What happens when a college student can take an entire class on Marxism—but struggles to find courses on Locke, Burke, or the ideas behind America’s founding?
Author Joelle Webb joins Gen Z Unplugged to explain why that experience inspired her to write Conserving Truth, how political philosophy can help Gen Z move beyond viral soundbites, and why understanding conservatism’s intellectual roots matters now more than ever.
From Marxism and campus ideology to liberty, tradition, and the pursuit of truth, Joelle makes the case that young conservatives shouldn’t just know what they believe—they should know why.
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Joelle Webb is a writer, legal researcher, and graduate student whose work focuses on
American conservatism, constitutional law, civil rights, public policy, and higher education.
Webb recently graduated from Drake University with a B.A. in Law, Politics, and Society, where
her studies centered on constitutional law, political theory, contemporary public-policy debates,
and legal jurisprudence. She is currently pursuing a Master of Legal Studies at the University of
Denver Sturm College of Law.
Her professional experience has spanned politics, state government, public policy,
communications, and legal advocacy. Most recently, Webb worked as a Legal Research
Assistant for the Equal Protection Project, where she assisted attorneys with research related to
civil-rights issues in higher education, including federal civil-rights complaints challenging
race-based programs and policies.
Before entering legal advocacy, Webb worked in state government and political campaigns,
including the Iowa Attorney General's Office, the Iowa Secretary of State's Office, and national
and state political organizations. These experiences gave her an opportunity to see
conservative politics from several perspectives: as a student of its intellectual history, as
someone working within the political movement, and as a legal researcher examining
contemporary constitutional disputes.
In 2025, Webb independently published two books exploring questions that had increasingly
shaped her academic and professional interests: What does it actually mean to be a
conservative? What principles should conservatism seek to preserve? And what
happens when contemporary institutions move away from principles of individual rights
and equality before the law?
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1:52 — Why Joelle Webb Wrote Conserving Truth
3:23 — Taking a College Class on Karl Marx
4:23 — Why Marx Gets Taught—but America’s Founders Don’t
5:29 — How Campus Ideology Captivates Young People
7:38 — Conservatism Isn’t About Stopping Change
8:08 — Locke, Burke & Tocqueville: The Ideas Behind America
11:23 — Is Gen Z Hungry for Something Deeper Than Soundbites?
13:18 — Conservatism vs. the Republican Party
15:19 — How a College Journal Became a Published Book
19:24 — Conservative Women Shaping the Next Generation
Check out Joelle's latest book here: https://www.amazon.sg/Conserving-Truth-History-Western-Conservatism/dp/B0FDKZTJFY
GenZ Unplugged is the official podcast for the Clare Boothe Luce Center for Conservative Women. Rotating hosts are Lauren Husmann, Anastasia Leffas, and Rachel Hurley. Producer is Sandra Scarlatoiu.
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