practice of favoring relatives came to be known as nepotism.

Who are some famous people in history who benefited from nepotism?

Some famous 'nepo babies' or people who benefited from nepotism include Aristotle, Charles Darwin, Charlie Chaplin, John F. Kennedy, Sukarno of Indonesia, the Rajapaksa family of Sri Lanka, and the Gandhi-Nehru family of India.

What percentage of 30-year old American sons work for the same employer as their fathers?

About 22% of 30-year old American sons work for the same employer as their fathers.

What percentage of Gen Z survey respondents admitted to using nepotism to land a job?

In a survey, over 60% of Gen Z respondents admitted to using nepotism or connections to land a job offer.

Is nepotism always bad?

Not necessarily. While nepotism is unfair and often villainized, some talented people follow in their parents' footsteps legitimately. The problem arises when the advantaged squander their opportunities due to lack of merit.

How can non-privileged people deal with the existence of nepotism?

Instead of complaining about nepotism, the non-privileged should accept that they'll have to work harder to succeed. There are enough examples of people succeeding through sheer hard work and grit despite not having family support or connections.

Why does nepotism persist despite societies evolving towards meritocracy?

Nepotism persists because it is human tendency to favor one's own family and kin when in positions of power or influence. Also, nepotism thrives across political ideologies, in dictatorships as well as in democracies.

Is nepotism more common among men or women?

Studies show that men tend to benefit more from nepotism compared to women.

Why is Bollywood an easy target when complaining about nepotism?

The prevalence of star kids and Industry connections in Bollywood makes it an easy target for complaining about nepotism. However, nepotism exists across industries and sectors.

What is the solution to the problem of nepotism according to the passage?

The passage acknowledges that nepotism cannot be completely eliminated from society. It advises the privileged to not squander their advantage and the underprivileged to work harder instead of just complaining about lack of opportunities.

Outlines

00:00

😊 Origins and prevalence of nepotism across history

The first paragraph provides background on nepotism - its origins, dictionary definition, and widespread historical practice across institutions like the Catholic church, academia, political leadership, and family-run businesses. It highlights how nepotism has persisted over time despite newer governance systems that were supposed to curb it.

05:01

😮‍💨 Rampant political dynasties in India

The second paragraph focuses on India, describing how dynastic politics is deeply entrenched across political parties and states. It provides a statistic that in 20 Indian states, there are families with at least 3 active politicians, demonstrating the scale of nepotism in politics.

Keywords

💡nepotism

Nepotism refers to the practice of favoring one's relatives and friends in appointments to jobs and positions, without regard for their qualifications or merit. This is a core theme discussed throughout the video, which examines how nepotism is common across different industries and sectors.

💡dynasty politics

Dynasty politics involves multiple members of the same family holding elected political positions across generations. The video cites the Gandhi-Nehru family's dominance over India's Congress party as a prime example of how dynasty politics enables nepotism in the political arena.

💡merit

Merit refers to a person's skills, talents and capabilities that make them suitable for a particular job or position. The video contends that nepotism often conflicts with and overrides merit-based appointments and promotions.

💡Bollywood

Bollywood refers to India's Hindi film industry. The video discusses how the latest Bollywood film 'Archies' has reignited debates over nepotism in the Indian film industry, as its lead stars are children of famous Bollywood celebrities.

💡connections

Connections refer to a person's network of family, friends and acquaintances, especially those in positions of influence. The video argues that connections often trump qualifications when seeking jobs due to the prevalent practice of nepotism across multiple industries.

💡unfair advantage

This refers to the preferential treatment and undue opportunities gained by people of privilege and influence to further their own interests or those of their relatives. Children of famous parents get acting breaks and business deals due to their family background rather than merit.

💡head start

This refers to the early progress made by children and relatives of influential families in getting access to opportunities for growth and success in fields like business, politics and entertainment.

💡enemy of talent

This describes how nepotism acts as a barrier for genuinely talented and deserving candidates, preventing them from getting opportunities solely based on merit and capability.

