A Linguistic Approach to Studying User Migration from the Manosphere to the Alt-Right

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Cucks, Keks, and Pepes: A linguistic approach to studying user migration from the Manosphere to the Alt-Right

Supervisor: Marc Tuters

Second reader: Richard Rogers

MA New Media and Digital Culture

27th of June, 2018

Jimi Cornelisse

10591699

Abstract This research aims to empirically assess the possible migration of Reddit users belonging to the Manosphere to the Alt-Right. Numerous researchers have previously theorized that such migration from the Manosphere to the Alt-Right may occur, as both groups consist of tech-savvy young white males who are disenchanted with contemporary society. Furthermore, these groups are known to share similar beliefs, such as their dissatisfaction with the role of feminism in contemporary society.

These different subcultures reside, albeit not exclusively, on Reddit, with both the Manosphere and the Alt-Right consisting of multiple subgroups. In this research, an analysis is conducted on the migration of users from four different manospheric subreddits (TheRedPill, MGTOW, MensRights, and Incels) to the more general Alt-Right subreddit The_Donald. In order to assess the extent of this possible migration, three different methods of analysis are employed:

1. An analysis of the activity of the users on all analysed subreddits; 2. An analysis of the usage of Alt-Right slang by these users; and 3. An analysis of the general discourse of the users on both their ‘own’ subreddits and The_Donald.

The findings indicate that it is possible to empirically assess a possible migration of users on Reddit and furthermore prove that there is a definite empirical grounding to the claims of researchers, as users from the Manosphere also became more active on The_Donald as the Alt-Right gained greater popularity online. The contributions of this thesis are thus twofold: It provides an empirical basis for earlier claims regarding this possible migration, and it offers a method for empirically assessing the migration of users on Reddit.

Table of Contents

1 Introduction ...... 1 2 Theoretical Framework ...... 5 PART I - DIGITAL COMMUNICATION ...... 6 2.1 Online mediated communication ...... 6 Online disinhibition ...... 6 Agonism/Antagonism ...... 7 Trolling culture ...... 8 Summary ...... 11 PART II - HISTORICAL OVERVIEW...... 12 2.2 Alt-Right ...... 12 Historical overview ...... 12 Decline and resurrection of the Alternative Right ...... 13 Alt-Right communities on Reddit ...... 16 2.3 Manosphere ...... 18 Origin of the men´s rights movement and the Manosphere ...... 19 Contemporary men’s rights ...... 21 The Manosphere online ...... 21 Manospheric communities on Reddit ...... 23 PART III - METHODOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK ...... 28 2.4 Digital Methods ...... 28 2.5 Linguistic innovation ...... 29 Diffusion of innovation ...... 30 3 Research ...... 33 3.1 Subreddit-specific user analysis ...... 34 The_Donald’s top 300 users’ comments on subreddits ...... 35 TheRedPill’s top 300 users’ comments on subreddits ...... 37 MGTOW’s top 300 users’ comments on subreddits ...... 39 MensRights’ top 300 users’ comments on subreddits ...... 41 Incels’ top 300 users’ comments on subreddits ...... 43 3.2 Subreddit-specific slang analysis ...... 45 Analysis of the Alt-Right slang used by the top 300 users on TheRedPill ...... 46

III

Analysis of the Alt-Right slang used by the top 300 users on MGTOW ...... 48 Analysis of the Alt-Right slang used by the top 300 users on MensRights ...... 50 Analysis of the Alt-Right slang used by the top 300 users on Incels...... 52 3.3 Discourse analysis ...... 54 The_Donald discourse analysis ...... 55 TheRedPill discourse analysis ...... 56 MGTOW discourse analysis ...... 58 MensRights discourse analysis ...... 60 Incels discourse analysis ...... 63 4 Results ...... 66 4.1 General overview of findings ...... 66 Activity on subreddits ...... 66 Slang analysis ...... 67 Discourse analysis ...... 70 4.2 October spike in The_Donald ...... 73 4.3 Explanation for migration from Manosphere into Alt-Right ...... 76 5 Conclusion and discussion ...... 78 5.1 Conclusion ...... 78 5.2 Limitations of this research ...... 82 5.3 Recommendations for future research ...... 83 Works cited ...... 84 Appendix A - Queries ...... 90 Query 1 – Most frequently used words (per month) ...... 90 Query 2 - Find top users of subreddit ...... 92 Query 3 - Find amount of posts per subreddit by top 300 users...... 93 Query 4 - Find the total amount of slang words used per subreddit ...... 94 Query 5 - Find number of posts top 300 users ...... 97 Query 6 - Find discourse of top 300 users per subreddit ...... 98 Query 7 - Find specific comments containing a certain word...... 100 Appendix B: Comments ...... 101 The_Donald ...... 101 TheRedPill ...... 102 MGTOW ...... 103

MensRights ...... 105 Incels ...... 108 Appendix C: Themes ...... 110 The_Donald ...... 110 TheRedPill ...... 110 MGTOW ...... 111 MensRights ...... 111 Incels ...... 111

List of Figures

Figure 1: Illustrations of white-nationalistic modifications of Pepe the Frog (WarriorTang) ...... 14 Figure 2: Displacement by technical innovation from: Latour, Bruno. "Technology is society made durable." The Sociological Review 38.1 (1990): 103-131...... 32 Figure 3: Streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 The_Donald users, per subreddit ...... 35 Figure 4: Expanded streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 The_Donald users, per subreddit ...... 36 Figure 5: Streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 TheRedPill users, per subreddit ...... 37 Figure 6: Expanded streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 TheRedPill users, per subreddit ...... 38 Figure 7: Streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 MGTOW users, per subreddit ...... 39 Figure 8: Expanded streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 MGTOW users, per subreddit ...... 40 Figure 9: Streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 MensRights users, per subreddit ...... 41 Figure 10: Expanded streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 MensRights users, per subreddit ...... 42 Figure 11: Streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 Incels users, per subreddit ...... 43 Figure 12: Expanded streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 Incels users, per subreddit ...... 44 Figure 13: TheRedPill - Amount of Alt-Right slang used per subreddit ...... 46 Figure 14: TheRedPill - Amount of Alt-Right slang used per subreddit (as percentage of total) ...... 47 Figure 15: MGTOW - Amount of Alt-Right slang used per subreddit ...... 48 Figure 16: MGTOW - Amount of Alt-Right slang used per subreddit (as percentage of total)...... 49 Figure 17: MensRights - Amount of Alt-Right slang used per subreddit ...... 50 Figure 18: MensRights - Amount of Alt-Right slang used per subreddit (as percentage of total) ...... 51 Figure 19: Incels - Amount of Alt-Right slang used per subreddit ...... 52 Figure 20: Subscriber growth of /r/Incels (Redditmetrics, http://redditmetrics.com/r/Incels) ...... 53 Figure 21: Incels - Amount of Alt-Right slang used in /r/Incels (as percentage of total)...... 53 Figure 22: Word clouds of discourse by top 300 The_Donald users (2016-05, 2016-09, 2017-01) ...... 55 Figure 23: Word clouds of discourse by top 300 TheRedPill users (2016-05, 2016-09, 2017-01) ...... 57 Figure 24: Word clouds of discourse by top 300 MGTOW users (2016-05, 2016-09, 2017-01) ...... 59 Figure 25: Word clouds of discourse by top 300 MensRights users (2016-05, 2016-09, 2017-01) ...... 62 Figure 26: Word clouds of discourse by top 300 Incels users (2016-05, 2016-09, 2017-01) ...... 65 Figure 27: Word clouds of discourse by top 300 MGTOW users (2016-09) ...... 74

List of Tables

Table 1: Overview of timeframe analysis ...... 34 Table 2: Amount of comments made by /r/Incels top 300 users ...... 63 Table 3: Engagement by top 300 users, by subreddit ...... 66 Table 4: Overview of increase/decrease in comments containing Alt-Right slang (TheRedPill) ...... 67 Table 5: Overview of increase/decrease in comments containing Alt-Right slang (MGTOW) ...... 68 Table 6: Overview of increase/decrease in comments containing Alt-Right slang (MensRights) ...... 68 Table 7: Overview of increase/decrease in comments containing Alt-Right slang (Incels) ...... 69 Table 8: Comments from The_Donalds top 300 users, containing “sick” 2016-09 ...... 101 Table 9: Comments from The_Donalds top 300 users, containing “weasel” 2016-09 ...... 101 Table 10: Comments from TheRedPill’s top 300 users, containing “women” in The_Donald (2016-05) ...... 102 Table 11: Comments from TheRedPill’s top 300 users, containing “women” in TheRedPill (2016-05) ...... 102 Table 12: Comments from MGTOW’s top 300 users, containing “rape” in The_Donald (2017-01) ...... 103 Table 13: Comments from MGTOW’s top 300 users, containing “rape” in MGTOW (2017-01) ...... 103 Table 14: Comments from MGTOW’s top 300 users, containing “suicide” in The_Donald (2017-01) ...... 104 Table 15: Comments from MGTOW’s top 300 users, containing “suicide” in MGTOW (2017-01) ...... 104 Table 16: Comments from MensRights top 300 users, containing “abortion” in The_Donald (2017-01) ...... 105 Table 17: Comments from MensRights top 300 users, containing “abortion” in MensRights (2017-01) ...... 105 Table 18: Comments from MensRights top 300 users, containing “rape” in The_Donald (2017-01) ...... 106 Table 19: Comments from MensRights top 300 users, containing “rape” in MensRights (2017-01) ...... 106 Table 20: Comments containing “law” by MensRights top 300 users in The_Donald ...... 107 Table 21: Comments containing “law” by MensRights top 300 users in MensRights ...... 107 Table 22: Comments from Incels’ top 300 users, in The_Donald (2017-01) ...... 108 Table 23: Comments from Incels’ top 300 users, in Incels (2017-01) ...... 108 Table 24: Comments containing “Trump”, from Incels’ top 300 users, in Incels (2017-01) ...... 109 Table 25: Themes found in word clouds for The_Donald ...... 110 Table 26: Themes found in word clouds for TheRedPill ...... 110 Table 27: Themes found in word clouds for MGTOW ...... 111 Table 28: Themes found in word clouds for MensRights ...... 111 Table 29: Themes found in word clouds for Incels ...... 111

VII

1 Introduction

WE DID IT WE MEMED A PRESIDENT INTO OFFICE - Anon, 20161

The above quote was posted on 4chan’s /pol/ forum, an Internet message board, shortly after Donald Trump was elected as the 45th president of the United States. Previously an obscure site, 4chan garnered significant media attention as the elections progressed. This was no coincidence, as, according to Joseph Bernstein, the ‘dark forces of the Internet’ became a counterculture in 2015. These forces, referred to as ‘Chanterculture’ by Bernstein, are an amalgamation of various anonymous and pseudonymous online communities, including 4chan, 8chan, and Reddit. These communities are traditionally populated by young white men who ‘appear to be in the midst of a reactionary upheaval geared at fighting back against the culture of inclusion and diversity that has — in their view — infected mainstream life’ (Singal). The question that remains, however, is how these previously obscure groups successfully emerged into mainstream culture.

This thesis explores how Alt-Right politics found their way from obscure message boards to the mainstream. The term Alt-Right was initially coined and popularised by Richard Spencer in 2010. Since then, the movement has become increasingly popular and prominent. During the 2016 presidential election, the movement was subject to considerable media attention and controversy. This emergence into the mainstream came long after the Alt-Right’s first appearance, as it can trace its roots to sites such as 4chan and 8chan, platforms upon which users can anonymously post memes that express their ideological views. Over time, however, it has found its way onto more mainstream media outlets, such as Reddit and Twitter.

