Should AA Modernize?Should AA Modernize?
Alcoholics Alive!
Shank and Wayne question how far Alcoholics Anonymous should adapt to modern technology and language while keeping its message intact. They contrast apps, AI and online tools with traditional sponsorship, literature and a spiritual solution focused on one alcoholic helping another.
53:40•28 Jul 2026
Should AA Keep Up with the Times or Keep It Old-School?
Episode Overview
- The hosts argue that AA’s core message and the Big Book should remain unchanged, even as society and technology move on.
- Modern tools like Zoom, Skype, WhatsApp and apps can help carry the message, but are seen as channels rather than the solution itself.
- They question updating AA language to match terms such as "alcohol use disorder" or "return to use", warning this could dilute the programme’s focus.
- Both stress that one alcoholic working with another, face to face and through the steps, remains central to recovery, regardless of digital trends.
- Common slogans like "We need to meet people where they are" are challenged, with a preference for bringing people up to a strong spiritual practice instead.
“We have 90 something years of experience of our literature and our book working to help people recover from alcoholism, and yet we still want to change stuff.”
How do different strategies aid in addiction recovery? This question runs through the whole chat between Shank and Wayne as they ask whether Alcoholics Anonymous should "modernize" without losing its core. The episode starts with a reading from the foreword to the fourth edition of the Big Book, highlighting that "our literature has preserved the integrity of the AA message" while society and technology have shifted.
From there, they ask whether that claim really holds up and keep circling back to one key idea: the message stays the same, but the methods might change. You’ll hear them talk about early online AA chat rooms, dial‑up internet, and the jump to Zoom, Skype and WhatsApp sponsorship. They’re happy to use new tools, but only as "the channel" – the real work still happens one alcoholic sharing the steps with another.
Apps with sobriety counters and gratitude lists get a raised eyebrow; as Shank puts it, she needs prayer, literature and helping others more than a running day-count on her phone. They also tackle language changes – terms like "alcohol use disorder" and "return to use" – and question whether AA should adjust its wording just to match medical or therapeutic fashions. Wayne notes, "We have 90 something years of experience of our literature and our book working...
and yet we still want to change stuff." The Meeting Shrapnel segment adds some humour as they scrap slogans like "They don't call them spirits for nothing, they're evil spirits" and "We need to meet people where they are", arguing instead that recovered members should bring people up to a strong spiritual programme rather than dilute it.
Throughout, the tone stays light but firm: keep technology, apps and even AI in their place, but "keep it simple, keep it spiritual" and guard the AA message. It might leave you asking: how much modernisation do you actually want in your own recovery?
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