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I would argue if anything they are unpopular for the reason that they are a contrarian. Which, I would place at the opposite end of the spectrum of a populist. He usually doesn't speak up unless he doesn't like something, and that something is when something is popular or seen as something that has generally been accepted by a large group of individuals.

If a story or concept is too popular he will state why it shouldn't be.

Contrarians can annoy some folks, which is why the phrase "It's okay to like things" has become a common statement.

If the crowd is wrong about something it's good to have contrarianism. But when the crowd is right or agrees with them they'll start to question their own beliefs and even speak against them, and at that point such a philosophy can be obstructive.

On the opposite end, a populist will always speak with where they feel the crowd is. That can be great in those cases where the crowd is moving in the right direction, however it can be detrimental should the crowd start to push into harmful behaviors such as anti-vax and being hostile toward scientists and people just minding their business in masks.

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