The so-called ‘Manosphere’ has played a significant role in the emergence of the Alt-Right into the mainstream. The Manosphere comprises various distinct groups, ranging from the ‘men’s rights’ movement to the ‘incels’ (involuntary celibates) to pick-up artists (PUAs — individuals whose goal is essentially to seduce as many women as possible) to Men Going Their Own Way (MGTOW — a community whose members believe there is a systematic bias in favour of women and therefore do not engage in contact with women in any shape or form whatsoever).

These places foster young white males who feel that they have been wronged by modern society. The majority of these individuals feel that modern society, in which women actively seek empowerment, has

1 For the archived thread, see: https://yuki.la/pol/97343278

rendered men a marginalised group. These men feel that there is no longer a place for white males, as they believe that social movements intended to improve the lots of minorities have become increasingly influential over time.

These communities advocate a distrust of both feminism and liberal politics and feed into the discourse that female empowerment is synonymous with male disempowerment. A specific subreddit, titled /r/TheRedPill2, portrays itself as a forum for ‘discussion of sexual strategy in a culture increasingly lacking a positive identity for men’ (Reddit). Among the participants in this subreddit, the general consensus is that feminism has had a detrimental effect on modern society (especially for men).

To provide an example of the prevailing opinions within these groups, sex is a subject that members of these groups often raise when discussing how society has made men’s lives more difficult. These men seem to feel as though they have a right to sex, which feminism has taken away from them. In the case of the PUAs, they feel as though they deserve to have sex; thus, they attempt to seduce as many women as possible. In contrast, members of incel groups believe that women are denying them their right to have sex, as they seem to have the impression that women reject them without any valid reason for doing so. Whilst sex is one of the issues that these men address, it is not the only one, as the subjects that they discuss range from female bias in divorce courts to false accusations of rape. Each individual community has its own agenda, a topic that is further discussed later in this thesis.

It may prove interesting to first consider the Alt-Right from a historical point of view, taking into account the Manosphere and the role it plays within the Alt-Right. Furthermore, it is worth investigating how these subcultures have provided ways by which users can express their ideologies and to determine whether they differ in certain respects.

Another interesting factor to investigate is the influence of digital technology on communication. The various platforms upon which people can engage in online conversations and the effect that being online has on communication may affect how members of these groups interact. For example, 4chan and Reddit allow users to remain anonymous and provide specific hubs where like-minded people can interact and express their ideologies. Twitter also provides a similar function but in a more global fashion, as, beyond its timeline feature, it does not feature specifics hubs. This study investigates the manner in which the AltRight and the Manosphere have manifested themselves on the Internet since their emergence, focussing specifically on Reddit. Furthermore, this study assesses whether the discourse of these groups has evolved over time, as it may have been changed to cater to mainstream sensibilities.

2 /r/ is used to denote subreddits; /u/ is used to denote users.

The Alt-Right received enormous media exposure during the election; however, the role that new media played in the emergence of this movement did not receive as much media attention. Furthermore, investigating the emergence of one specific movement, in this case the Alt-Right, may also provide insight as to how certain ‘obscure’ subcultures could find their way into the mainstream.

Reddit is a useful starting point when attempting to answer this question, as this site is home to numerous subreddits that cater to the Manosphere and Alt-Right. Therefore, the main focus of this research is on analysing Reddit and its manospheric subreddits, in addition to the Alt-Right hub /r/The_Donald. In order to answer this research question, Felipe Hoffa´s BigQuery database, which contains nearly all Reddit comments from 2005 on, is consulted. The most important goal is to empirically assess whether users who participate on subreddits within the Manosphere may have migrated to more general Alt-Right subreddits (/r/The_Donald in particular). Furthermore, this research focuses not only on the migration of users but also on the migration of certain slang terms derived from each individual subreddit to other subreddits. This leads to this thesis’ main research question:

To what extent can empirical research prove that a migration of users has occurred from manospheric subreddits to more general Alt-Right subreddits such as /r/The_Donald?

The reason for attempting to empirically assess whether such migration occurs is that, amongst others, Angela Nagle and Adrienne Massanari have suggested that this may be the case. As Nagle states, ‘[o]ne of the things that linked the often nihilistic and ironic chan culture to a wider culture of the Alt-Right orbit was their opposition to political correctness, feminism, and multiculturalism’ (15). Furthermore, Nagle (17) states that there is a cross-pollinating section within the broader Alt-Right milieu, which is comprised of masculinist and neo-masculinist anti-feminist online subcultures, including the manospheric subreddits mentioned above. Furthermore, as Marwick and Caplan claim, there are clear links between the Alt-Right and the Manosphere, as the authors note that portions of the Manosphere have also started to espouse anti- Semitic and anti-Islamic views (12). Massanari also claims that Reddit’s culture and design ‘implicitly [allow] anti-feminist and racist activist communities to take hold’ (8). Consequently, the relative ease with which these communities can take hold, as well as the ease with which users can switch between such communities, may facilitate these communities to merge or at least to coexist alongside each other. While there is a strong theoretical and anecdotal basis for these claims (with certain prominent Manosphere figures also subscribing to Alt-Right ideology), Nagle and Massanari do not support them with empirical evidence. This thesis strives to either prove or disprove these claims and to furthermore provide a methodological framework for further analysis of similar issues in the future.

The possible migration is analysed using a number of methods. First, an analysis of the number of comments posted by a certain subreddit’s power users3 is conducted. This analysis is used to determine whether users who participate on a subreddit belonging to the Manosphere also post on a subreddit belonging to the Alt-Right, in this case The_Donald. Second, an analysis of the number of Alt-Right slang words employed by these power users is conducted, as an increase in the usage of slang words belonging to the Alt-Right may indicate that there a migration of ideology has occurred. Finally, an analysis of the general discourse of these users in both their ‘original’ subreddits as well as The_Donald is conducted in order to assess whether discourse differs by subreddit.

Overview Chapter 2 describes the theoretical basis of this research. First, an analysis of digitally mediated communication is conducted to provide context for online platforms in general and Reddit in particular. Second, this chapter provides a historical overview of both the Alt-Right and Manosphere. This overview also introduces the subreddits that this research focuses on. Finally, a methodological framework is developed; this framework serves as the basis for the empirical research that is conducted in Chapter 3.

Chapter 3 focuses on the empirical research that is essential to this thesis. In this chapter, the research design used at the outset of the empirical research is explained, and the tools used in this research approach are described in detail. The subreddits analysed are then described, and the experiment itself is explained in greater detail.

Chapter 4 presents the research results obtained from the experiment. The research questions are subsequently answered based on the results. Furthermore, the additional research that proved necessary is described.

Chapter 5 serves as the conclusion of this thesis; in addition, it features a discussion of the possible future research that would be required to further examine the questions and implications that arise during this investigation.

2 Theoretical Framework

This chapter is divided into three different parts, which are explained below:

Part I - Digital communication This part explores numerous factors leading to the behaviour demonstrated on these online communities. For example, the freedom the Internet affords its users in terms of stating their opinions anonymously plays a major role in the emergence of these specific subcultures. Furthermore, phenomena such as online

3 These are the users who have the highest comment score within an individual subreddit.

disinhibition can affect the manner in which people interact with each other online. Therefore, these effects need to be taken into consideration when analysing online speech.

Furthermore, this part examines the debate over agonism versus antagonism. These different forms of communication can completely transform debates, as agonism is a debate between two parties who acknowledge each other’s legitimacy, whereas antagonism is a debate between two parties who have no common ground (Mouffe 20). Antagonism therefore, regularly devolves debates into smear tactics instead of legitimate discussion. This is also shown by looking at the recent elections, as both the Clinton and Trump campaigns relied heavily on smear tactics. This can in turn be linked to trolling culture, which is prevalent within online communities, particularly upon platforms such as Reddit, 4chan, and 8chan.

Part II - Historical overview This part presents a historical overview of the Alt-Right. Furthermore, the various factions within the AltRight are described in detail. As the Alt-Right can be defined as a multifaceted movement, it is essential to clearly define each of its facets.

Second, this part provides a detailed overview of the Manosphere and its various subgroups. This overview seeks to introduce the widely fragmented subcultures that exist within the Manosphere. These subcultures can differ wildly from each other; for example, the incels and PUAs are completely opposed in outlook, with the exception of their stance on women.

A number of subreddits are also assessed in the historical overview. These subreddits belong either to the Alt-Right or the Manosphere and are the main subjects of analysis within this research.

Part III - Methodological framework The final part of the theoretical framework focuses on the methodological basis for the empirical research. This section presents various methods and the reasoning behind their use. Furthermore, a part of this framework strives explain the logic behind the analysis of slang terms as forms of linguistic innovation.

PART I - DIGITAL COMMUNICATION

2.1 Online mediated communication

As a preface to the historical background of the Alt-Right and the Manosphere, it is important to explore the influence of the Internet on communication, as online mediated communication is clearly distinct from offline communication. As the Internet provides means of communicating under a (semi)anonymous veil, it enables participants to share their views freely, regardless of the opinions of others or social norms. In some cases, this can facilitate open discourse, but it can also promote trolling. In the following sections,

the influence of the Internet on communication is discussed with reference to online disinhibition, the use of irony, trolling culture, and the concepts of agonism and antagonism.

2.1.1 Online disinhibition

Simply put, online disinhibition refers to the lack of constraint that a person feels when using the Internet (Suler 321). This disinhibition can manifest itself in two forms: benign disinhibition and toxic disinhibition. The former is the positive manifestation, in which the disinhibition allows users to be more open and personal, reveal their deepest thoughts and feelings, and go above and beyond to help others. The latter, however, refers to a completely different phenomenon. This form of disinhibition is characterized by ‘rude language, harsh criticism, anger, hatred and even threats’ (Suler 321). Online hate speech is not a novel phenomenon, but online disinhibition may account for its prominence. Taking Reddit as an example, there are obvious links to hateful subreddits in this regard, as users seem to feel that they can say anything they want under the (semi)anonymous veil mentioned previously. Whereas opportunities for anonymity are slowly diminishing on other platforms (Facebook, for example, requires users to provide their real names in order to post), Reddit still offers ways of remaining anonymous. This can strengthen the online disinhibition effect, particularly within a subreddit that functions as an echo chamber.

As a result of hearing the same arguments and language being repeatedly expressed without accepting any external criticism, an individual may come to believe in what is being said. Furthermore, Rösner and Krämer state that online users tend to alter their vernacular to conform to the social group norm within the online spaces that they participate in (3). In the case of Reddit, this means that users commenting on an Alt-Right or Manosphere subreddit will most likely conform to the general discourse that is presented to them. For example, the members of /r/Incels are known for not accepting any views that differ from their own and shunning people with different opinions.

Use of irony/Poe’s law As a recent article by the Huffington Post confirms, hate speech is becoming increasingly ambiguous and deliberately manipulative (Feinberg). In addition, Internet users who engage in hate speech often make a deliberate choice to add an element of irony to such content. In this article, Feinberg discusses the style guide of the Daily Stormer, a white supremacist news website. In this guide, the use of irony is particularly identified as a tool to make the unindoctrinated wonder whether a writer is serious or not. In other words, most people are not comfortable with unfiltered, non-ironic hate speech. As a veil of irony surrounds the vernacular of certain groups, hate speech can become a form of humour that can attract people to these groups. According to Poe’s law, it is impossible to determine whether an online

conversation is earnest or ironic (Aikin 1). This helps trolls to achieve the goal of spewing hate speech without being held accountable for it.

2.1.2 Agonism/Antagonism

Another factor that plays into online debate or general online discourse is the distinction between agonism and antagonism. Mouffe defines antagonism as a ‘we/they relation in which the two sides are enemies who do not share any common ground’ (2005, 20). Agonism, in contrast, is defined as a ‘we/they relation where the conflicting parties, although acknowledging that there is no rational solution to their conflict, nevertheless recognize the legitimacy of their opponents’ (2005, 20).

