In the wake of earth-shattering hit Netflix drama Adolescence, which deals with online misogyny, a new Amnesty report has shown Gen Z is increasingly shunning social media because of misogynistic content there.
Polling commissioned by Amnesty International UK showed that 73 per cent of social media users born approximately between 1995 and 2012 had seen misogynistic content online, with many witnessing it on a weekly basis. Seventy per cent believe that misogynistic and purposefully divisive content has got worse on platforms, with less than half of the poll’s 3,024 respondents saying social media was a safe space.
Of those surveyed, 44 per cent said they had received unsolicited explicit images, 43 per cent said they had been body-shamed and 53 per cent received inappropriate and provocative emojis on their posts and photos.
Others hax been subjected to unwanted sexual suggestive comments (40 per cent), while 32 per cent have experienced hate speech and 27 per cent faced online stalking.
The issue is prevalent across all social media platforms, but, according to the study, TikTok was the worst, with 70 per cent of respondents using the video platform having encountered misogynistic content. That figure rose to 80 per cent among women.
Other platforms where misogynistic content was reported included Instagram (61 per cent), X/Twitter (37 per cent), YouTube (31 per cent) and Facebook (30 per cent).
X/has come under particular scrutiny over its policies on hate speech after tech billionaire Elon Musk’s acquisition of the platform in 2022. The use of the anti-LGBTQ+ slur “groomer” increasing in usage by around 1,200 per cent in December of that year alone.
Recently, the streaming giant Spotify removed a misogynistic course (“Pimping Hoes”) by self-proclaimed misogynistic influencer Andrew Tate, saying it “violated their policies”, however a large quantity of other content by Tate, including podcast episodes and other courses, are still available despite over 90,000 people signing a petition demanding they be removed.
Twenty per cent of respondents said they have avoided or left several platforms altogether because of the misogyny.
“As a woman, it’s something women experience every day,” one respondent said. “I no longer post on social media due to the constant hate and negativity. Even seeing the comments/hate directed towards someone else is soul destroying.”
Forty-four per cent of women who have experienced online misogyny in the UK said it significantly affected their mental health, while 35 per cent felt forced to set their accounts to private. Others (30 per cent) have taken screenshots of the abuse as evidence or avoid posting certain types of content altogether (22 per cent).
R&B singer Mahalia told Amnesty that she had seen the way misogyny played out first-hand and regularly received “unwanted comments” about her appearance.
“Social media should be a place where we lift each other up, not a space that forces women to shrink themselves or hide,” she said. “This research is a wake-up call – more importantly, a call to action.”
Netflix series Adolescence should be a ‘wake-up call’ for parents
Meanwhile, Guernsey police has said Netflix’s new series Adolescence should be a wake-up call about the dangers of misogynistic and hateful influencers online.
The series, which dropped on the streaming platform earlier this month, follows a family who are forced to confront their 13-year-old son’s online habits after he is accused of killing a female classmate.
Digital safety development officer Laura Simpson said the show was a prime example of how misogynistic content can affect young boys and men, and their perception of women, the BBC reported.
Parents should not “bury their heads in the sand” when it came to the online lives of their children and how they are influenced, she warned.
“My key takeaway from the series was a moment in the last episode when the parents looked at each other and asked: ‘should we have done more?’
“That acknowledgement that they were not involved enough in aspects of their son’s life, which ultimately led to tragedy, should be a wake-up call to everyone who is a parent, carer, or professional who works with kids of any age.”
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