A meme has been circulating widely on the internet recently. It reads: “Gen Z is so cooked. Study time: Covid. Adult time: World War. Job time: AI. Marriage time: Peak divorce rate.” At first glance, it seems like nothing more than a humorous meme. But if we pause for a moment, it begins to look like a compact summary of an entire generation’s experience. In just a few short lines, the meme captures some of the defining crises of our time – education, global politics, technology, and social relationships. The language of the meme may be lighthearted, but the anxiety embedded within it is anything but light.
From the perspective of communication studies, the issue becomes even more interesting. Because this is not only about the crises faced by a generation; it is also about how those crises are being expressed. A crisis itself is an event, but people’s understanding of that crisis is shaped through communication. In that sense, Gen Z’s self-description can also be seen as a form of crisis communication. They may not be explaining their times in formal language, but through memes, short videos, and social media they are constructing a narrative of their own reality.
If we look at the higher-education experiences of Generation Z, the picture becomes even clearer. A significant portion of their school, college, and university life unfolded during the Covid-19 pandemic. Educational institutions around the world remained closed for long periods. Online classes, life confined indoors, and distance from friends fundamentally reshaped their educational experiences. Studies conducted in Europe and America show that young people who grew up during the pandemic experienced noticeably higher levels of stress, loneliness, and anxiety. George Gerbner’s Cultivation Theory becomes relevant here. Gerbner argued that prolonged exposure to certain types of media representations gradually shapes people’s perception of reality. For Gen Z, much of reality has been mediated through screens. Classrooms existed on Zoom or Google Meet, friendships thrived on social media, and news about the world arrived through a constant stream of digital updates. It is therefore unsurprising that their social experiences differ from those of previous generations. Their transition into adulthood has also coincided with a period of global political instability. The war in Ukraine, conflicts in the Middle East, and renewed competition among global powers have intensified geopolitical tensions. For many young Europeans, war has become a reality on their own continent for the first time in decades. In the United States, meanwhile, young people have become increasingly vocal about international politics, human rights, and social justice.
At the very moment Gen Z is entering the workforce, another profound shift is taking place, the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence. Technology has always reshaped labour markets, but the current discussions around AI introduce a new dimension. Earlier generations primarily worried about whether they would find jobs. Gen Z sometimes wonders whether the job itself will remain human. Across Europe and the United States, enthusiasm for AI is accompanied by growing concern. Many young people feel that the structure of their professions may change dramatically halfway through their careers. In China, technology is often framed as part of national development, and Gen Z frequently views it as a field of competition. In India, with its large youth population and expanding tech industry, AI is also seen by many as an opportunity.
Changes are also visible in attitudes toward relationships and marriage. In Europe and the United States, the age of marriage is rising, and many people are choosing cohabitation or single life instead. In China, the concept of ‘lying flat’ (tang ping) has entered public discussions, describing young people who withdraw from intense social competition in favour of simpler lifestyles. In India, urban youth increasingly prioritise personal freedom and career aspirations, even though family structures remain strong. In Bangladesh, Gen Z lives within a kind of dual reality. On one hand, they are deeply connected to global media culture – Netflix, YouTube, TikTok, and international social conversations. On the other hand, family structures, religious values, and social expectations still play powerful roles in shaping their lives. As a result, conversations around relationships, marriage, and personal freedom are emerging quietly but meaningfully.
Anthony Giddens’s theory of the Transformation of Intimacy becomes relevant here. Giddens argued that in modern societies, relationships increasingly shift from social obligation toward personal choice and mutual satisfaction. The relationship patterns of Gen Z clearly reflects this transformation.
One final point deserves particular attention: Gen Z expresses crisis in a different language. They often convey large social realities through memes, emojis, and short videos. What may appear to us to be simple humour is, for them, a way of narrating reality.
In discussions of crisis communication, scholars often note that during times of uncertainty people rely on symbols, stories, and humour to make sense of their experiences. Gen Z’s memes should therefore not be dismissed as mere entertainment. They are, in fact, a compressed language of a generation’s social experience. Perhaps, then, the real question is not whether Gen Z is truly in crisis. The more important question may be this: in what language are they explaining the rapidly changing world in which they are growing up?
Boomers wrote history in books. Millennials wrote blogs on computers. And Gen Z writes memes on mobile phones. Perhaps future sociologists will not only read books to understand our time – they will also examine social-media archives, memes, and digital conversations. After all, the history of communication repeatedly reminds us that the generation that invents new media eventually creates a new language for reality as well.
If Gen Z’s life were to be summarised in the language of memes, the picture might look something like this: school years during a pandemic, adulthood marked by news of wars, job hunting in the age of AI, and sociologists warning about rising divorce rates when thinking about marriage. Yet a glance at history reveals that every generation, in its own way, has believed itself to be the most troubled generation. In the language of communication studies, this is essentially generational framing. Each generation constructs a narrative to interpret its reality. Gen Z’s story simply uses a different language – they speak not through footnotes in research papers but through captions on memes.
Perhaps that is why future historians, when studying our time, will search not only library shelves but also TikTok archives. Somewhere, a serious researcher might declare: “This meme is extremely important for understanding the society and politics of the twenty-first century.” And then a Gen Z researcher standing nearby might laugh and say: “Sir, we used to get bored doing class assignments but without even realising it, we were going out into the streets and toppling governments across countries!”
The writer is an Associate Professor, Communication and Journalism, University of Chittagong