As Milner states, antagonism is present on Reddit, particularly when it comes to race and gender (120). An example of one of the many antagonistic communities on this platform is r/MensRights, which antagonizes feminism and women in general.

According to Mouffe, it is important that conflict should not be a struggle between enemies, and thus not a form of antagonism, but rather a struggle between adversaries, which would be a form of agonism (2009, 551). The fact that certain subreddits provide platforms upon which particular users spew hate and antagonize others is one of the reasons why Reddit’s content policy was updated. In this case, Reddit’s decision to ban purely negative spaces that focus solely on antagonizing other parties seems to have been intended to promote agonism.

This, however, leads to a difficult question, namely how one can identify a conversation as antagonistic or agonistic. This question becomes problematic due to the fact that people experience conversations differently. Therefore, it is difficult to draw a line between agonistic and antagonistic debate.

Interestingly, during the election, the majority of the debates between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump were antagonistic in nature. Examples of this are found in both sides accusing the other of employing smear tactics (Sanchez; Jonathan). Furthermore, Clinton denounced Trump’s followers as a ‘basket of deplorables’, while Trump openly stated that he considered Clinton to be a criminal and referred to her as Crooked Hillary Clinton. Considering that even presidential candidates are willing to resort to antagonistic debate tactics, it is not far-fetched to believe that their followers would adopt the same tactics.

2.1.3 Trolling culture

Trolling culture can in some ways be considered to be a result of a combination of toxic online disinhibition, the use of irony, and antagonism. An understanding of trolling culture is therefore essential to this research. Trolling within the context of the Internet has been framed as one of the most significant obstacles to the formation of online communities. Phillips uses Judith Donath’s characterization of trolling

as ‘a malicious and deliberately destructive lie’. Furthermore, the existence of trolls, or even the possibility thereof, makes communities less likely to trust outsiders. In other words, trolling can, and in many cases will, incite paranoia, which can have a negative effect on a community (Phillips 20-21).

Another definition of trolling is given by Claire Hardaker, who states that a troll is ‘a person whose real intention(s) is/are to cause disruption and/or to trigger or exacerbate conflict for the purposes of their own amusement (237)’. Interestingly enough, this definition also includes the person behind the trolling. Hardaker moves on to state that the most important characteristic of trolling is deception (230-235).

Over time, the term troll has taken on self-selective, subcultural connotations (Phillips 22). Phillips states that this shift began on 4chan’s /b/ board4; following its creation, Users of this website began to develop its own lexicon and behavioural norms. The term troll was consequently appropriated as a point of selfidentification, with users even taking pride in it (22-23). While trolling existed prior to the creation of 4chan, with examples of such behaviour dating back to the mid-1990s, the shift towards the appropriation of trolling as a form of self-identification occurred later, approximately around 2004. Therefore, people who engaged in trolling in the mid-1990s did not identify themselves as trolls or anything else at the time, whereas contemporary trolls do.

As 4chan became more popular, the usage of the word ‘troll’ also grew in popularity , not just within 4chan’s /b/ board but also among other Internet users. In a sense, as Phillips states, 4chan cannot be seen as the creator of trolling, but this site did provide an incubator for ‘a clear, coherent, and immediately recognizable subcultural framing of the term “trolling”’ (24).

4 4chan has many different boards, functioning similarly to subreddits on Reddit. Example of these boards include /a/-Anime, /b/-Random, and /pol/-Politically incorrect. It is important to note that trolling itself includes a spectrum of behaviours, ranging from extremely aggressive behaviour (such as swatting4) to relatively innocent (such as ‘Rickrolling’). Furthermore, some trolling is persistent, while other forms of trolling can be ephemeral (Phillips 26).

4 Swatting is an internet prank/crime where someone finds your address either through your IP or because your name and location is known. Then they call 911 anonymously and report a fake emergency. For example, someone can call and say that someone at that address is being held at a gun point or someone is going to commit suicide and a SWAT team would be dispatched to the address. (Urban Dictionary, https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Swatting)

The style of trolling that originated on 4chan can also be applied by communities on Reddit that belong to the Alt-Right and Manosphere, which this research focuses on. Marwick and Lewis note that the style of trolling is characterized by four distinct tendencies (5):

• The use of deliberately offensive speech; • Antipathy towards sensationalism in the mainstream media; • The desire to create emotional impact in targets; and • The preservation of ambiguity

Offensive speech Hate speech is frequently employed by trolls, as people take it very seriously and are consequently offended by it. Offending people by utilising hate speech is exactly the type of moral boundary that trolls aim to transgress. Furthermore, hate speech is almost exclusively directed towards racial and sexual minorities, as well as women. Trolls often downplay their use of offensive slurs as being ironically funny or as a means of driving outsiders away from their communities. Finally, as Marwick and Lewis state, hate speech is also tied to an extremist commitment to free speech, which in turn is tied to trolls’ aversion to political correctness (6).

Antipathy towards mainstream media Marwick and Lewis cite Phillips, who argues that much trolling is reactionary, mainly towards the mainstream media. The majority of such trolling targets the ‘tragedy-of-the-week moral panic perpetrated by talk shows and cable news’ (5). For example, a 4channer once trolled message boards operated by the Oprah Winfrey Show by posing as a paedophile. In an extremely exaggerated post, the user stated that he had ‘over 9000’ (a popular meme on 4chan at the time, originating from the show Dragon Ball Z) penises with which to rape children. This story was noticed by Oprah’s team, leading to Oprah warning her viewers of a paedophile network that ‘has over 9000 penises and they’re all . . . raping . . .children’ (Phillips 66). Trolling mainstream media in order to exploit its tendency to prioritize spectacle, novelty, and poignancy is thus used as a justification for trolling behaviour. The justification for trolling stems from the argument that, through trolling, ‘the hypocrisy, ignorance and stupidity of the mainstream media is…exposed’ (Marwick and Lewis 5-6).

Emotional impact The goal of the vast majority of trolls is to elicit negative emotional responses from their targets. In order to justify this behaviour, trolls distance themselves from their targets by arguing that the latter deserve abuse. An example of this is provided in the form of trolls who post offensive pictures to memorial pages on Facebook, arguing that the people who visit such pages are ‘grief tourists’ who pretend to care about people whom they do not know. Another justification that trolls can give is that people care excessively

about the Internet, as it is not ‘real life’. Furthermore, the process of eliciting an emotional response is treated as if it were a game by trolls, who frequently work together to provoke as many responses as possible (Marwick and Lewis 7).

Preservation of ambiguity Trolls are most successful when their discourse is ambiguous to the point where it is never quite clear whether or not they are serious. This is especially important in the many spaces in which racist speech and content are not necessarily permitted. Trolls therefore have to mask their content in such a manner that it can be interpreted either as the trolling of political correctness or as genuine racism. Determining intent becomes nearly impossible in such cases, especially since the participants are almost always anonymous (Marwick and Lewis 7).

2.1.4 Summary

This section provided an overview of the influence that the Internet has on communication. Online mediated communication has many valuable uses, such as connecting people who otherwise would never have been able to do so. However, it has also supports and encourages negative behaviours.

Examples of such negative behaviours can be found as a result of online disinhibition, which, on the one hand, can encourage people to speak more freely; however, on the other hand, it can also encourage the sharing of online hate speech without repercussions. Furthermore, the Internet´s influence on online discourse also becomes prominent in antagonistic debate, the effect of which can be enhanced by users creating an echo chamber in which no criticism is allowed. Antagonistic debate can also occur in public, as exemplified by the debates between Trump and Clinton; however, in public, it is more difficult to completely disregard opposing opinions.

Finally, trolling culture also has a major influence on online mediated communication, as a subset of Internet users actively cause disruption and/or trigger or exacerbate conflict for their own amusement. As it is often challenging to discern whether trolls are genuine, primarily due to the veil of irony and ambiguity that they conceal themselves behind, it is difficult to determine whether or not their discourse should be taken seriously. To complicate matters further, even though some trolls, may not be genuine and simply use hate speech because they find it funny, the ingenuine use of hate speech can create an environment in which actual racist and sexist individuals can spout hateful rhetoric without being challenged.

PART II - HISTORICAL OVERVIEW

2.2 Alt-Right 2.2.1 Historical overview

A reasonable point of departure for an analysis of the emergence of the Alt-Right into the mainstream is to provide a historical overview of the movement itself. Therefore, this section focuses on the development of the movement since Richard Spencer first coined the term ‘Alternative Right’ in 2008. Spencer emerged as a political writer in 2007, having had his first major article published in the American Conservative. This article focused upon the Duke lacrosse rape scandal, in which numerous members of the university’s lacrosse team were falsely accused of raping an African American women (Hawley 51). In this article, Spencer stated that this scandal had ‘left serious people with a sense that something has gone terribly wrong with Duke’s academic culture’.

Thereafter, Spencer left Duke University, where he was enrolled in a PhD programme, and started working for the American Conservative. However, according to Hawley, Spencer was never a traditional conservative, as he never concealed his atheism and has also praised libertarians, in addition to speaking at libertarian conferences (Hawley 54). Following his termination at the American Conservative, Spencer joined Taki’s Magazine, founded by Taki Theodoracopulos, as managing director. The term Alt-Right finally materialized during Spencer’s tenure at this magazine. Theodoracopulos, who is known as a controversial right-wing writer and a critic of traditional conservatism, felt that the traditional conservative opinion had become stale and required ‘shaking up’. Theodoracopulos thus created Taki’s Magazine in order to provide a counter-voice to the mainstream conservative opinion.

Under Spencer’s reign, the magazine began to advocate an explicit racial agenda. As Spencer took control, the magazine continued publishing work from more mainstream paleoconservatives and libertarian authors. However, it also started featuring more controversial authors, such as Jared Taylor;5 this sparked controversy, leading other authors to criticize Spencer’s decision. Spencer responded by stating that ‘for a webzine attempting to carve out an “Alternative Right”, and one dedicated to a fearless assault on PC in all its varieties, the topics of “race” and “white identity” are bound to come up’, adding that ‘Takimag is not a “white nationalist” website’ (Spencer). While the magazine veered to the right with Spencer’s arrival, it still published authors with a wide range of perspectives. ‘Alternative Right’ was used as a broad umbrella term to refer to anyone opposed to the neoconservative movement (Hawley 55).

5 A white supremacist, who is a proponent of scientific racism and voluntary racial segregation, also believing in racial differences in intelligence among different ethno-racial groups..

Spencer subsequently left Taki’s Magazine and founded the website Alternative Right. This website, while not featuring explicitly racist content during its early phases, did move away from mainstream conservative political theory and towards a theme of identity politics for white people (Hawley 61). Furthermore, the website soon became a hub for openly racist material; however, it did avoid the explicit racist vernacular associated with online hubs of white nationalism (Neiwert 138).

As time progressed, the Alt-Right, whilst initially encompassing a range of authors opposed to mainstream conservatism, shifted towards the aforementioned theme of white identity politics and white nationalism. This became an essential element of the Alt-Right, with Spencer stating that race is the ‘foundation of identity’ and that people have to identify what truly influences who they are before asking questions concerning economics and foreign policy (Hawley 62; American Poverty Law Center).

2.2.2 Decline and resurrection of the Alternative Right

While the website Alternative Right gained an audience after its launch, it did not necessarily become a movement in and of itself. Consequently, after two years, Spencer grew tired of both it and the Alt-Right itself. Therefore, he stopped working on the website, but he undertook to keep it online. Control over content was then taken over by Collin Liddell and Andy Nowicki, and under their reign, more controversial content was posted. Even though Spencer no longer had editorial control, he still had ownership over the website and therefore automatically became associated with content posted on it. A development that was particularly concerning to Spencer was content posted by Liddell; in particular, an article titled ‘Is Black Genocide Right?’ became the straw that broke the camel’s back. As Spencer was still associated with the website, content of this nature was used to criticize his other media venues. This eventually led to Spencer deleting the website in its entirety, without notifying Liddell and Nowicki (Hawley 63-64). Liddell and Nowicki then created their own version of the Alternative Right; however, it never achieved the same circulation as the original and struggled to remain relevant to the white nationalist movement (American Poverty Law Center).

