# Bret Weinstein **Bret Weinstein** (b. 1969) is an evolutionary biologist and podcaster who became a cause célèbre of the [[Intellectual Dark Web]] after the 2017 Evergreen State College controversy, in which he opposed a proposed "Day of Absence" asking white students and faculty to leave campus. The ensuing student protests and his resignation made him a symbol of what IDW figures framed as progressive overreach in academia. Weinstein parlayed the Evergreen episode into a media career, co-hosting the *DarkHorse Podcast* with his wife Heather Heying. His trajectory illustrates a pattern common to [[Intellectual Dark Web]] figures: initial positioning as a heterodox liberal, followed by progressive radicalization toward conspiratorial thinking. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Weinstein became a prominent promoter of ivermectin as a COVID treatment and a vocal critic of mRNA vaccines, amplifying [[Disinformation]] about vaccine safety to a large audience. His arc from campus free-speech martyr to anti-vax influencer tracks the broader IDW pipeline from contrarianism to misinformation.