Recommending Toxicity: The role of algorithmic recommender functions on YouTube Shorts and TikTok in promoting male supremacist influencers

The algorithmic amplification of male-supremacist and anti-feminist rhetoric on short-

form video platforms such as TikTok and YouTube Shorts is an increasing concern. Influencers like Andrew Tate and Myron Gaines have built large followings by packaging reactionary talking points within highly marketable “self-help” personas that monetise male insecurity. Their rapid rise among young male audiences raises pressing questions about whether platform recommendation systems actively steer users toward this content. This talk presents findings from a short-term experimental study that tracked algorithmic recommendations delivered to ten controlled “sockpuppet” male accounts on TikTok and YouTube Shorts, exploring the trajectory of recommendations suggested to young male users with diIerent consumption patterns. In addition, the analysis examines how these neo-masculinist influencers frame their messages around motivation, mental health, and wealth accumulation, using formulaic and lucrative “self-improvement” narratives to mainstream more overtly gender-political themes. Building on these findings, This talk discusses the role of algorithmic amplification and the rise of influencer culture in reshaping the contemporary manosphere.