The Evolution of the Manosphere across the Web

Authors

  • Manoel Horta Ribeiro EPFL
  • Jeremy Blackburn Binghamton University
  • Barry Bradlyn University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
  • Emiliano De Cristofaro University College London
  • Gianluca Stringhini Boston University
  • Summer Long Binghamton University
  • Stephanie Greenberg Binghamton University
  • Savvas Zannettou Max Plank Institute for Informatics

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1609/icwsm.v15i1.18053

Keywords:

Qualitative and quantitative studies of social media, Organizational and group behavior mediated by social media; interpersonal communication mediated by social media

Abstract

We present a large-scale characterization of the Manosphere, a conglomerate of Web-based misogynist movements focused on men's issues, which has prospered online. Analyzing 28.8M posts from 6 forums and 51 subreddits, we paint a comprehensive picture of its evolution across the Web, showing the links between its different communities over the years. We find that milder and older communities, such as Pick Up Artists and Men's Rights Activists, are giving way to more extreme ones like Incels and Men Going Their Own Way, with a substantial migration of active users. Moreover, our analysis suggests that these newer communities are more toxic and misogynistic than the older ones.
ICWSM-2021 Proceedings Cover

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Published

2021-05-22

How to Cite

Horta Ribeiro, M., Blackburn, J., Bradlyn, B., De Cristofaro, E., Stringhini, G., Long, S., Greenberg, S., & Zannettou, S. (2021). The Evolution of the Manosphere across the Web. Proceedings of the International AAAI Conference on Web and Social Media, 15(1), 196-207. https://doi.org/10.1609/icwsm.v15i1.18053

Issue

Vol. 15 (2021): Fifteenth International AAAI Conference on Web and Social Media

Section

Full Papers