Adolescence: The Rise of the ‘Manosphere’ and Online Radicalisation

By Zafira Costello

In a society where younger generations consume social media like it’s a drug, is it a surprise
that teenagers are being radicalised by the content they view online? Netflix’s latest limited
series, Adolescence, has taken the world aback with its harrowing, yet realistic depiction of
the radicalisation of young boys in a social media oriented generation. Stephen Graham’s
gripping storyline delves into the realities of incel sub-culture and the intensifying male
violence epidemic, and revolves around the arrest of 13-year-old Jamie Miller on suspicion
of murdering his classmate Katie Leonard. Whilst the show focuses on the murder
investigation, below the surface lies the reality of the ‘manosphere’ and male violence.
With masterclass acting and seamless one-shot filming, Adolescence has been critically
acclaimed for its socially-conscious tale of the epidemic of youth violence and radicalisation
of young boys as a result of social media. Lucy Mangan wrote a review for The Guardian,
calling the show “the closest thing to TV perfection in decades”.
The opening episode begins with a police raid of the Miller home and subsequent arrest of
Jamie Miller who profusely denies his involvement in the murder of fellow classmate Katie.
His father Eddie agrees to be Jamie’s “appropriate adult” in his formal interview and his
inclination to believe his son’s innocence is understandable from the position of any parent.
When shown CCTV footage of Jamie stabbing Katie, the devastation on his father’s face and
his silent cries of “What have you done?” could not be more heartbreaking.
The following episode revealed that Katie had left comments on Jamie’s Instagram with
emojis implying Jamie to be an incel – involuntary celibate. However, it’s the penultimate
episode of the four-parter that will stun the audience and cast a spotlight on the
phenomenon of the ‘manosphere’. Focusing on a session between Jamie and child forensic
psychologist Briony Ariston that takes place months after the murder, Jamie is questioned
about his views on women and masculinity and his mood noticeably changes with each
question asked. In an outburst, he accidentally confesses and spins his confession on to
Briony, yelling that she’s forced words into his mouth.
With campaigners advocating for the government to intervene in the spread of misogynistic,
hate-driven content on social media, PM Keir Starmer’s support for the show to be viewed in
parliament and schools could not be more powerful. With the support of Starmer, Netflix
announced that the show would be available to view in all UK secondary schools for free.
The release of the show could not have been more appropriate with the ceaseless news of
femicide across the world and the promotion of ‘the manosphere’ in mainstream media. Only
a week before the show was released, news emerged that Kyle Clifford – who murdered his
ex-girlfriend, Louise Hunt, and her mother and sister, Carol and Hannah – had searched
online for misogynistic podcasts and repeatedly watched videos of the controversial
influencer Andrew Tate in the hours leading up to the tragedy.
We are continuously confronted with news of a young girl or woman killed at the hands of a
man, yet society appears untouched by the never-ending reports of male violence. All we
seem to do is move on from one tragedy to the next. Our main priority, however, is to

address this worrying rise in femicide cases and pinpoint the contributions to this rise, and
there is one glaringly obvious catalyst: social media.
If you were to sit next to someone from the younger generations, be it Generation Z or
Alpha, there is a high likelihood that they will be on a social media platform – Instagram,
Tiktok, etc. You name it, they’re on it. Now that’s not to say that these generations are
scrolling on their phones 24/7, eating up the new trends like their life depends on it, but they
do in fact spend the majority of their time online.
In a House of Commons Committee report released in May 2024, the Education Committee
revealed that there was a 52% increase in children’s screen time between 2020 and 2022.
Further research indicated that teenagers have an average of 7 hours and 22 minutes
screen time per day. And with all this time sitting in front of their screens, you have to
wonder: what are they obsessed with watching to rack up a screen time of that long?
While most teenagers are addicted to watching the latest ASMR videos or keeping up with
their favourite influencers, there lies a darker, more controversial side to the world of social
media. Back in 2022, social media platforms were bombarded with videos of Andrew Tate,
whom many have nicknamed “the king of toxic masculinity”. Tate emerged as the most
recognisable face of the manosphere, with his “hustle bro” mentality and Hustler’s University
scheme skyrocketing his popularity.
An ex-kickboxer who briefly appeared on the reality show Big Brother, his extreme views
about women became viral and flooded the feeds of social media users around the world.
His videos range from flaunting a lavish lifestyle of private jets and sports cars to seemingly
harmless opinions on men and their pets to advocating for violence against women. His loyal
followers claim that his views only promote male self-improvement and ‘a more assertive
form of masculinity’, and yet Tate’s statements of rape victims needing to “bear
responsibility” on Twitter don’t exactly fall under the banner of this so-called
self-improvement.
Now, no one can say the blame for a rise in misogyny-fuelled violence should fall solely on
Tate, but it’s clear that his growing “fanbase” is one of the largest groups on the
‘manosphere’.
So, what exactly is the ‘manosphere’? The clue is in the name – it’s a variety of online
communities centered around the promotion of men’s rights and deals with their personal
and social problems. However, like every community and website online, there is a much
darker and extreme space within the manosphere, with many male users describing
themselves as fighters against the “oppressive” feminist movement.
A community that originally gained traction in the midst of gender politics, the manosphere
can only be described as the online radicalisation of young boys and men, grooming them to
resent their female counterparts and label them as the cause for men’s problems. It is
common for these groups to claim that there is a “war on men” and how women are
becoming unfairly advantageous in all walks of life over men, disregarding the inescapable
patriarchy we live in.

A sentence uttered consistently throughout the series is: “I didn’t do anything wrong”.
Whenever questioned, by his father, the police or solicitor, all Jamie ever says in response is
“I didn’t do anything wrong”. And, in his eyes, he didn’t. That is undoubtedly one of the most
unsettling things in the show. Social media has completely desensitised younger generations
to the violence incited in the content they watch and engage with, and young boys facing the
consequences of their actions avoid taking responsibility as social media has led them to
believe that their actions were justified.
Adolescence has done more than just portray the tragic story of a young girl brutally
murdered by a peer – it delves into the realities of toxic online communities that have entered
the mainstream at an alarming pace. Young boys are being drawn into the dangerous world
of hatred and misogyny, with echo chambers and filter bubbles online pushing the content of
Influencers prominent in the manosphere into their feeds. When engagement with such
content online manifests into real life, young girls and women suffer in the aftermath. A rise
in misogyny-fuelled violence will only continue if greater responsibility is not demanded of
social media companies to monitor the content posted on their platforms and restrict what is
available to young people. The drama series acts as both a warning and call to action for
parents, schools, and governments alike to increase their efforts in tackling the radicalisation
of young people and prioritise the safety of young girls and women where they are
susceptible to violence, both online and in real life.