2.2.2.1 The New Alt-Right

Following these events came a period during which the term Alt-Right seemed to decline in popularity and relevance. Aside from the previously mentioned website launched by Liddell and Nowicki, the term lived on in more obscure corners of the Internet, including 4chan and Reddit. From 2015 on (coinciding with Trump’s bid for candidacy), however, the term gained popularity on social media. While the fundamental premises remained the same, the new Alt-Right adopted a different approach. For example, Spencer’s Alternative Right took an intellectually highbrow approach to white nationalism that avoided the use of racial slurs and explicitly hateful rhetoric (Hawley 67). The new Alt-Right, in contrast, did not conform to

these standards, as it approached the same issues in a drastically different manner. This approach was characterized by the use of vulgar and offensive language, with an emphasis on irony and humour, and was characterized by the use of Internet memes and trolling to attack opponents and to spread Alt-Right views (Lyons 2).

In contrast to the earlier Alt-Right, the supporters of which at least attempted to substantiate their arguments, the newer wave made use of the anonymity provided by the Internet to openly propagate white nationalistic symbols. An example of this can be found in the use of ‘1488’, a reference to the white nationalist mantra the ‘Fourteen Words’6 written by David Lane and ‘Heil Hitler’ (the 8th letter of the alphabet being H; Jeffery and West). Additional examples of this approach to spreading the group's ideology are provided in the pictures below.

Figure 1: Illustrations of white-nationalistic modifications of Pepe the Frog (WarriorTang)

These pictures depict modifications of Pepe the Frog, who was originally created as an innocent character in a comic series by Matt Furie in 2006 (Khan). As the character gained popularity, mainly due to its ability to be reworked and placed in any context, it also lent itself to co-opting by Alt-Right. Consequently, Pepe even became the unofficial mascot of the Alt-Right (Segal).

It is important to note that what distinguishes the new wave from the older is the fact that members of the former uses these symbols not primarily because they agree with them but because they think that doing so is entertaining. The use of these images can be traced back to the culture of trolling that exists on online message boards such as Reddit and 4chan, as well as the Internet’s ability to distribute memes such as these (Segal).

Online and without leadership The resurrection of the Alt-Right cannot be attributed to any particular individual, and it seems as though there was a growing population of disgruntled white identitarians who did not feel that the term ‘white

6 ‘We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children’

nationalist’ resonated with them. Therefore, the Alt-Right label, as it was already associated with white identity politics, was the most suitable (Hawley 69). This also meant that the movement itself is hard to define, as it lacks a leader; it is essentially a leaderless mob. For example, the mainstream press has bundled all rightist online phenomena, ranging from 4chan, Reddit, and neo-nazi sites, under the banner of the Alt-Right (Nagle 13). Even though these different platforms may share the same views to some extent, the manner in which they propagate themselves differs by platform.

The creation of the Alt-Right as an umbrella term is explained by Hawley during an interview with AltRight podcaster Jazzhands McFeels:

When I came into the movement in late 2014, the term ‘Alt-Right’ was sort of a forced meme that had been loosely applied by some prominent members of the movement. It was sort of a personal choice whether or not to use it. . . . As the movement began to coalesce, predominantly and almost exclusively online, the Alt-Right was used more frequently as a banner under which to rally. Once the media began referring to the movement as the Alt-Right, that was it. (Hawley 69-70)

To summarize, whereas the Alt-Right was previously a movement opposing traditional mainstream conservatism, it gradually shifted towards a theme of white identity politics and white nationalism. As the movement gradually declined in popularity, a sudden re-emergence came in the form of a leaderless mob, consisting predominately of young white men, who were strongly influenced by Internet culture (Anglin 8). Furthermore, as Anglin provides valuable insight into this re-emergence:

The people involved in contributing to and/or consuming the content are on different Alt-Right sites and forums, many are on Twitter, Reddit, 4chan, etc. There are minor ‘leaders’, people who others listen to, but because there is yet to be an officially codified doctrine, no actual leader exists. The mob is the movement. (Anglin 26)

For the purposes of this study, the focus is on the manifestation of the contemporary Alt-Right on Reddit. As this study assesses whether the existence of an overlap between the Alt-Right and the Manosphere can be empirically supported, an analysis of the most prolific Alt-Right communities is essential.

2.2.3 Alt-Right communities on Reddit

2.2.3.1 /r/The_Donald

The subreddit /r/The_Donald was created for supporters of Donald Trump during his bid for the presidency; at the time of writing, it boasts 594,703 subscribers. This subreddit is essentially the epicentre of Trump-centred discourse on the Internet. More importantly, it is the major hub for Trump’s Alt-Right supporters (Romano).

The members range from conservatives to memeing teenagers, with one unifying characteristic: anonymity. The community itself is home to Islamophobia and xenophobia in general, trolling of liberal subreddits and users, and bashing of Hillary Clinton (Lagorio-Chafkin). Furthermore, the subreddit is known for hosting AMAs7 with prominent Alt-Right figures who support Trump.

The subreddit has become infamous for its incitements to violence, its outspoken white supremacist rhetoric, its appeal to the Alt-Right, and its function as a gateway into more explicit right-wing extremism (u/landoflobsters; Romano). This is exemplified by a stickied post uploaded to The_Donald immediately prior to the Unity the Right rally, a far-right rally with the goal of protesting the removal of Confederate monuments and promoting white nationalism. In this post, The_Donald’s subscribers were urged to march alongside neo-Nazi and far-right groups, since, ‘[i]n this case, the pursuit of preserving without shame white culture, our goals happen to align’ (Romano). This is only one example of The_Donald’s explicit links to the right; however, for the purposes of this study, another characteristic of The_Donald is of particular interest, namely the language that its subscribers have created for themselves. This topic is discussed further below.

Vocabulary As The_Donald has essentially provided an online club house for supporters of Trump, it comes as no surprise that certain code words have appeared. These words and phrases are often somewhat ridiculous, such as ‘nimble navigators’ and ‘centipedes’, terms originating from YouTube video compilations of Trump footage. In a particular video, footage of Trump participating in a debate was juxtaposed with commentary from a nature documentary about centipedes. The narrator of this video states that ‘[d]espite its impressive length, [the centipede] is a nimble navigator, and some can be highly venomous. Just like the tarantula it’s killing, the centipede has two curved hollow fangs, which inject paralyzing venom. The centipede is a predator’ (Rose). In the context of the quote, it seems that Trump’s supporters on the Internet like to compare both Trump and themselves to a nimble and, most importantly, deadly predator.

As previous research has demonstrated, The_Donald does not necessarily have one voice, since there are numerous smaller groups within the community, each of which has its own specific ‘lingo’. Tim Squirrel sheds light on the terminology employed by such groups, which he refers to as ‘the taxonomy of trolls’. The first group are the 4chan shitposters, who commonly use terms such as ‘kek’, ‘Pepe’, ‘deus vult’, ‘tendies’, and ‘God Emperor Trump’. The second group can be defined as consisting of anti-progressive gamers linked to Gamergate. This group most commonly uses terms such as ‘SJW,’ ‘snowflake’,

7 Ask me anything, these posts can be explained as interviews where public figures answer questions asked by subscribers of the subreddit.

‘pandering’, ‘Tumblr’, ‘feminist’, ‘triggering’, ‘GamerGate’, and ‘virtue-signalling’. The third group, also known as the Manosphere, consists of men’s rights activists; these individuals employ terms such as ‘females’, ‘cuck’, ‘bitch’, ‘Chad’, ‘alpha’, ‘beta’, and ‘omega’. The fourth group are anti-globalists, who employ terms such as ‘globalist scum’, ‘the establishment’, ‘puppets’, ‘elites’, ‘masters’, and ‘cultural Marxist’. Lastly, there is a group of white supremacists, who use terms such as ‘Islam’, (creeping) Sharia, ‘deus vult’, ‘Western culture’, and various racial slurs (Squirrel).

Identity As the popularity of The_Donald subreddit grew, these different groups coalesced around Trump and formed an collective identity. Whereas these groups may have had individual subreddits to turn to, The_Donald provided a space in which all of them could feel welcome. The groups have also formed a collective vocabulary, adding to their own individual lexicons. This collective uses terms such as ‘MAGA’ (based on ‘Make America Great Again’), ‘based’ (appropriated from rap culture), and the aforementioned ‘centipede’. However, ‘cuck’ is the most important term, as it is important to each individual group. For example, cuck can be used within a racial context (by white supremacists), in a patriarchal context (by anti-progressive gamers), and to demean those seen as liberal (Squirrel).

The emergence of new words within communities is explored later in this research, but it is essential to understand the wide variety of groups that have found their way into The_Donald. Each group uses these words both for their own purposes and and directs them against those who they perceive as not being 'with' them.

2.3 Manosphere

The emergence of feminism over the past decades has afforded females more rights and power than has ever been the case previously. This empowerment of females has also given rise to a counterculture of men who argue that it is not women but men who are the true victims in society (Gilmore). Thus, the men’s rights movement (MRM) emerged as a reactionary group, created specifically to counter the feminist influence on society. Therefore, its primary goal is to silence and marginalize this feminist influence (Theriault). The reactionary nature of the MRM finds expression in discussions of issues such as false rape accusations, custody battles, and circumcision and abortion, to name but a few (Haenfler).

The Internet has played an increasingly important role in the emergence of the MRM from a fringe group to a well-represented entity on the World Wide Web. The Internet affords large groups of like-minded people the freedom to discuss their views by providing the infrastructure required for networks of blogs, websites, forums and other online platforms such as Reddit and Twitter; through these online networks, the Manosphere has gained popularity. Consequently, the Manosphere has become a global entity and,

while its members may never meet in person, it has become a significant movement that is still growing rapidly (Poland).

As mentioned previously, the Manosphere consists of numerous subgroups, all of which come from diverse backgrounds and have different opinions, with the exception of the most important connection, which is their resentment of feminism and women in general. Its boundaries, however, are loosely defined and can often shift, as the various subgroups also compete with each other.

Before addressing specific manospheric communities, it may prove helpful to provide a basic overview of the origins of the Manosphere, focusing on its proliferation in the online world.

2.3.1 Origin of the men´s rights movement and the Manosphere

The origin of the MRM stemmed from the men’s liberation movement (MLM) of the 1970s. Ironically, the MLM drew heavily from feminist concepts. The latter’s critique of the roles played by the female sex and traditional views of what a women should be also spoke to some men. The push for female liberation acted as a springboard for men to also vouch for the liberation of men. Therefore, the MLM was born ‘in a parallel critique of the male sex role’ (Kimmel ‘From men's liberation to men’s rights: angry white men in the US’). In this critique, the general consensus was that, if women were to be imprisoned in the home (in accordance with the traditional role of a housewife), men were being banished from the home. The traditional view was that a man should be the breadwinner of the family; men were supposed to work, as their only capacity to nurture was through financial means (Kimmel, ‘From men's liberation to men’s rights: angry white men in the US’).

As the MLM critiqued these institutionalized gender roles, feminism moved from a critique of gender roles towards a critique of male behaviour. This also marked a shift in the form of critique: While previous criticism focussed on abstract ideological constructions, the new critique of male behaviour focussed on actual men acting in accordance with traditional roles. As this shift continued, feminists attempted to make the discussion personal by addressing the elements of rape, harassment, and domestic violence within the framework of gender dynamics; the MLM subsequently diverged. Instead of making the debate personal, the MLM opted to continue arguing that gender roles were equally oppressive to men and shifted the focus to institutionalized instances in which men were discriminated against (Kimmel, ‘From men's liberation to men’s rights: angry white men in the US’).

