
What I learned in the manosphere
CNN
Donie O’Sullivan delves into podcasts, the UFC and the Roman Empire to find the attractions and dangers of male-oriented entertainment.
How often do you think about the Roman Empire? Remember? The viral TikTok trend in 2023 where women asked the men in their lives how often they think about Ancient Rome, and it turned out they think about it a lot. That’s been on my mind these last few months I’ve spent living in and reporting about the so-called “manosphere.” But first, we should clear up a few things about the manosphere. It was traditionally associated with the alt-right, with hate, and populated by overtly misogynist podcasters and influencers like Andrew Tate. Basically: the most toxic manifestations of masculinity. But the term became more prominent last year after Donald Trump was said to have successfully leveraged the male-oriented podcast space to help him win the election. “Manosphere” started to be used broadly to encapsulate more mainstream male-oriented podcasters like Joe Rogan.

A little-known civil rights office in the Department of Education that helps resolve complaints from students across the country about discrimination and accommodating disabilities has been gutted by the Trump administration and is now facing a ballooning backlog, a workforce that’s in flux and an unclear mandate.












