Week 10 - Digital Citizenship and Conflict: Social Media Governance
*TRIGGER WARNING*: This post discusses topics related to toxic masculinity, misogyny, online radicalization, rape culture, gender-based violence and self-harm. Some readers may find certain themes distressing. Reader discretion is advised.
Dua Lipa Was Right, "The Kids Ain't Alright"! – Toxic Masculinity on the Internet and Its Harmful Effect on Young Male Generation
"When will we stop saying things? 'Cause they're all listening No, the kids ain't alright" - (Lipa, 2020)
Growing up online as a Gen Z kid, conflict was just part of the deal—it’s what shapes every community (Carter, 2023). But in digital spaces, power dynamics crank up the tension, with each community having its own messy politics (Farrell, 2013). Some voices get amplified, others get drowned out (Haslop et al., 2021, p. 1421), and somehow, even in spaces meant to be inclusive, the scales are always tipped (binhwantstoeatoreo, 2025).
Digital Citizenship and the Inequalities of Intersectionality Week 5: What is Digital Citizenship? Hashtag Publics, Political Engagement and
Attached blog post 1. Digital Citizenship and the Inequalities of Intersectionality (binhwantstoeatore, 2025).
In the past few years, terms like “incel” and “redpill” have gone mainstream (Solea & Sugiura, 2023), wrapped up in the guise of self-improvement (Rosdahl, 2024). On TikTok, young men casually tear down women, glorify dominance, and treat misogyny like it’s just another trend. Slurs against women and queer people run unchecked, fueling toxic masculinity and rape culture.
Dua Lipa’s Boys Will Be Boys isn’t just a song—it’s a warning. “The kids ain’t alright” feels more relevant than ever as digital spaces feed young men a steady stream of misogyny, power, and hate. What they consume online is shaping them—and the reality is, they’re indeed not alright.
The Rise of the Manosphere: A Digital Breeding Ground for Conflict
The “manosphere” is everywhere—TikTok, YouTube, X (formerly Twitter)—flooded with Men’s Rights Activists (MRAs), Pick-Up Artists (PUAs), incels, and “redpill” influencers, all claiming to stand up for men. And yeah, men do have real struggles. But instead of offering actual solutions, these spaces just turn into echo chambers of bitterness, entitlement, and straight-up misogyny (Marwick & Caplan, 2018). They push this idea that men are somehow under attack by feminism and modern society, twisting real frustrations into an “us vs. them” mindset (Johanssen, 2021).
The scariest part is you don’t have to go looking for this stuff—it finds you. Algorithms on YouTube, TikTok, and other platforms aggressively push these ideologies toward young men, often after just a few clicks. Research by Papadamou et al. (2021) found that even when starting from a non-incel-related video, users have a 6.3% chance of landing on one within just five recommendations. That’s all it takes to get pulled into the rabbit hole.
Dangerous Figures in the Manosphere
Andrew Tate is one of the most influential—and most dangerous—figures in the manosphere. He preys on young boys’ insecurities (Rich & Bujalka, 2023), packaging misogyny as self-improvement. His brand is built on Pick-Up Artist (PUA) ideology, reducing women to conquests won through manipulation and control (Center on Extremism, 2024).
And his influence runs deep. A 2023 poll by Hope not Hate found that 79% of 16- and 17-year-old British boys had engaged with his content. But it’s not just teenagers—his reach extends to adulthood. A 2023 Internet Matters poll revealed that 56% of young fathers (under 35) approve of his messaging, proving that his rhetoric isn’t just warping young minds—it’s shaping masculinity across generations.
But Tate’s impact goes way beyond bad dating advice. He normalizes abuse, pushing the idea that being a “real man” means dominance at all costs. He openly claims that women exist for male pleasure and deserve punishment if they don’t “fall in line,” feeding a toxic cycle where violence against women isn’t just excused—it’s encouraged.
Figure 1. Andrew Tate's misogynistic tweet.