During this shift, the defining questions for the movement were ‘what causes the male malaise - why are men unhappy?’ According to Kimmel, the ways in which different groups of men attempted to resolve this

question provided a structure for the contemporary MRM (‘From men's liberation to men’s rights: angry white men in the US’).

Mythopoetic men’s movement This movement, based on the work of Robert Bly, Michael Meade, and Sam Keen, focused on encouraging men to search for ‘deep masculinity’. Its leaders claimed that mass consumer society had diluted the authenticity of the male experience (Kimmel, Angry white men: American masculinity at the end of an era, 105-06). Mythopoets were gender separatist and were neither feminist nor anti-feminist. They considered themselves to be masculinists, of men, for men, and by men (Lilly 37).

Pro-feminist men To pro-feminist men, women’s demand to enter the labour force meant that men were no longer forced to base their identities solely on success in the workplace. Women’s desire to balance their work and family lives consequently meant that men were able to reconnect with their children and partners. Pro-feminist men believed that the feminist goal of complete equality between the sexes would not necessarily represent a negative outcome for men but rather a very positive change (Kimmel, ‘From men's liberation to men’s rights: angry white men in the US’).

Men’s rights Finally, a third group that embraced what its members referred to as men’s rights emerged. According to Kelly, the group may initially have shared the critique of the oppressive male role. However, as time went by, the group shifted towards celebrating all things masculine, which in turn led to an almost fetishised ideal of the traditional masculine role. The group’s members felt as if they did not need liberating from traditional masculinity but instead needed liberating from those who were attempting to liberate them. The group believed that traditional masculinity, instead of being the problem, was now in need of restoration. Feminism and women had become the sole causes of men’s malaise. The group’s members argued that feminism had transformed normal healthy women into ‘gold-digging consumerist harridans’ (Kimmel, Angry white men: American masculinity at the end of an era, 111).

As far as the Men’s rights activists (MRAs) are concerned, the real victims are men; therefore, they have developed organizations around men’s resentment of feminism. These organizations are focussed on equality and ending sexism, which is why they fought against feminism. From the perspective of MRAs, the fight against feminism is justified, since, according to them, feminism actually gave women more freedom than men, while men were still expected to initiate sexual relationships, go to war, and to pay for child support (Kimmel, ‘From men's liberation to men’s rights: angry white men in the US’). This

resentment created an interesting contrast, as (white) males still wield most of the power and control in society but nonetheless feel victimized.

2.3.2 Contemporary men’s rights

This feeling of victimization laid the foundation for the contemporary Manosphere. Furthermore, according to Kimmel, three specific social shifts have transformed the members of the MRM, and therefore also the Manosphere, into a considerably more angry and polarized ensemble of men. First, economic shifts in the United States have changed America from a society consisting largely of middleclass families into one consisting of the super-rich and everyone else, thus also undermining the position and identity of middle-class men, which is closely linked to employment and success. Consequently, these middle-class men are left disillusioned and bitter.

Second, the movement has also gained legitimacy as a result of its connection to the fathers’ rights movement. The father’s rights movement was founded to provide fathers with support and advocacy in legal proceedings involving custody and divorce, primarily since American custody and divorce laws undeniably favour women. For example, Hughes states that ‘across a wide range of jurisdictions the estimates are that mothers receive primary custody 68-88% of the time, fathers receive primary custody 814%, and equal residential custody is awarded in only 2-6% of the cases’. In this case, the inequality between men and women is undeniable, which has helped to fuel the MRM’s discourse.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the development of the Internet in its current form has ‘fuelled websites and blogs that keep the conversation going and the blood boiling’ (Kimmel). This development is essentially what created the Manosphere. Prior to the emergence of the Internet, it was never possible to group various movements together, but the Internet has made this possible. Furthermore, as is explained later in this thesis, the Internet also provides a platform upon which men can say what they want, without restriction. The combination of anonymity and online disinhibition creates an environment in which it is not necessary to be politically correct and where these men can release their pent-up frustrations.

2.3.3 The Manosphere online

Today, the MRM exists both online and offline; however, as a direct result of the development of the Internet, it has become increasingly prominent online. There are factors that distinguish the online and offline movements from each other; most importantly, the Internet bestows upon the online movement qualities that cannot be found in its offline counterpart. The Manosphere is heterogenous and vaguely defined, without a leader or central force that regulates all of its subgroups. It is possible for anyone with a working Internet connection to join the debate and add to, contest, and discuss any topic.

As Blake states, for some, the Manosphere is a place where users can air legitimate grievances concerning bias in family courts or the sexual abuse suffered by men. However, it has also created a network of sites and actors that have taken this ideology in a disturbing direction. To this, Blake adds that, on sites such as 4chan and Reddit, men’s rights forums are a cesspool of misogynistic and anti-feminist vitriol. An example of this can be found in Gamergate, which refers to an episode in which women in the video game industry were the victims of doxing and both rape and death threats under the guise of exposing ‘unethical collusion between press and feminists, progressives and social critics’.

Sites such as Reddit and 4chan can function as useful platforms for opening up discussion; however, as was demonstrated during the Gamergate incident, they can also prove to be powerful platforms for organizing hateful brigading. Friedman likened sites such as these to ‘a public square for MRAs, a kind of combination of locker room, group therapy and organizing’. Certainly, compared to blogs, where content is created by either one author or a group of people, sites such as these are more open to discussion (Lilly 40). For example, Reddit’s infrastructure allows every user to post and comment on posts, after which other users can up/downvote their posts or comments. Posts and comments with high scores8 then gain visibility, whilst comments and posts with low scores become less visible and may even disappear.

Reddit users are free to choose their own user names and can remain completely anonymous if they so desire, which reinforces the perception that anyone can say anything, without restriction. Another interesting and defining feature of Reddit is the concept of subreddits, which are contained communities within the site. These subreddits are completely free to access and easily created. Each subreddit can have its own set of rules, as long as it follows Reddit’s guidelines, and the responsibility for enforcing these rules lies upon the subreddit’s moderators.

The Manosphere is well represented on Reddit, with numerous communities having their own specific subreddits. The following section will provide an overview of a number of the most prominent manospheric subreddits.

2.3.4 Manospheric communities on Reddit

There are numerous communities that belong to the Manosphere, with each specializing in its own niche. In the following section, the most prominent manospheric subreddits are described. Each subreddit has its own guidelines, vernacular, and philosophy; therefore it is important to view them as individual subreddits.

8 The amount of upvotes minus the amount of downvotes.

2.3.4.1 /r/TheRedPill

According to TheRedPill’s own sidebar, it is a place for ‘discussion of sexual strategy in a culture increasingly lacking a positive identity for men’ (Reddit). In other words, TheRedPill is a community for (aspiring) PUAs to exchange advice and their experiences of interacting with women.

Philosophy TheRedPill believes that Western culture has become feminist; in particular, its members feel that the sexual marketplace has shifted away from what was taught to them by their parents, television, and the church. As a consequence, those who participate on this subreddit believe that men have lost their identities due to the feminist frame that they perceive as existing around public discourse (u/pk-atheist).

TheRedPill attempts to make men aware of the notion that, even though women are rightfully seeking happiness, men should know that they no longer have the influence they used to. They therefore need to make use of evolutionary psychology to once again gain the upper hand. Furthermore, men who participate on TheRedPill believe that ‘feminism is a sexual strategy’ that aims to place women in the best positions that they are able to find, to select and to determine when they would like to change mates, and to gather the most resources that they can individually achieve.

TheRedPill’s focus According to TheRedPill’s philosophy, to counter feminism as a sexual strategy, men need to employ their own sexual strategy. This strategy consist of three parts, which are explained below:

1. Mastering Game Game is stated to be an important aspect of one’s sexual strategy. Even though a number of TheRedPill’s subscribers come from less militant PUA subreddits, such as /r/seduction, TheRedPill redefines the concept of ‘game’. As their philosophy states, within TheRedPill’s framework, game is viewed in a manner different to that of similar subreddits. /u/pk-atheist holds that most sex and relationship forums tend to feminize discussions of game by using politically correct statements in case a female should chance to read then. In this regard, the focus of TheRedPill is on overturning the female imperative that has overtaken game and once again creating a male imperative. 2. Defining the strategy The second part of the strategy consists of defining what exactly ‘good game’ is. A considerable amount of discussion within TheRedPill therefore consists of discussion of evolutionary psychology. As TheRedPill states, understanding this psychology not only helps with gaining attention from females, it also benefits future relationships and the likelihood of having children

and maximizing one’s own happiness in life. Therefore, defining a strategy that goes beyond focusing on 'good game' is an important aspect of TheRedPill’s discourse. 3. Acknowledging Reality Finally, the third part of the strategy involves acknowledging reality. Subscribers are encouraged to challenge the realities that they perceive and to discuss whether their beliefs line up with the world that they live in. The most important takeaway from this aspect of the strategy is to acknowledge everything, no matter how good or bad it may be. According to TheRedPill, acknowledging everything is the key to becoming happy and successful.

In short, TheRedPill is a predominately male community, the members of which believe that the only way to restore a positive identity for men is to accept the fact that a feminist frame has overtaken public discourse. To counter this, they hold that they should make use of evolutionary psychology to once again gain the upper hand.

2.3.4.2 /r/MGTOW

Another manospheric subreddit is ‘Men Going Their Own Way’. This is a community whose members believe there is a systematic bias in favour of women and therefore do not engage in contact with women in any shape or form whatsoever. According to their sidebar on Reddit, they are ‘[m]en going our own way by forging our own identities and paths to self-defined success; cutting through collective ideas of what a man is’ (u/redpillschool). This community boasts over 50,000 users on Reddit, and there are also websites, such as MGTOW.com, that are dedicated to this cause (Gander).

Philosophy Members of the MGTOW community believes that the movement is a ‘statement of self ownership; where the individual's sovereignty needs to be preserved above all else’. This essentially means that they believe that men should only think about their own well-being, which, according to them, can only be achieved by completely disconnecting from the other sex (MGTOW). The subreddit is filled with posts ranging from memes about feminist society to encouraging men to leave their wives or users explaining why they no longer have an interest in meeting women.

The general consensus in the subreddit was founded within meninism, which is essentially a counterculture to feminism that holds that women’s rights actively disadvantage men. The users do not necessarily go out of their way to change the status quo, as user Blue Skies explains; they simply opt out of what they believe society expects them to do. For example, for MGTOW users, dating, getting married and having children are surefire ways of becoming victims of divorce, court battles over child custody, and alimony payments. Therefore, they chose to simply not follow that path.

Focus The main focus of MGTOW is on making men aware of the movement’s cause and educating them on what they feel is the truth. As a consequence, large sections of the subreddit focus on advising potential new ‘recruits’ on how they should proceed. Similarly to TheRedPill, users of MGTOW also believe that acknowledging reality, however hard and painful doing so may be, is the only path to happiness and success.

2.3.4.3 /r/MensRights

The subreddit /r/MensRights is another subreddit that belongs to the Manosphere. According to its sidebar, this subreddit is a ‘place for those who wish to discuss men’s rights and the ways said rights are infringed upon’. This community seeks to promote honest discourse regarding male issues, including issues associated with custody, alimony, and education. The users of /r/MensRights are not exclusively limited to male subscribers, as there are also females who believe that discrimination against men is inherent in Western society.

Philosophy According to its FAQ page, this subreddit’s philosophy and intentions seem to be split between two different camps. Some users treat /r/MensRights as a safe haven to vent their thoughts and views, that does not tolerate disagreement. Others seek to organize themselves around issues specific to the MRM. According to the FAQs, these users argue that /r/MensRights should be used to start lobby groups intended to address the problems that the subreddit is concerned with. These problems are in line with the problems that MGTOW focuses on. For example, issues such as discrimination when it comes to child custody, false accusations of rape, and educational discrimination are identified as important topics within the MRM (u/MRmod3). Most importantly, /r/MensRights, according to its moderators, is a central place where people can discuss the issues that are important to them with other like-minded people.

