This article contains references to sexual violence.
How do you solve a problem like Andrew Tate? And could ‘positive masculinity’ influencers have the answer? It's a complex question — but with International Men's Day upon us today, it's one we should certainly face head-on.
Despite being charged with rape and human trafficking (which he denies), Tate has a persuasive sway over boys and young men, with research showing that one in three young men have a positive view of him.
His career trajectory – from Big Brother and TikTok notoriety to imprisonment and right-wing conspiracy theories – has triggered volatile debates about masculinity: Is it inherently toxic? Do boys need to be taught not to sexually harass their female classmates? Should feminists – as Caitlin Moran explores in her latest book What About Men? – be turning their attention to men?
While much has been written about the rise of influencers promoting “toxic” masculinity – defined in the Oxford Dictionary as “a set of attitudes and ways of behaving stereotypically associated with or expected of men, regarded as having a negative impact on men and on society as a whole” – there are male influencers who use their platforms to promote a rather different message: that masculinity can (and often is) positive.
But do they actually stand a chance against their “toxic” counterparts? GLAMOUR spoke to the Managing Director of Beyond Equality, a charity promoting positive masculinity, and Dr Alex George, a content creator, author, and UK Ambassador for Mental Health, to learn more.
Female influencers are held accountable for their content in a way that their male counterparts aren't.
The influencer economy trades in human attention. Influencers compete against one another to secure attention before selling it to the highest bidder. And the attention of boys and young men is an increasingly lucrative product, as high-earning content creators, including KSI (worth $27 million), Logan Paul ($45 million), and Mr Beast ($500 million), have found out.
But, as all the above have learned, generating controversy is a fast track to reaping attention (and therefore £££) from social media. Unsurprisingly, generating controversy usually involves offensive or inappropriate behaviour. Just look at Mizzy, the 18-year-old former TikToker who went viral for all the wrong reasons after filming himself abducting an elderly woman's dog, entering other people's houses without their consent, and walking up to young people at night and asking if they “want to die.” As Mizzy told Piers Morgan: “Hate brings likes, hate brings views.”
Enter the algorithm. In 2022, an investigation found that TikTok bombards young men with misogynistic content (often featuring Andrew Tate) after watching male-oriented videos, including clips of dogs, men talking about mental health, and comedy. As Dan Guinness tells GLAMOUR:
“What will start out as watching a YouTube video about the struggles that men are facing in their lives and how to deal with these struggles – very legitimate things that they need to deal with – will [lead to] a video that explains these struggles as an attack on men.”
Reason and basic human empathy clearly aren't enough to make people stop commenting on their bodies.
The Crowther Centre in Australia outlines that positive masculinity is defined as: “The expression of attitudes and behaviours (character strengths and virtues which any gender might have) that have been embodied and enacted by males for the common good, both individually and for the community”
But it's hard for positive masculinity to break through. As Dr Alex tells GLAMOUR, "Asking for help, admitting weakness, being sensitive as a person, being emotionally vulnerable… People see these things as emasculating, whereas I see them as very masculine.
“That's really what's quite interesting is that I personally think that I am masculine because I'm able to be strong and tough and resilient but I'm also able to be vulnerable.”
“Whether a masculine figure is played by a woman or a man, we need masculinity in our lives.”
He continues, "We need to have more people in the sports place and in an education setting providing good role models for masculinity because if you don't have good role models, people will latch onto something else, and that's what's happened [with Andrew Tate]. Whether a masculine figure is played by a woman or a man, we need masculinity in our lives.”
Fortunately, there are plenty of celebrities (I'm looking at you, Taylor Lautner) and influencers who are demonstrating positive masculinity.
Dan Guinness highlights Chris Rock, Dwayne Johnson, and Justin Baldoni as examples of celebrities who model positive masculinity by embracing vulnerability.
He explains, “If you have celebrities showing the time they're spending with their daughters or with their sons and in really encouraging ways, I think that starts to cut through and show, 'Well, these are very successful people in lots of regards, and they're having a wonderful time by tapping into that part of themselves that actually feels pretty good. Maybe we can do that too.'”
Here are some of the best ‘positive masculinity’ influencers to follow:
1.Dr Alex George
Dr Alex George is a Love Island alumni-turned-activist. He uses his platform – a cool 1.9M followers on Instagram – to raise awareness of body image issues for men, sobriety, and breaking the stigma surrounding men's mental health.
Instagram content
2. Jordan Stephens
Jordan Stephens is a musician, actor, and author who regularly speaks up about men's role within feminism, male privilege, and how men and boys can build brighter futures for themselves through vulnerability and communication.
Instagram content
3. Munya Chawawa
Munya Chawawa is a comedian who regularly takes aim at social injustice – from incompetent politicians are his speciality – through satirical viral videos.
Instagram content
4. Jon Gustin, AKA The Tired Dad
With over 541.3K followers on TikTok, Jon Gustin's content about being a “tired dad” is clearly resonating. Across his content, he powerfully opens up about surviving addiction, being a positive role model to his children, and how he handles the pressure of being a father.
Instagram content
5. Ben Hurst
Ben Hurst is Head of Facilitation at Beyond Equality. He uses his platform to talk about black boyhood, male allyship, and mental health. For International Women's Day 2021, he told Gina Martin for GLAMOUR: “Men need to be more solutions-focused. I feel like if you’re an ally, your job is not just to recognise your privilege, but to use the power you have to dismantle it.”
Instagram content
6. Josh Cavallo
Australian Josh Cavallo is the first openly gay footballer — ever. He has worked to dispels stereotypes about masculinity and sports and to fight against the toxic, outdated attitudes that so many football fans still have when it comes to the LGBTQ+ community.
Instagram content
7. Jamie Clements
Breathwork coach Jamie Clements is all about sharing positivity and kindness online. As he told GQ, he re-evaluted his approach to masculinity after struggling with his mental health in his 20s. “What I unknowingly did was reject masculinity as a whole,” he said. “I was like, I’m going to focus on what people might call the ‘feminine’: emotional awareness and regulation, feelings. I became very empathetic and good came from it. Then a couple of years ago I realised I’d lost some of the good that we might associate with masculinity: taking decisive action, leadership.” Now, his approach to mental wellbeing is about taking a more well-rounded approach. And what could be more different than Tate's incessant, performative machismo than that?
Instagram content
8. Henry James Garrett
Henry is an illustrator, screenwriter, and author who advocates for equality throughout his creative work. In 2022, we interviewed Henry, alongside his friend Charlie Craggs, about the importance of male allyship within feminism. He said, “Once we can empathise with people, we feel more motivated to do the right thing. With women, we just have to listen to them – something men can be bad at! But understanding someone’s experience is the key to destroying all the nonsense out there that keeps people from helping others.”
Instagram content
9. Tate Smith
Tate Smith is a “working-class Essex boy who just so happens to be trans”. He is an incredible activist who uses his platform to educate and inspire other men to think about their privilege. He also raises awareness of toxic masculinity, men's mental health, and allyship.
Instagram content
In a statement released to The Observer, TikTok said: “Misogyny and other hateful ideologies and behaviours are not tolerated on TikTok, and we are working to review this content and take action against violations of our guidelines. We continually look to strengthen our policies and enforcement strategies, including adding more safeguards to our recommendation system.”
For more from Glamour UK's Lucy Morgan, follow her on Instagram @lucyalexxandra.
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