💡fact of life

This refers to the video's perspective that nepotism exists across societies and sectors, and has been prevalent throughout history. Though unjust, it remains an unavoidable reality.

💡work harder

For those without familial connections and privileges, the video advocates working harder to counter nepotism, instead of lamenting the lack of opportunities.

Highlights

Nepotism is the act of using your power or influence to get good jobs or unfair advantages for members of your own family.

Nepotism is as old as time itself. The word finds its roots in the Catholic church where popes would appoint their nephews as cardinals.

Greek philosopher Aristotle may have been a victim of nepotism when his teacher Plato gave a leadership position to his own nephew instead of Aristotle.

Famous figures like Charles Darwin and Charlie Chaplin were also beneficiaries of nepotism.

In 1967, America passed a law banning federal officials from hiring close relatives due to rampant nepotism. It was called the Bobby Kennedy law.

In India, over 34 prominent political dynasties exist across party and state lines, with at least 3 family members actively involved in politics.

By age 30, about 22% of American sons work for the same employer as their fathers, often at the same time.

A survey found over 60% of Gen Z use connections and nepotism to land jobs, showing they benefit from it the most.

Nepotism often has a gender imbalance, with men tending to benefit more.

Connections often trump qualifications in the real world, so while unfair, nepotism is a fact of life.

Harping about nepotism often leads nowhere. Those with the advantage should use it wisely as chances are limited.

Despite nepotism, many still succeed through hard work and perseverance, so don't give up.

Talented children of famous parents who follow in their footsteps should not always be criticized.

Figures like George Clooney and Drew Barrymore show that nepotism does not guarantee success - merit matters most.

While unfair, some level of nepotism seems inevitable. Focus efforts on hard work rather than complaints.

Transcripts

have you heard of The Archies not the

cards you buy but the comics the tales

of Archie Andrews and friends for many

it's a cult I'm sure a lot of you grew

up reading it and many of you wanted the

Archie's life having milkshakes and

hanging out with friends it's a simple

life and readers love it but in India

arches has sparked a debate there's a

new movie based on the comic made by

Indian filmmaker Zoya akar it's the

subject of an intense debate thanks to

the cast the lead actors there's austan

grandson of amitab bachan suan Khan

daughter of Shah ruk Khan Kushi kapor

daughter of shvi and Boni Kapoor three

main characters all of them star kids

and that's what's polarizing the

audience critics have called it a nepo

kid fest a sign of the rotten Bollywood

supporters say it's a storm in a teacup

and marketing experts say it will only

help the film because there's no such

thing as bad publicity so Ares has

reignited the nepotism debate and it's

nothing new in Bollywood the charge of

nepotism and the practice of nepotism

have both been around for a while now

the question is is this just a Bollywood

thing what about other Industries and

walks of life also what exactly is

nepotism why is it a problem and why

should you care hello and welcome I'm py

Sharma on this show we read between the

lines the stated and the unstated the

obvious and the hidden to bring you the

full

story

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if you look at human history there is