With over 10 million followers on X, Tate’s influence is impossible to ignore—especially through the lens of Social Influence Theory. Young boys latch onto his views because of normative social influence—the pressure to fit in and gain peer acceptance (Nolan et al., 2008). At the same time, informational social influence fills the gap for those lacking alternative perspectives, making his rhetoric feel like the ultimate truth (Wittenbrink & Henly, 1996). The more they’re exposed to his content, the more it warps their idea of masculinity, pushing the belief that aggression and dominance are the only ways to earn respect and succeed (Mucak, 2024).
Figure 2. Andrew Tate's X account.
Some manosphere influencers take a subtler approach, like Wes Watson and the Liver King, who push a version of masculinity centered on emotional suppression and physical dominance. The Liver King, for example, dismisses vulnerability, insisting that “real men don’t cry over spilled milk” (LiverKing, 2024). While framed as self-improvement, this mindset can blur the line between resilience and toxic masculinity, discouraging emotional depth and promoting aggression as strength (Chung, 2024).
Meanwhile, podcasters like Sneako, Fresh & Fit, and Myron Gaines repackage misogyny as dating advice, treating women as adversaries rather than partners (Hall, 2025). They build loyal audiences by mocking female guests, trivializing consent, and framing relationships as battles for control (Price, 2024).
Attached video 1. A cut clip from Myron Gaines' podcast where he criticized and mocked his female guest on relationship' needs wise (FreshandFit, 2024). This clip alone massed more than 163k views and 13k likes.
Put all of this together, and you get a toxic pipeline where boys learn that being a man means being in control—of their emotions, of their relationships, and, most dangerously, of women. Vulnerability is mocked. Respect is mistaken for weakness. And the cycle of misogyny goes on.
The Impact on Women: A Cycle of Online Harassment & Rape Culture
Manosphere communities have turned online harassment into a weapon, targeting women—especially feminist voices—while using digital platforms as battlegrounds for gendered abuse (Marwick & Caplan, 2018, p. 550). The scale of this issue is staggering—during the 2024 U.S. election, Instagram ignored 93% of 1,000 documented cases of sexist and racist abuse, including death and rape threats, aimed at female political candidates (Navarro, 2025). By failing to act, these platforms send a clear message: abusers can continue unchecked, their behavior not just tolerated but practically endorsed by the very systems claiming to enforce “community guidelines.”
Some manosphere influencers go beyond implicit misogyny, outright suggesting that women deserve punishment for defying traditional gender roles (Sundén & Paasonen, 2019, p. 7). The impact of this rhetoric is tangible—26% of women surveyed by Amnesty Global Insights (2017) reported receiving threats of physical or sexual violence simply for existing online. This isn’t just a matter of offensive speech; it’s a deliberate strategy to instill fear and reinforce power imbalances in digital spaces.
Figure 3. Amnesty's (2017) poll on online harrassment types women get.
Figure 4. Laura Bates - founder of the Everyday Sexism Project, shared the disturbing sexual harrassment and death/rape threats she received online (Amnesty Global Insights, 2017).
Flood & Pease (2009) argues that exposure to misogynistic online spaces correlates with increased acceptance of rape myths and a diminished understanding of consent. This doesn’t just put women at risk—it distorts young men’s understanding of healthy relationships, leading to a cycle of toxic masculinity and emotional detachment.
The Effect on Young Men: Self-hatred and Bullying
The hate they give (to themselves):
The impact of manosphere ideology on young boys extends far beyond social conditioning—it can take a severe mental toll, leading to internalized hatred and, in some cases, even suicidal thoughts (Over et al., 2025).
A VICE investigation (Gilbert, 2023) uncovered a disturbing trend within incel communities, where a viral scene from the movie Jarhead (2005) featuring Jake Gyllenhaal—depicted the actor with a rifle in his mouth, saying,
“Shoot me. Shoot me in the fucking face.”
The video, captioned “Get shot or see her with someone else?” amassed over 2.1 million views, 440,000 likes, 7,200 comments, and 11,000 shares before its removal. Most comments encouraged the implied suicide, while others expressed deep loneliness, with one user even announcing their intent to end their life within four hours. This reveals how online echo chambers don’t just radicalize young men—they trap them in cycles of despair, reinforcing harmful beliefs that can escalate into real-world harm.
Figure 5. The now deleted TikTok video starring Jake Gyllenhaal (EKO, 2023).
