As we celebrated America’s 250th birthday in the states, my mind couldn’t help put drift off to how so many different instances drove our country to where it is today. The sheer amount of wars, internal conflicts, production changes, melding cultures and expansion of states has been a tremendous feat throughout those years. I am, generally speaking, proud to be an American.

We’ve begun to reach a point in history, though, where people are far more likely to simply stay on the side they are on rather than admitting they may not be as learned on a subject. It’s human to do this, especially given the ease of access to stay in one’s own thought process bubble these days (the internet algorithms and social media directly come to mind). This unfettered access to information can trick us into believing we fully understand a subject matter before we do or, worse still, we begin to trust too many influencers and pundits without making sure we hear every side. 

It is within these moments that we lose out on true growth of knowledge, understanding, and community as a society, both national and global. This is where personal bias vs. personal preference come into play.

With this piece, I will define personal preference as how one generally views the state of things. Given Wrestling fans talk about Tribalism constantly, let's use AEW vs. WWE fans as the example. A personal preference may be that an AEW fan “...prefers in-ring wrestling to be of higher quality while stories are told far more in the ring rather than outside of it”. This is a perfectly reasonable way to articulate a personal preference given that not everyone will agree with this opinion. The use of the word “prefer” does a great deal to articulate it being a preference rather than fact. A WWE fan may state the opposite, but, as long as it is stated as opinion rather than fact, both can co-exist, understand each other and, ultimately, agree to disagree.

This brings me to personal bias. For the purposes of this piece, I will define personal bias as being, overwhelming, supporting most (if not all) one company does and condemning most (if not all) the other company does. Take the instance of Cody Rhodes. Many AEW fans were happy to have him at the start of the company, given his name value and proven track record in the ring while a sub-section of WWE fans decided, outright, that Cody was not a valuable asset. While Cody did sour with AEW fans near the end of his run, when Cody left the company, personal bias for many people creeped in. Upon Cody's return to the WWE, these same fans were jumping from their seats about how big of a get it was while a sub-section of AEW fans reverted to believing he was terrible. Personal bias such as this can create hypocritical loops in one's opinions and actions where the rules “apply to thee but not to me”.

Personal bias can be quite harmful in forming relationships and communicating with people if you are unaware of your own thoughts/experiences and how they may have shaped your thinking. Trauma is one of the leading dictators of personal bias as, by human nature, we tend to remember the bad consequences of actions before we remember the good consequences. Given this, humans tend to be, inadvertently, ruled by their traumas to some extent. This can cause them to start sheltering themselves, slowly but surely, away from oppositional minded people which is, generally, a mistake. There are exceptions to this such as people who wish to do you direct and immediate harm as those people should be avoided, but those who may be doing indirect harm with thoughts, speech or, more likely, their own personal biases based on trauma, are far more easily convinced to have a conversation. Being able to speak with people and search for personal biases within ourselves and others is a foundational piece of growth that, globally, we are starting to lose out on. The internet provides a great resource but, as Uncle Ben would say, “with great power comes great responsibility”.

It is still incredibly important to get out of our bubble online, to not spring into attack mode the second someone disagrees or, even, if they try to attack verbally first. We all work toward a better tomorrow together or we all die in separation.

Humanity is a social species, it’s probably time we all began to embrace that even further again.

Professional wrestling has one of the most passionate fan bases in entertainment. Unfortunately, it also has one of the most divided. While fans argue over promotions, match quality, and booking decisions, one rivalry often goes unnoticed: the battle between the fair-weather fan and the Internet Wrestling Community.

The irony is that both groups believe they’re protecting professional wrestling, yet both spend an incredible amount of time criticizing it—and each other.

The fair-weather fan is easy to spot. They make their annual appearance around Royal Rumble season, stick around through WrestleMania, and then disappear until the next celebrity appearance or major headline brings wrestling back into the mainstream. Their opening line is almost always the same: “I haven’t watched wrestling in years, but…”

Within minutes, they’re explaining why wrestling was better when they were growing up. Whether they came from Hulkamania, the Attitude Era, Ruthless Aggression, or another generation, their favorite era conveniently happens to be the one they remember most fondly. Nostalgia becomes evidence, and memories become facts.

The problem isn’t that these fans love the past. The problem is that many of them don’t actually want wrestling to evolve—they want it to recreate a feeling that can never truly be reproduced. Wrestling didn’t just change; they did. What they’re chasing isn’t better booking. It’s their childhood.

On the opposite end of the spectrum sits the Internet Wrestling Community.

The IWC doesn’t simply watch wrestling—they consume it. Every television show, every premium live event, every independent recommendation, every backstage rumor, every contract update, and every five-star match becomes part of an endless cycle of analysis and debate. There’s nothing wrong with being invested in the product. Passion is what keeps wrestling alive.

However, passion has a funny way of turning into entitlement.

Many online fans claim they want surprises while simultaneously reading every spoiler, every insider report, and every leaked creative plan available. Then, when a debut or return isn’t shocking enough, they blame the company for failing to surprise them.

That’s not bad storytelling.

That’s self-inflicted disappointment.

The IWC also prides itself on being objective, but wrestling discussions online often become less about enjoying the product and more about proving who predicted what first. Every storyline becomes an opportunity to claim victory, every booking decision becomes evidence in an ongoing argument, and every opinion is presented as though it’s an undisputed fact.

Ironically, many of the same fans who insist a company is “unwatchable” continue dedicating multiple nights every week to watching its programming, discussing it online, and recording podcasts about it.

Most people don’t invest that much time in things they genuinely hate.

Despite their differences, fair-weather fans and the IWC have far more in common than either group would care to admit.

Both believe they’re the voice of reason. Both insist they’re seeing wrestling more clearly than everyone else. Both are convinced the other side is responsible for everything wrong with the industry. Meanwhile, wrestling continues to thrive because of both groups.

Casual fans help create those massive cultural moments that bring new audiences into the product. Hardcore fans keep the conversation alive between those moments, filling podcasts, social media, YouTube channels, and message boards with constant discussion.

One group fuels mainstream attention.

The other sustains year-round engagement.

Neither is the enemy.

The real hypocrisy is believing that your way of being a wrestling fan is the only correct one.

Professional wrestling has always been built on larger-than-life characters, emotional storytelling, and the willingness to suspend disbelief for a few hours. Somewhere along the way, too many fans stopped trying to enjoy the show and started trying to win the conversation.

Perhaps that’s the strangest contradiction of them all. Every wrestling fan claims to love professional wrestling. Yet some seem far more interested in proving they’re the smartest person watching it.

And maybe that’s the greatest work in wrestling today.