Interestingly, while MGTOW can be considered a counterculture to feminism, MensRights is less staunch in its approach. Its members state that the MRM is pro-equality and that there is no agreement on what is considered feminism, as the definition thereof changes based on who one asks about it. Therefore, the MRM states that it supports equality and social rights for all genders, but that it focuses on the oftenneglected needs of men, boys, and their children.

Lastly, the MRM believes, or rather hopes, that one day there may no longer be a need for gender-specific civil rights movements. The belief that what is right or wrong should be determined by open discourse between all parties, which is the ultimate goal of the MRM.

2.3.4.4 /r/Incels

The subscribers of the now-banned subreddit /r/Incels (short for involuntary celibacy) defined an incel as someone who is at least 21 years old and has not been with a romantic partner in six months (Haenfler). Incels feel as though the world owes them sex; furthermore, they believe that being denied sex by women is a form of oppression (Futrelle, ‘WTF is a MGTOW? A Glossary’). As many of these users struggle with anxiety around women and other phobias, the fear of being rejected often creates bitterness towards women (Lilly 49).

Philosophy While the majority of communities within the Manosphere believe that women should not be superior, or in some cases equal, to men, the incels believe that all women are vapid and only judge people based on their looks, even though they actively objectify and vilify women themselves.

A typical incel would consider himself to be irredeemably ugly and unwanted by women, which, according to them, is the reason why they are unable to engage in romantic or sexual relationships (Haenfler). Consequently, they also feel as though there is no way to improve themselves enough to be wanted by women, as, in their eyes, women only care about looks. In the minds of incels, women are dumb and shallow and will only look at outside appearances. Like the previously mentioned subreddits within the Manosphere, such as TheRedPill and MGTOW, incels perceive feminism and female empowerment negatively. From their perspective, feminism is the reason why women are not choosing to have sex with them; therefore, they reject it. The irony of the incel community is that they shame women for having sex whilst also expecting the same women to have sex with them. As the community grew larger, it also developed a specific vocabulary consisting of various different terms and definitions (Lilly).

Vocabulary A characteristic of online subcultures is the manner in which they create unique slang within their own specific communities and sometimes also share this slang with other subcultures. The incel community also has a unique vocabulary. For example, incels have a word for attractive men who have sex with numerous women. They refer to such men as ‘Chads’, who are essentially the personification of what incels would like to be. The female counterpart of a ‘Chad’ is a ‘Stacy’, who, in the eyes of the incels, is unattainable, which is why they despise her. Furthermore, they use other derogatory terms to describe women. For example, ‘femoid’ is a derogatory term used by incels to describe females as being less than human.

PART III - METHODOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK

2.4 Digital Methods

In order to answer the research question, it is necessary to employ digital methods. The research question is as follows:

To what extent can empirical research prove that a migration of users has occurred from manospheric subreddits to more general Alt-Right subreddits such as /r/The_Donald?

Considering that both the manospheric and Alt-Right communities primarily exist online, it is essential to make use of digital research methods. Digital research has become increasingly important in the social sciences and has also been adopted by sociologists, computer scientists, media scholars, statisticians, and others. However, the widespread acceptance of digital research is also subject to disagreement concerning the form and direction it should take (Marres 94). In light of this debate, Richard Rogers (The end of the virtual: Digital methods 1) explains the distinction between the development of ‘natively digital’ methods and the ‘digitization’ of methods. Supporters of natively digital methods argue that digital technologies create the possibility or even the necessity of creating completely new methods, taking advantage of innovations such as digital infrastructures, devices, and practices (R. Rogers, Digital methods 19). Supporters of the digitization of methods emphasise the need for continuity in methodological development across media and technology. These supporters argue that contemporary digital data and techniques are similar to their pre-digital counterparts and therefore also argue that the most important challenge lies in implementing existing methods in digital settings (Marres 94). This raises an important question concerning whether existing methods should be translated into the digital setting or if new methods should be developed using the affordances that digital technologies provide.

Rogers states that the concept of natively digital emphasizes what he refers to as ‘medium-specificity’, a term that highlights the material and socio-technical qualities of the technologies used to implement methods (The end of the Virtual 11). Rogers states that these qualities make a difference in the knowledge gained. For example, a study in which people are interviewed about their social networks will not generate the same results as a study that employs hyperlink analysis (Marres 95).

Therefore, a natively digital approach to research begins with analysing the possibilities that exist within digital networked technologies (for example, using Google’s Pagerank algorithm to analyse the prominence of sources in public discourse) and subsequently using these methods in a manner that is useful for social research (Weltevrede 26). In other words, this approach to research investigates the digital from the inside out by applying the features of digital infrastructures to social research.

The digitization of methods is essentially the inversion of a natively digital approach, which approaches the digital from the outside in. In other words, the digitization of methods implements traditional social methods such as discourse analysis in digital research. This type of research does not reject the possibility of methodological innovation, but it does question the importance of striving to create new methods (Marres 96). Marres provides an example of the digitization of methods in the form of the Reading the Riots project, in which Twitter data were analysed and visualised after riots erupted across the UK. This project can be considered as one of the first research undertakings to use Twitter to analyse a societal phenomenon. While this research made use of various methodological innovations, its authors did not claim to have developed a new method; rather, they claimed that their methodology represented a ‘combination of computational tools and more established content analysis methods’ (Marres 96).

As the example above demonstrates, research can involve a combination of the two extremes, as studies have combined elements from both methods. As the above-mentioned study indicates, analysing the emergence of certain slang words within communities is a well-established methodology in social research (Beatrice; Sornig; Blank and Koch). However, while many researchers have not made use of online techniques, this research makes use of online techniques in its analysis (such as using databases containing Reddit comments and posts to identify, analyse, and visualise possible migrations between communities). 2.5 Linguistic innovation

As stated previously, a number of slang terms are frequently employed on Reddit. This occurs both within the Manosphere and the Alt-Right (as well as nearly all other communities). These types of terms often start as obscure slang terms that are used by smaller communities, with the use of ‘Chad’ by the incel community serving as an example. After certain words gain enough traction in their respective subreddits, they begin to cross subreddits. This can be explained by the fact that certain users subscribe to numerous subreddits and may use terms that originate from various subreddits. Consequently, should they find such a term entertaining or relevant, people posting on other subreddits may start using it, after which the cycle begins anew.

Therefore, it is not surprising that numerous glossaries have been created to explain the terms used by AltRight and manospheric communities. These terms can be fairly self-explanatory, such as using ‘alpha’ and ‘beta’ to describe a male's personality; an alpha is a socially dominant male, whereas a beta is a less socially dominant individual. However, such terms can also be completely obscure or totally stripped of their original meanings. Take, for example, ‘dindu (nuffin)’9, which is derived from the phrase ‘didn’t do

9 A pejorative term used to mock Blacks that commit crimes, and the excuses that's made for them. Derived from wailing family members, usually mentally unstable mothers, that claim that they "didn't do anything wrong". (Urban dictionary, http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=dindu%20nuffin)

(nothing)’ and is used as a noun to denounce black people as being inherently stupid and violent. Another example is ‘the Carousel’, a manospheric term describing the period of a woman’s life between the ages of 18 and 30, during which they are believed to have as much sex as possible with alpha males in a hypergamous manner.

2.5.1 Diffusion of innovation

To assess how these slang terms become accepted and can even become popular over time, a number of factors and theories can be used. As Maybaum (152) states, the mechanisms that drive language change, particularly the process by which innovative variants of words appear and diffuse across a population, have been a topic of major concern for sociolinguists. Furthermore, questions related to this phenomenon have been explored from various perspectives. According to Labov (186), at least one finding can be considered consistent: The diffusion of innovative variants through a linguistic system will form an Sshaped curve over time.

Interestingly, S-shaped curves have also been observed in the field of innovation diffusion research. Innovation diffusion research is an interdisciplinary field within the social sciences that explores the rate at which innovative concepts and technologies spread through social systems. Everett Rogers found that, numerous other non-linguistic innovations, including political, technological, and medical, also show Sshaped curves with respect to time (243).

Thus, the similarities between language innovation research and innovation diffusion research may suggest that language innovation may be explained using the same mechanisms used to account for nonlinguistic innovations (Maybaum 152).

Take, for example, Akrich, Callon, and Latour´s study on the key to success in innovation; while its focus lay mostly on technological innovation, some of its assumptions can be adopted in this research, as this study attempts to trace the possible migration of users associated with the Manosphere and thus also their linguistic innovations. The question of how these terms gain popularity then arises, which can be answered with a quote from Akrich, Callon, and Latour: ‘Any innovation presupposes an environment which is favorable to it’ (195). In other words, an innovation can only succeed once it is placed in an environment that helps it to succeed. If that environment does not allow for success, the innovation will fail. Certain slang terms originating from the Manosphere (e.g. Chad) would have never succeeded in many other subreddits. This can be explained by there being no need for a term to describe attractive men who frequently have sexual intercourse with a multitude of women in other contexts. Akrich et al. (197) also state that, if an innovation succeeds, it is because it has met a certain demand. In the case of this

study, it may prove to be interesting to identify which specific terms originating from the Manosphere found their way into the Alt-Right and what caused them to be adopted.

As stated above, in order for an innovation to be adopted, the environment needs to be favourable to it; its advantages and disadvantages will then be assessed by its possible users. These advantages and disadvantages are completely based on the users’ requirements, which depend on their expectations, interests, and the problems that they are faced with. The speed by which an innovation is diffused can be explained with reference to how well-suited it is to addressing a problem or need. As Akrich et al. (202) explain, innovations can be seen as infectious phenomena that persuade increasing numbers of users to adopt them.

In the case of subreddits belonging to the Manosphere and the Alt-Right, the use of lingo can be explained by considering a number of factors. The use of specific lingo can be serve as a ‘secret handshake’ that allows users to deter outsiders. Furthermore, it can be used to circumvent Reddit’s hate-speech policy, which has become more restrictive over time. For example, in 2015, Reddit´s policy was changed in order to reduce the number of explicitly racist subreddits. The policy change was announced by Reddit’s current CEO:

Today, in addition to applying Quarantines, we are banning a handful of communities that exist solely to annoy other redditors, prevent us from improving Reddit, and generally make Reddit worse for everyone else. Our most important policy over the last ten years has been to allow just about anything so long as it does not prevent others from enjoying Reddit for what it is: the best place online to have truly authentic conversations (Spez).

Following this policy change, Chandrasekheran et al. (17) found that users of these subreddits either fled to other platforms or actually started posting fewer explicitly hateful comments. However, this could only be applied to a specific set of explicitly hateful words. Therefore, the use of lingo can help to circumvent the policy of Reddit (e.g. the usage of ‘dindu’ to substitute for ‘nigger’).

To use an example drawn from the traditional literature concerning the diffusion of technological innovations, consider Latour’s example of a hotel key, which may help to explain the adoption of linguistic innovations. In this example, Latour (105-110) describes the case of a hotel manager who wishes his customers to leave their keys at the front desk. At first, the manager puts up a sign reminding the customers to leave their keys, which does not seem to have the desired effect. However, as a result of the manager adding large metal weights to the keys, the customers become happy to leave their keys at the front desk, as they have become cumbersome. Latour illustrates this with a figure, reproduced below:

Figure 2: Displacement by technical innovation from: Latour, Bruno. "Technology is society made durable." The Sociological Review 38.1 (1990): 103-131.

The situation starts with a manager giving keys to his customers; even though the manager would like the customers to leave their keys at the desk, none of them do. The manager then adds a vocal reminder to leave the keys, leading some of the customers to comply. However, this still does not lead to the majority of the customers complying. In situation 3, the manager also adds a sign, which in turn makes more customers comply. Finally, when weights are added to the keys, nearly all of the customers drop their socalled anti-programmes (i.e. the reasons for not leaving their keys).