Within the manosphere community, it doesn’t just promote misogyny—it polices masculinity itself, weaponizing it against anyone who doesn’t conform (Vallerga, 2024).
As a young gay man, I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve come across manosphere content that tears down both women and queer people—often in the same breath. Just existing is enough to get hit with slurs, a reminder that these spaces aren’t just hostile to feminism, but to anyone who doesn’t fit their rigid mold of masculinity.
Farrell et al. (2019) found that about 15% of content in Reddit’s manosphere communities contained homophobic rhetoric, making it clear that anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment isn’t just present—it’s baked into the culture. These spaces don’t just reject queer identities; they actively push young gay men to conform to traditional masculinity, fueling internalized homophobia (Thepsourinthone et al., 2020).
For queer youth looking for belonging, this isn’t just exclusion—it’s deeply damaging. It creates a space where you’re either erased or pressured to fit into an idea of manhood that was never meant to include you.
When Labels Push Them Further
Online, young men struggling with dating, confidence, or social skills are often labeled as “incels” or “redpilled” before they even engage with those ideologies.
The new mini-series Adolescence from Netflix, lays bare the struggle of young men trapped between rigid masculinity and online hostility (Rasker, 2025). It highlights how those who don’t fit hyper-masculine ideals face relentless bullying, often being labeled as “incels” or “redpilled”.
Attached video 2. Netflix's new mini-series 'Adolescene' examines incel culture (The View, 2025).
While meant to critique toxic masculinity, these labels can backfire—pushing vulnerable young boys toward the very spaces that radicalize them (Hemmings, 2023).
O’Malley & Helm (2022) argued that repeated shaming leads to a self-fulfilling prophecy, where young men who felt outcasted on social media could internalize these identities and seek validation from manosphere influencers (Dolan, 2023; Ging, 2019). Over time, this reinforces toxic ideology, as hostility from outsiders makes the manosphere feel like a refuge (Reinicke, 2022, p. 10).
Adolescence doesn’t just expose these dynamics—it forces us to rethink how we engage with young men who feel lost. Instead of shaming them into extremism, we need to address their struggles before the manosphere does (Hogan, 2025).
What Can Be Done?
So far, awareness of Andrew Tate’s harmful influence on young boys is growing both online and in schools. English teacher Kirsty Pole went viral on Twitter, urging educators to recognize his misogynistic and homophobic rhetoric as a serious threat (Sharp, 2022).
Figure 6. Kirsty's tweet raising awareness about Tate's misogynistic and homophobic ideology (@TeacherBusy, 2022).
Besides, cyberfeminism actively challenges the manosphere by reclaiming digital spaces for empowerment while simultaneously confronting its ideology (Gajjala & Mamidipudi, 1999). One of its key strategies is the use of humor and memes as tools of resistance, turning the very online culture that fuels the manosphere into a means of critique and subversion (Dafaure, 2022).
Figure 7. A meme highlighting one of the many contradictions within male supremacist ideology (McCullough, 2023).
Figure 8. A meme revealing how manosphere influencers oversimplify men’s mental and emotional struggles (McCullough, 2023).
However, the cycle of conflict surrounding this issue persists, further entrenching divisions rather than fostering resolution. Adolescence has sparked heated debate online—while some applaud its attempt to address a pressing societal concern, others frame it as “toxic feminism” or “feminist propaganda.” (thenewsmovement, 2025)
Figure 9. Positive comments regarding the Netflix's mini-series.
Figure 10. Attacking comments.
Any critique of male socialization is weaponized as proof of an alleged feminist agenda against men, pushing vulnerable young men further into these spaces.
"Boys Will Be Boys," or Can We Do Better?
Dua Lipa’s song was a warning—a reflection of how normalized toxic masculinity has been in our culture. But we are now seeing an even more dangerous evolution of this problem, amplified by the reach of the internet and social media algorithms that reward controversy and polarization. If we don’t address this now, we risk losing a generation of young men to a dangerous ideology that thrives on their anger and insecurities.
The kids aren’t alright, but they can be—if we start having the right conversations and taking meaningful action.
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References:
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