
The Language of the Manosphere
Dr Jessica Aiston talks to Michael Rosen about her research into the language of online misogyny
The 'Manosphere' is a group of loosely affiliated mainly young males who have developed a specialised vocabulary to discuss women online in a negative and hostile way. Some of the vocabulary is a response to feminism which some men claim is diminishing their role in society. For other men a failure to attract women has given rise to phrases such as Chad and Stacey and a belief in the 80/20 theory - that 80% of women are attracted to just 20% of men who are Alpha males or Chads.
Acronyms such as AWALT (All women are like that) and MGTOW (Men Going Their Own Way) are also used for the purpose of internet dialogue.
Dr Jessica Aiston of Queen Mary University in London is one of several linguistic researchers who submitted evidence to the UK Parliament call for research into online misogyny. She tells Michael Rosen what that research has shown her and explains some of the terms used.
How did terms like 鈥渄own the rabbit hole鈥 and 鈥済aslighting鈥 enter the English language? How do other languages adapt expressions like these? Find out in an interactive guide with The Open University鈥檚 experts. Visit the 蜜芽传媒 Radio 4Word of Mouth page and follow the links to The Open University.
Produced for 蜜芽传媒 Audio Bristol by Maggie Ayre, in partnership with the Open University.
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- Sun 21 Sep 2025 20:00蜜芽传媒 Radio 4
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