Six crucial details the Louis Theroux documentary missed out about the manosphere

Louis Theroux’s shocking new Netflix documentary Inside The Manosphere has caught everyone’s attention, but it actually leaves out a lot about the extreme online influencers who are redefining modern masculinity.

The documentary maker speaks to content creators like HSTikkyTokky and Ed Matthews, but according to experts at the University of Birmingham, he doesn’t tell the full story of what’s really going on. So, here are six vital details the documentary left out.

Credit: Netflix

Young men aren’t choosing this life

The biggest problem with the documentary is that it makes out like young men are choosing to follow these extreme influencers and be part of the manosphere, but that really isn’t the case. In reality, men are being fed these videos online and subconsciously being influenced by them.

In an official report on behalf of the University of Birmingham, Emma Pountney and Dr Sophie King-Hill said this “risks creating a worrying impression that young men are deliberately seeking out extreme content and are inspired primarily by discriminatory messages and promises of financial success”.

It’s not all about money and status

Inside The Manosphere heavily focuses on the fact that these extreme influencers are offering advice on how to make money through things like trading, but that’s not what it’s all about. The manosphere consists of extreme content creators offering motivational and self-improvement lifestyle advice – not just ways to make cash quickly.

“There is seemingly a gradual escalation towards online material promoting highly polarised or misogynistic worldviews that focus on a one-dimensional perspective of what it means to be a man, in which algorithms connect honest guidance to harmful ideological content, a topic which receives considerably less attention in the documentary,” the experts said.

Nobody should be blaming them

The documentary paints men who are turning towards these extreme views in a bad light, but it’s not their fault, and they shouldn’t be blamed. Louis Theroux creates an “overly blame-focused approach towards young men and boys who find themselves in a cycle of algorithmic recommendations for this content”.

Credit: Netflix

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Why are men turning to these views?

Inside The Manosphere completely misses out the reason men are turning to the manosphere in the first place. Theroux mentions that some of these influencers grew up with no male role models, but it runs a lot deeper than that. They feel abandoned and have no guidance in modern society.

“Young men are enticed by this content through humorous and supportive videos which do not display overt misogyny, instead encouraging self-mastery and clear-cut identity guidance, which resonates with many young men today,” the experts explained. “These influencers construct a sense of community and belonging through motivational messages and the endorsement of rigid masculine ideals, which they describe as declining in modern society and needing to be reinstated.”

Misogyny is a massive part of the manosphere

The documentary briefly touches on misogyny towards women with the idea of “one-sided monogamy” and mentions of female roles, but it leaves out just how much hatred there is towards women in the manosphere. The whole movement is based on sexism and the belief that men are superior.

It “does little to focus on how influencers build narratives of female cruelty and male victimisation” which seemingly “allows influencers to maintain their legitimacy by denying their misogyny and being able to reframe their ideas as mentorship and honesty, even whilst their broader messaging encourages resentment towards women”.

This isn’t all men and boys

And finally, it’s important to remember that this isn’t all men and boys. Extreme male views are a big problem in today’s society, but it’s still a minuscule portion of men that hold these opinions, and Inside The Manosphere does not paint a “uniform picture of all men and boys”.

“The behaviours and ideologies showcased here represent a small but highly visible subset of online actors. Most young men and boys do not hold these views, and many actively reject them. A growing number of boys feel caught between conflicting social expectations, and it is precisely this sense of uncertainty and vulnerability that makes them susceptible to these influencers in the first place.”

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Featured image by: Netflix