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J. J. McCullough

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J.J. McCullough
McCullough in 2022
Born
John James Stephen "J.J." McCullough[‡ 1]

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
EducationSimon Fraser University
Occupations
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2006–present
Genres
  • Politics
  • history
  • education
Subscribers1 million
Views386 million
J. J. McCullough's voice
Duration: 55 seconds.
On how he became interested in political cartooning
Recorded May 2022
Last updated: March 30, 2026

John James Stephen "J.J." McCullough is a Canadian YouTuber, columnist, and writer. He is known for his political and social commentary videos on YouTube. After graduating from Simon Fraser University, McCullough began editing for the campus newspaper The Peak and worked as editor-in-chief at the Douglas College student newspaper The Other Press. McCullough has also written for The Washington Post and the National Review.

McCullough has been described as a conservative. McCullough has long been an advocate for the abolition of Canada's constitutional monarchy and is against giving French an official status in Canada. Furthermore, he has a positive view of the United States. He opposes the Online Streaming Act.

Early life and education

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McCullough (right) with Canadian cannabis rights activist Jodie Emery in 2014

McCullough grew up in Vancouver, British Columbia. He is gay,[1] and identifies as a middle-class conservative.[‡ 2] McCullough graduated from Simon Fraser University where he had been opinion editor for campus paper The Peak and a editor-in-chief at Douglas College student newspaper The Other Press.[2]

While attending SFU, McCullough, acting as CEO for the Independent Electoral Commission appointed by the Simon Fraser Student Society, oversaw a successful 2008 referendum whereby 67% of SFU students voted to leave the Canadian Federation of Students.[3] The CFS contested the referendum’s legitimacy, but ultimately settled out of court and Simon Fraser University’s student union officially left in 2012.[4]

McCullough is a hobbyist collector and has collected items from countries such as Mexico, Russia, South Korea and Sweden and stated in a 2024 interview, that one of his goals is to "have a trinket or bauble of some significance from every place in the world".[5]

Journalism career

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McCullough began commentating professionally at Sun News Network, until its abrupt closure in 2015.[‡ 3] He also provided on-air political commentary for CTV. After Sun News closed, McCullough purchased a camcorder from Best Buy and began recording videos in his home. In 2017, McCullough created The Canada Guide website.[‡ 4][6]

In February 2017, the Quebec Legislature voted to condemn an opinion piece written by McCullough in The Washington Post, which they say insulted the province.[7] McCullough later described the motion as "preposterous and absurd".[8] In 2017, Vice News published a rebuttal to McCullough's opinion article in The Washington Post saying "JJ McCullough genuinely misunderstands the Canadian political system. This leaves him unable to articulate his complaints about it in a meaningful way, and instead he relies on his obvious fetishism of the American presidential system, with its tripartite separation of powers, to fill in the gaps of both his knowledge and political imagination."[9]

McCullough worked for The Washington Post[10][11] as an international opinion contributor until February 2023.[‡ 5] He was considered to be a key voice to comment on drug-related deaths by the Washington Post.[12] McCullough was a columnist for the National Review.[10][11][13] McCullough was on True North Centre for Public Policy where he discussed Trump's latest statements on trade.[14]

YouTube career

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McCullough is most known for his YouTube channel, which has over 1 million subscribers. He started the channel in 2016.[5] He produces videos on a range of subjects, including both Canadian and global politics, as well as history and culture.[15][16] His videos are known for the eccentric backgrounds and his seat on a yoga ball.[5] McCullough's audience is approximately 80% male with the majority of viewers aged between 20 and 35 and about half being located in the U.S.[17]

In a survey conducted by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism published in October 2025, he was ranked as the 14th "most mentioned individual" in terms of news on social and video networks in Canada.[18]

Views

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McCullough (middle right) with Canadian YouTuber Gregory Guevara at his 2022 political rally, in Toronto

McCullough has been described as a conservative.[1] McCullough has long been an advocate for the abolition of Canada's constitutional monarchy, and was formerly a spokesperson for Citizens for a Canadian Republic.[19] McCullough is a critic of official bilingualism, and as well as of the Canadian political system.[9][20] McCullough has a positive view of the United States and has called Americans who said they wanted to move to Canada after an election loss "sore losers" saying "[It's] very disrespectful of a great gift that they've been given in life, which is to be born in the United States."[21] McCullough has accused media coverage of refugees in Canada to have "misinformation" and claims when "speaking on a highly sensitive and complex issue was far more reckless, repeating myths that have a tangible impact on how refugees are treated in Canadian society."[22]

McCullough has called for conservatives to compromise on transgender related issues, for which he was rebuked by National Review in 2018.[23] In response to criticism, McCullough told the CBC "I'm a contrary guy [...] I've got controversial beliefs on a whole host of issues. But at the end of the day I'm also just a guy. I'm also just a person."[24]

In June 2021, Andrew Cohen of the Ottawa Citizen described his views of Canada as "mirthless, even mournful" and being "without nuance or variety", adding that "every outing is the same; his night sky is unbroken by a star of hope, humour, whimsy or empathy. It reflects his disappointment in the weak, feckless confection known as Canada."[25]

In June 2022, McCullough testified before Canada's Heritage Committee in opposition of Bill C-11.[26][‡ 6] After the bill was enacted, McCullough criticised the decision.[‡ 7]