one thread that weaves its way through

Empires governments and industries

nepotism here's what it means nepotism

is the act of using your power or

influence to get good jobs or unfair

advantages for members of your own

family that's the dictionary definition

simply put it is favoritism towards your

loved ones off late it has become a

subject of intense debate so much so

that the hate for nepotism has turned

into an industry itself look at

Instagram one of the top trending

hashtags is Boycott nepotism the New

York Magazine called 2022 the year of

the nepo baby they even had a cover to

go with it it featured nepo kids from

Hollywood so it's not just a Bollywood

Trend and it's not a new one either

nepotism is as old as time itself the

word finds its roots in the Catholic

church in Latin nepos roughly means

nephews popes would appoint their

nephews for Cardinal positions they did

not have their own children so nephews

were the best option it was to continue

what was called the papal dasty and

that's how the word nepotism came about

but the practice did not start with the

Pope Greek philosopher Aristotle may

have been a victim of nepotism his

teacher was Plateau Plateau had a

leadership position in the academy where

he taught Aristotle thought he was the

proty and that he would get the job but

Plateau gave it to his nephew instead

then there's Charles Darwin he told us

how we evolve but his own Evolution was

shaped by a man named Erasmus Darwin who

himself wrote a theory on Evolution and

how can we forget Charlie Chaplain he

too was a nepo baby his parents were

famous British comic performers in the

19th century so I guess the point is

that nepotism has been long practiced

and is widespread starting with Kings

and Queens over the century societies

evolved leaders came to be elected and

not ordained by birth office bearers

were supposed to be picked on Merit and

companies were answerable to

shareholders the new system should have

had no room for nepotism but it

persisted take US President John F

Kennedy he appointed his brother Robert

F Kennedy as the Attorney General of

America his brother-in-law became the

first director of the Peace Corp and

nepotism got so out of hand that in 1967

America had to come up with a law a law

Banning Federal officials from hiring

close relatives ironically it was called

the Bobby Kennedy law then there's

former Indonesian president zaru he used

his influence to benefit his children

their businesses profited from

Indonesia's Industries it got so bad

that Indonesians adopted a new

resistance slogan corruption collusion

nepotism and then there were the rajap

pakas of Sri Lanka at one point the

family was controlling all the important

portfolio in Columbus some 11 Ministries

in all in the Arab world leaders rise

because of their bloodline many of these

countries are still kingdoms or

dictatorships where rulers consolidate

Power by keeping it within the family

and that is not to say that nepotism

does not thrive in democracies look at

India where democracy came with Dynasty

Politics the Gandhi Neu family is the

prime example they have a monopoly over

one of India's main political parties

the congress party and they're not the

only ones to practice this this India

has more than 34 prominent political

dynasties across party and religious

lines across States in fact let me give

you a figure in 20 Indian states there

are families with at least three members

who are active politicians three members

of One family so you get the gist

nepotism is rampant from courtrooms to

boardrooms and the hallowed Halls of

legislature and Judiciary it is so

common that it's hard to measure and

quantify there is no nepotism index but

there is some data that gives you an

idea like in the United States by age 30

about 22% of American Sons will be

working for the same employer as their

fathers and they will be doing this at

the same time as their fathers nepo

babies enjoy not just a link but the

support of a whole ecosystem that comes

with it and Jen z may be calling it out

but data shows that they are the biggest

beneficiaries of nepotism a survey

pulled 2,000 workers it's a small sample

but look at the results more than 60%

said that they they use nepotism to land

a job offer 42% said they got the job

because of connections they may think

it's unfair but they're still using it

and not surprisingly nepotism also has a

gender imbalance men tend to benefit

more from it so while it's easy to point

fingers at Star kids and Bollywood makes

a convenient soft target just look

around 30% of the people you know are

likely to have benefited from nepotism

meaning they got there using their

family connections which brings us to

the question is nepotism all

bad I can imagine the first response to

this the same old rant from ANA Pand to

Haley Bieber the same grievance that

they got the opportunities they got

because they were born famous and you'd

be right it is unfair nepotism is called

the enemy of

talent but what if talented children

want to follow in the footsteps of their

parents would you still villainize them

I ask because you don't hear complaints

about George Clooney or Drew Barrymore

or Farhan akar they too are nepo babies

but they're not targeted because they're

good at what they do so I guess it's

also about what you make of it some

people have an unfair Advantage a head

start but in the long run it's their

Merit or the lack of it that makes all

the difference and no this is not a

justification or defense of nepotism

it's an acknowledgement that this is a

fact of life in public offices it is a

crime in private Ventures it is almost a

given if you have money or influence you

will use it to help your kin at the end

of the day connections do Trump

qualifications in the world that we live

in it is not ideal but life's not ideal

and in the real world even those with an

ideal Head Start fail and those with no

connections Triumph so here's our two

bits harping about nepotism won't take

us anywhere for those who have the

advantage try not to squander it because

you get only so many chances in life and

for those who don't have the advantage

accept that you'll have to work harder

instead of complaining and giving up

there are enough and more examples of

people who Rose through the ranks

without Family Support so we say go for

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