Even though this example was used to demonstrate displacement by a technical object, in a sense it can also apply to the use of slang in online communities. In such a case, it starts off with somebody using a word, which others may or may not start using as well. In the beginning, it is possible that no-one will adopt the term; however, a number of factors may influence this outcome. For example, people may start using a term because they deem it to be funny to some extent, leading to other people adopting it. Another factor may be the need for a particular term intended to deter outsiders, as they will not understand it, which leads to even more people adopting the term in question. Finally, the usage of a slang term to circumvent Reddit’s guidelines can be seen as a reason why people may drop their anti-programmes. In this example, users slowly start accepting a term, leading to it becoming a norm.

3 Research

In this chapter, Google’s Bigquery is used to analyse Felipe Hoffa’s database of Reddit comments and posts. The first part consists of an analysis of the top 300 users per subreddit, identified by totalling their comment score in each subreddit (from November 2015 until December 2017). After identifying the top 300 users, the number of comments they post per subreddit can be extracted. These data can then be used

to assess whether the top 300 users of each specific subreddit demonstrate any migration toother subreddits; however, it is important to note that this analysis focuses exclusively on the subreddits discussed in the theoretical framework.

The second part consists of an analysis of community-specific slang terms, focussing on terms found in glossaries on the Internet. These glossaries are often community-specific; however, there may be some overlap in the terms between communities. It may also prove interesting to assess whether terms originating in subreddits from the Manosphere also find their way into /r/The_Donald and vice versa.

The timeframe for the linguistic analysis of migrating slang terms is narrowed down using the results obtained in the first part. These results indicate if and when users also post on other subreddits. For example, if there is a period during which some migration of users occurs, that period can be chosen as a starting point for the linguistic analysis. The timeframes were chosen based on both the popularity of and activity on each subreddit. To assess this, the website Reddit Metrics (http://redditmetrics.com/) is used. The timeframes are presented below. As can be seen, the time periods in which the subreddits started growing are very different; however, considering that the focus of this research is on on slang migration to The_Donald, the date that The_Donald started growing is essential to this analysis. Furthermore, the analysis starts a few months before the start of The_Donald’s growth. The analysis ends at December 2017, as this is also the final month registered in the BigQuery database.

Table 1: Overview of timeframe analysis

BORN END ANALYSIS START OF START GROWTH ANALYSIS

The_Donald JUN 2015 FEB 2016 NOV 2015 DEC 2017

Incels AUG 2013 AUG 2017 NOV 2015 DEC 2017

TheRedPill JUN 2011 JAN 2014 NOV 2015 DEC 2017

MensRights MAR 2008 OCT 2013 NOV 2015 DEC 2017

MGTOW OCT 2012 JAN 2016 NOV 2015 DEC 2017

3.1 Subreddit-specific user analysis

To begin this research, it may prove interesting to identify the top 300 users on each subreddit, starting with The_Donald. The users’ comment scores are identified, after which a list of the users with the highest comment scores is created. The decision to consider the top 300 is influenced by the fact that the time period chosen is relatively lengthy. Considering that some users may have stopped posting while still being among the top 300 posters, the number of 300 still provides a large enough sample for the purposes of this research. To account for bots, the top 350 users were identified, after which bots were removed manually. As many bots on Reddit explicitly have the word ‘bot’ in their names, they were manually filtered out. Following this, the users were placed in a BigQuery table, which can be used to both assess the words that they use and the other subreddits they post on.

3.1.1 The_Donald’s top 300 users’ comments on subreddits

As stated previously, the top 300 users’ comments can be analysed, for example to identify which subreddits they post on. For the purposes of this study, only comments in the aforementioned subreddits are included (TheRedPill, MGTOW, MensRights, Incels, and The_Donald). The number of comments per subreddit were found using Query 3; the results were then visualized using RawGraphs.10 RawGraphs creates streamgraphs that visually depict the number of comments per subreddit. The streamgraph created for The_Donald is displayed below:

10 The tool used is found at: http://app.rawgraphs.io/

Figure 3: Streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 The_Donald users, per subreddit This graph clearly indicates an overwhelming number of comments from the top 300 users on The_Donald, suggesting that there is no obvious migration to different subreddits where The_Donald’s top users post on. However, at the end of the tail of the graph, MGTOW appears as a subreddit where The_Donald’s users post on. However, this graph is not necessarily ideal when it comes to determining if The_Donald's users comment on other subreddits, as the number of comments on The_Donald overpowers all other subreddits. To solve this problem, RawGraphs also offers an expanded graph, which makes other subreddits more visible. This graph is presented below:

Figure 4: Expanded streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 The_Donald users, per subreddit Even though The_Donald is still extremely prevalent in this graph, it is interesting to note that the top 300 users of The_Donald started off by posting on MensRights and seem to have migrated towards The_Donald as the subreddit became more popular. In addition, the slow increase in the number of comments on MGTOW is reflected in the bottom-right corner.

3.1.2 TheRedPill’s top 300 users’ comments on subreddits

TheRedPill yields a different picture than that of The_Donald, with subreddits other than TheRedPill appearing more prominently. In the streamgraph, it becomes clear that, while TheRedPill still is the most commented-on subreddit, TheRedPill’s top 300 users also post relatively frequently on The_Donald, MGTOW, and on MensRights, albeit less frequently. The number of posts on Incels is negligible, which can be explained by the differences in philosophy between the two subreddits.

Figure 5: Streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 TheRedPill users, per subreddit

The expanded graph presents no real differences from the other graph; however, it does indicate that comments on TheRedPill have become relatively less frequent, while the number of comments on The_Donald, and particularly on MGTOW, have steadily increased.

Figure 6: Expanded streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 TheRedPill users, per subreddit

3.1.3 MGTOW’s top 300 users’ comments on subreddits

The streamgraph below displays the number of comments from the top 300 users of MGTOW. This graph reflects a steady increase in the number of comments; it also indicates that MGTOW users comment on other subreddits, including The_Donald, TheRedPill, and MensRights. Again, it shows users moving from posting on subreddits belonging to the Manosphere to also posting on The_Donald. While the top users continued to post on MGTOW most frequently, the graph does indicate that some migration occurs.

Figure 7: Streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 MGTOW users, per subreddit

The expanded graph below essentially shows the same phenomenon; however, as was the case with the previously analysed subreddits, there is a sudden increase in posts on The_Donald as the election was nearing its end and a great deal of controversy arose around Hillary Clinton. However, since then, it seems that MGTOW’s top posters started to focus on the MGTOW subreddit once again, as the number of comments in other subs began to decline.

Figure 8: Expanded streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 MGTOW users, per subreddit

3.1.4 MensRights’ top 300 users’ comments on subreddits

The streamgraph for MensRights is also similar to those of the other subreddits. It shows that this subreddit’s top users mostly post on MensRights; however, they also post in other subreddits, with The_Donald and MGTOW being the mostly commented-on other subreddits. TheRedPill occupies a marginal place, but it was the first other subreddit that users commented on.

Figure 9: Streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 MensRights users, per subreddit The expanded graph indicates much the same and again shows a slight increase in the number of comments on The_Donald around October 2016. However, it seems that the focus of the users remains on MensRights.

Figure 10: Expanded streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 MensRights users, per subreddit

3.1.5 Incels’ top 300 users’ comments on subreddits

The graph for Incels provides some interesting results: In some ways, it is similar to The_Donald, with its top users posting almost exclusively on /r/Incels. Furthermore, it seems as though most of the top users on Incels left the platform after the subreddit was banned in November 2017. Instead of possibly migrating to other subreddits, its users most likely migrated to Voat or even created their own site (https://incels.net/).

Figure 11: Streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 Incels users, per subreddit The expanded graph indicates that Incels’ top users started off posting on different subreddits (namely TheRedPill, MensRights, MGTOW and The_Donald). However, as the Incel subreddit grew in popularity, they almost completely switched to posting on it. Interestingly, the Incels graph does not show an increase in October 2016, which was the case for the other subreddits. This may be explained by the Incels choosing to reside within their own environment and isolating themselves. MGTOW does show up after the ban, but the number of comments is only 295, compared to the 42,735 posts on Incels the month before.

Figure 12: Expanded streamgraph of the number of comments made by the top 300 Incels users, per subreddit 3.2 Subreddit-specific slang analysis

Another approach to assessing possible migration from the Manosphere into the Alt-Right is tracking subreddit- or subculture-specific language from one subreddit to another. For example, there are numerous glossaries that explain the lingo used by certain groups. For the purposes of this study, the Alt-Reality lexicon, which provides an extensive list of both slang words from the Manosphere11 and Alt-Right12, is used.

Using these lexicons, it is possible to count the number of comments on Reddit in which these terms are used. To achieve this, a query (Query 4) was created to identify comments featuring these terms. As some of these words may also be used within a sentence, it is not helpful to search for comments with these terms only. Therefore, the query made use of BigQuery’s ‘%word%’ operator. This operator allows prefixed and appended letters to be found; furthermore, it allows the string to appear anywhere in the comment.

11 Lexicon found at: http://altrightlexicon.referata.com/wiki/Category:Manosphere

12 Lexicon found at: http://altrightlexicon.referata.com/wiki/Category:Alt-Right

This approach yields the total number of comments that contain the set strings. This is useful in assessing whether the usage of all Alt-Right or Manosphere linguistic innovations increased in a manner similar to the increase in comments made on The_Donald by the top 300 users of manospheric subreddits (this was confirmed by the sudden spike in October, which is explained later). It may also prove to be interesting to identify the number of comments made by the top 300 users of a subreddit that utilize specific slang.

The period chosen for this analysis ranges from June 2016 to February 2017. As the spike of comments started at the end of October, the analysis starts three months before October and ends three months after February.

Furthermore, as the number of total comments may also vary by month, it is helpful to also count the number of comments that these users normally post per month. Analysing the amount of slang used in comments compared to the total yields a percentage; this is done with Query 5.

3.2.1 Right slang used by the top 300 users on TheRedPill

The top 300 users of TheRedPill were analysed based on the queries explained above. The graph below indicates that the number of comments containing a form of Alt-Right slang made by the top 300 users of TheRedPill grew considerably in September, October, and November when compared to previous months. This increase was present in every subreddit; however, it was less pronounced on MGTOW and MensRights. When considering the total amount of comments containing slang, the increase is also clear to see. However, as can also be seen in the figure, the amount of slang usage quickly drops after those months. This is a logical consequence of the top 300 users posting less frequently than in the months before.

Figure 13: TheRedPill - Amount of Alt-Right slang used per subreddit

Therefore, another analysis is conducted, in which the percentage of comments with slang is compared to the total number of comments made. This graph is presented below; however, incels are excluded, as the

43 Analysis of the Alt- number of comments made by TheRedPill users on /r/Incels was negligible. As can be seen, these results present a slightly different view than that provided by the graph above. The same increases are seen; however, the decrease after November is considerably weaker than the decrease indicated on the graph above. Furthermore, when looking at the total, the temporary increase is less significant. Furthermore, it does not seem that the average amount of Alt-Right slang usage increased permanently, as the percentages remain nearly the same.

Figure 14: TheRedPill - Amount of Alt-Right slang used per subreddit (as percentage of total)

3.2.2 Right slang used by the top 300 users on MGTOW

When considering the amount of Alt-Right slang employed by MGTOW users, it seems that there is an increase, particularly during the period in which the users from MGTOW start posting more frequently on The_Donald. However, once they stop posting on The_Donald as frequently, the amount of slang they use also decreases significantly in all other subreddits. Therefore, it seems as though the amount of slang used is directly linked to the amount of time that they spent on a subreddit such as The_Donald.