References

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  1. ^ Jump up to: a b McLachlan, Stacey (February 1, 2017). "What It's Like to Be a Professional Political Pundit in Vancouver". Vancouver Magazine. Retrieved November 24, 2025.
  2. ^ Coleman, Joey (May 12, 2008). "Simon Fraser student politics is always interesting". Joey Coleman. Retrieved October 11, 2023.
  3. ^ Dyck, David (January 9, 2012). "SFSS officially out of the CFS". The Peak. Retrieved October 11, 2023.
  4. ^ Beeston, Laura. "SFU Settles With CFS". The Link. Retrieved October 11, 2023.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b c "What's in the Background of Vancouver YouTuber J.J. McCullough's Videos?". Vancouver Magazine. April 10, 2024.
  6. ^ DiCostanzo, Paul (January 4, 2017). "J.J. McCullough or: Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Canada (*But Didn't Know Where to Ask)". TGN Review. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
  7. ^ Authier, Philip (February 10, 2017). "Vancouver columnist made baseless claims, Quebec says in rebuttal letter to Washington Post". Montreal Gazette. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
  8. ^ Bergeron, Patrice (February 8, 2017). "Quebec legislature condemns Washington Post story that calls province most racist in Canada". Toronto Star. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
  9. ^ Jump up to: a b Brown, Drew (April 26, 2017). "We Have Problems With that Washington Post Story About Canadian Democracy". VICE. Retrieved October 12, 2023.
  10. ^ Jump up to: a b Symons, Alex (December 30, 2022). Women Comedians in the Digital Age (First ed.). Taylor & Francis. p. 190. ISBN 9781000829464. Retrieved October 12, 2023.
  11. ^ Jump up to: a b Renton, David (July 23, 2019). The New Authoritarians: Convergence on the Right (First ed.). Haymarket Books. ISBN 9781642590043. Retrieved October 12, 2023.
  12. ^ Gomes, André (September 13, 2023). "Decriminalisation Under Attack: What Opponents Propose To Fix Drug Problems". TalkingDrugs. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  13. ^ Heing, Bridey (2021). Libertarians, Socialists, and Other Third Parties. Current Controversies Ser. New York, NY: Greenhaven Publishing. ISBN 978-1-5345-0790-6.
  14. ^ "The Candice Malcolm Show | Ditch Mexico and Deal Directly with America (with JJ McCullough)". January 22, 2025. Archived from the original on June 18, 2025. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  15. ^ Djuric, Mickey (April 10, 2023). "As content creators await the passing of Bill C-11, some say it's still too ambiguous". CTV News. Archived from the original on April 10, 2023. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
  16. ^ Roos, Dave (October 10, 2020). "All 'Aboot' Canadian Holidays". HowStuffWorks. Retrieved December 7, 2025.
  17. ^ Tameez, Hanaa' (January 21, 2026). ""Does this channel have more juice in it?" YouTuber J.J. McCullough on a "sustainable" life as a news creator". NiemanLab. Archived from the original on March 25, 2026. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  18. ^ "Canada". Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. October 28, 2025. Archived from the original on March 25, 2026. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  19. ^ Pauls, Karen. "Royal Family support by Canadians waning, poll indicates". CBC News. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  20. ^ Chattopadhyay, Piya. "How to speak 'uncomfortable truths' to the Canadian status quo". CBC. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  21. ^ Geiger, Dorian. "Americans dream of Canada after Trump". Al Jazeera. Retrieved January 22, 2025.
  22. ^ Daghighian, Aris (March 2, 2017). "Correcting The Record On Refugee Crossings". CANADALAND. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  23. ^ Dougherty, Michael (May 9, 2018). "Compromise? No, Let's Not". National Review. Retrieved January 22, 2025.
  24. ^ Chow, Josie. "How to speak 'uncomfortable truths' to the Canadian status quo". CBC. Retrieved January 22, 2025.
  25. ^ Cohen, Andrew (June 16, 2021). "Cohen: The Washington Post's troubled — and troubling — Canadian columnist". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved December 7, 2025.
  26. ^ Zarum, Dave (June 22, 2022). "Why YouTubers like me oppose Bill C-11". Maclean's. Retrieved November 23, 2025.

Primary sources

In the text, these references are preceded by a double dagger (‡):

  1. ^ McCullough, J.J. "South Korean culture is truly fascinating". YouTube. Retrieved May 5, 2024.
  2. ^ Pierson, Alex (August 26, 2016). "Alex Pierson interviewing Gay Conservative JJ McCullough". Youtube. Sun News Network. Retrieved September 11, 2022.
  3. ^ Speer, Sean. "'Radical', 'regressive', and 'ignorant': YouTuber J.J. McCullough on the Canadian government's attempt to control the internet". The Hub. Retrieved September 11, 2022.
  4. ^ "About". The Canada Guide. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
  5. ^ "Profile: J.J. McCullough". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
  6. ^ McCullough, J.J. (June 1, 2022). "Mr. J.J. McCullough (As an Individual) at the Canadian Heritage Committee". Open Parliament. Retrieved September 16, 2022.
  7. ^ Beshi, Rubin (July 11, 2023). "Opinion: Canada's Online Streaming Act is dangerous legislation". The Varsity. Retrieved July 12, 2023.
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