Figure 15: MGTOW - Amount of Alt-Right slang used per subreddit

The graph below presents the normalized number of comments containing slang, in percentages, compared to the total number of comments. The results from the Incel group are excluded again, as the number of comments is negligible. In MGTOW itself, the percentage of slang comments compared to the total remains nearly the same. Interestingly, the graph does indicate that nearly 41% of the comments made on The_Donald contained slang. The specific language employed by users on each subreddit is analysed later in this research, as there may be a difference in discourse between subreddits; alternatively, the discourse may remain the same. However, when analysing the total, it does not seem that the spike in comments containing slang on The_Donald led to an increase in the use of slang in the long term.

45 Analysis of the Alt-

Figure 16: MGTOW - Amount of Alt-Right slang used per subreddit (as percentage of total).

3.2.3 Right slang used by the top 300 users on MensRights

From the graph below, it becomes clear that MensRights is a fairly self-contained subreddit, with its top 300 users mainly posting on MensRights. However, there is an increase in Alt-Right slang on the majority of the subreddits that these users post on. Furthermore, the increase in slang usage is also significant on The_Donald. Intriguingly, the highest peak occurs in January 2017, instead of three months prior, as was the case with the other subreddits.

Figure 17: MensRights - Amount of Alt-Right slang used per subreddit

Comparing the amount of slang used with the number of total comments yields a similar result as that obtained for the subreddits discussed previously, as the percentage does not change significantly for MensRights; however, there is an increase in the percentage of slang usage on The_Donald.

47 Analysis of the Alt-

Figure 18: MensRights - Amount of Alt-Right slang used per subreddit (as percentage of total)

3.2.4 Right slang used by the top 300 users on Incels

Finally, the Incel group was analysed, and even though its users post almost exclusively on /r/Incels, an increase in Alt-Right slang can be seen. However, this can also be explained by the fact that the subreddit became significantly larger and more active as the months went on.

Figure 19: Incels - Amount of Alt-Right slang used per subreddit

This increase in activity is reflected in the graph below, provided by Reddit Metrics. This sudden influx of subscribers may have also increased the amount of slang used, however, when compared to the total number of comments. The percentage of comments containing slang actually decreased significantly.

Figure 20: Subscriber growth of /r/Incels (Redditmetrics, http://redditmetrics.com/r/Incels)

49 Analysis of the Alt-

In the graph below, it becomes clear that the percentage of comments containing Alt-Right slang actually decreased. In the case of the incels, it seems as though they make use of some Alt-Right slang, but they may not necessarily use it in the same manner it is used on, for example, The_Donald.

Figure 21: Incels - Amount of Alt-Right slang used in /r/Incels (as percentage of total)

3.3 Discourse analysis

As the research above has demonstrated, there is evidence that subreddit users migrated towards Alt-Right subreddits. However, the use of slang, while increasing the number of comments containing slang, did not necessarily increase when compared to the total number of comments. It is not entirely clear whether the discourse of the top 300 users of a subreddit remains the same when commenting on other subreddits: Naturally, they will adapt to the community in which they are posting, but it may be the case that these users still comment on themes that are important on the subreddits that they are top users on.

Therefore, an analysis is conducted both of the words used on their preferred subreddits and their discourse on The_Donald. Using this approach, it may be possible to identify a possible migration of manospheric discourse into the Alt-Right, or vice versa.

A useful method for this analysis is creating word clouds, one for the subreddit on which the users post most frequently and one for their discourse on The_Donald. For the purposes of this analysis, the top 50 words used in a subreddit were extracted. Query 6 compares the number of times that a word is used in a specific subreddit compared to the full corpus; consequently, the words that are found are more specific to the subreddit in question. The word clouds were created with WordArt13 and do not repeat the same words in a single cloud; this was done to provide a clear image of the discourse within a subreddit.

In order to assess the general discourse on The_Donald, the first analysis is on the discourse of this subreddit’s top 300 users. To assess the discourse over a longer time period, the choice was made to create word clouds for three different months (2016-05, 2016-09, and 2017-01). These dates were chosen to reflect discourse before, during, and after the peak in October. Furthermore, the word clouds are presented side by side, by month. Furthermore, in the months in which the discourse seems to be similar in both subreddits, a number of comments are highlighted in order to assess whether those words are used in the same or in completely different contexts.

13 The tool used is found at: https://wordart.com/create 51

3.3.1 The_Donald discourse analysis

The word clouds belonging to The_Donald reflect a number of different themes. The word cloud for 2016-05 indicates that the majority of the discourse surrounds the election, Trump, and his competitors. Furthermore, it shows some Alt-Right slang terms, such as cuck and kek. The cloud also contains themes of Muslims and immigration. The word cloud for 2016-09 is slightly different, as the discourse seems to shift towards a number of different subjects. The words ‘sick’, ‘cough’, and ‘Parkinson’s’ seem to be aimed at Clinton’s alleged sickness, a rumour which was spread through a video produced by 2016 - 05 T _D Trump’s campaign, as well as a prolonged coughing fit that Hillary had during a debate. Furthermore, the FBI shows up in the word cloud, in addition to ‘crooked’ and ‘weasel’. This seems to be both a result of the investigation into Hillary Clinton that was on-going, as well as a ground reaction to Comey’s October surprise, which refers to Comey sending a letter to Congress stating that he wished to supplement the testimony that he gave earlier in that July concerning the FBI’s investigation into Hillary Clinton’s private email server. The letter confirmed the belief that the FBI did not fully investigate the controversy surrounding

Clinton. The term weasel seems to have been employed by the users 2016 - 09 T_D of this subreddit to denounce everyone allegedly involved in the email server scandal. Finally, the word cloud for 2017-01 displays similar themes to those of the previous months; however, a theme that appeared in the earlier word clouds becomes more explicit. This theme is the mainstream media (MSM) and the opinion of The_Donald’s users with regard to it. This is exemplified by the terms ‘Buzzfeed’, ‘fake news’, ‘CNN’, ‘FOX’, and ‘propaganda’. In the previous word clouds, most of those words are present, but they are not as prevalent as in the last month.

Furthermore, discourse surrounding the FBI and CIA is present, as 2016 - 09 T_D well as discourse surrounding Islam and ISIS.

An overview of the themes found in the word clouds is included in Appendix C.

Figure 22: Word clouds of discourse by top 300 The_Donald users (2016 -05, 201655-09 , 2017-01) 3.3.2 TheRedPill discourse analysis

The discourse of TheRedPill’s top 300 users was assessed, as depicted in the figure below. As can be seen in the word clouds for 2016-05, the discourse in TheRedPill mainly focussed on typical redpill themes, including ‘sex’ and ‘gender,’ with negative connotations towards women (exemplified by ‘slut’, ‘bitches’, and ‘cheat’). However, considering the word cloud on the right, the discourse, while focussing more on religion and politics, still contains words typically found on TheRedPill (exemplified by ‘men’, ‘women’, and ‘gender’). Interestingly, it seems as if the frequency with which these themes appear slowly decreases over time on The_Donald, while remaining popular on TheRedPill. As can be seen in the word clouds from 2016-09 on, the discourse within The_Donald is more focussed on politics, race, and religion; the discourse within TheRedPill, however, remains the same.

Interestingly, it does not seem that any specific words from The_Donald that found their way into the discourse of TheRedPill. Considering the philosophy of TheRedPill, which, as explained in the theoretical framework, focuses mainly on ‘discussion of sexual strategy in a culture increasingly lacking a positive identity for men’, it seems logical that its users would not necessarily use terms specific to the Alt-Right, as those terms may not be relevant to the discourse on this subreddit. Therefore, even though there was a slight increase in the use of Alt-Right slang in TheRedPill during those months, the general discourse on this subreddit did not change.

Taking these findings into account, it seems as though the users who migrated from TheRedPill first entered The_Donald still conversing in a manner similar to that in which they would on TheRedPill, while also mixing in discourse that is commonplace on The_Donald. Over time, the discourse on the two subreddits seems to split, with discourse in TheRedPill focussing on the themes of gender and male identity, while the discourse in The_Donald is centred around race, religion, and politics.

When looking at the month in which the discourses seemed to be fairly similar (2015-05), the actual context in which these words are used may not be the same; therefore, it is helpful to extract a number of comments from that month in order to assess the actual discourses within the different subreddits.

Taking the usage of ‘women’ as a starting point, it becomes clear that the general discourse around women within TheRedPill (i.e. women are weak, will jump from relationship to relationship, and are pandered to in this society) also exists within the comments in The_Donald. The discourse with regard to sex and gender seems to be fairly similar in both subreddits; however, judging from the word clouds, the general discourse is not the same, barring the first month analysed.

An overview of the themes found in the word clouds is included in Appendix C.

2016 - 05 TRP 2016 - 05 T_D

2016 - 09 TRP 2016 - 09 T_D

2017 - 01 TRP 2017 - 01 T_D

Figure 23: Word clouds of discourse by top 300 TheRedPil l users (2016 -05, 2016 -09, 2017 -01) 3.3.3 MGTOW discourse analysis

When analysing the discourse on MGTOW, the same trend as that found on TheRedPill can be seen. The clouds for 2016-05 present some similarities in discourse (women, men, feminism); however, as time went on, the discourse on The_Donald shifted towards more general Alt-Right discourse. This becomes clear when considering the word cloud from 2016-09, as the word clouds for MGTOW and The_Donald are completely different from each other: The discourse within MGTOW focuses on divorce, marriage, sex, rape, and gender, while the discourse within The_Donald focuses on corruption, treason, media, and politics.

Interestingly, in 2017-01, the word ‘rape’ is present in both the clouds for MGTOW and The_Donald. To further explore this similarity, it may be useful to investigate the actual comments containing the word ‘rape’. Query 7 was used to identify these comments; the usernames of the authors are anonymised to ensure their privacy.

The general discourse is very similar on both subreddits, with a focus on divorce rape, a term used to describe women taking advantage of the fact that courts often rule in favour of women. Furthermore, on both subreddits, users discuss rapes committed by refugees. The discourse with regard to rape does not seem to differ between these subreddits, and thus the discourse on MGTOW may possibly have been integrated somewhat into The_Donald, or was at least adopted by MGTOW users posting on The_Donald.

Looking at the word cloud of 2017-01, it seems as if immigration is a more pressing issue on The_Donald, which is logical when considering the discourse around immigrants from Mexico and the Middle East within The_Donald.

However, when it comes to the word 'suicide', a different trend emerges. The usage of suicide in The_Donald mainly focuses on suicide bombings and a joke about Marco Rubio being on suicide watch. This is in sharp contrast with the usage of suicide in MGTOW, where users claim that male suicide is normalized and are explicit in stating that divorce is a reason for male suicide. This is particularly interesting, as the discourse on suicide on MGTOW seems treat suicide as a serious topic, whereas the discourse around suicide on The_Donald is either framed as a joke or is used to denounce suicide bombers and Muslim immigrants.

An overview of the themes found in the word clouds is included in Appendix C.

2016 - 05 MGTOW 2016 - 05 T_D

2016 - 09 MGTOW 2016 - 09 T_D

57 2017 - 01 MGTOW 2017 - 01 T_D

Figure 24: Word clouds of discourse by top 300 MGTOW users (2016-05, 2016-09, 2017-01) 3.3.4 MensRights discourse analysis

The word clouds for MensRights show a different image from those of MGTOW and TheRedPill, with the discourse on The_Donald becoming increasingly similar to the discourse on the MensRights subreddit as time progresses. During 2016-05, the discourse in MensRights mainly focuses on issues associated with gender and rights, and this discourse remains relatively consistent during the other periods. One issue that they discuss is false rape, referring to women falsely accusing men of rape. This is a particularly sensitive topic, as the users of MensRights believe that a large portion of reported rapes are false. This topic does not show up in the general discourse on The_Donald, however. The one theme that the subreddits seem to share in 2016-05 is discourse regarding laws; however, the discourse with regard to this topic on The_Donald mainly focuses on immigration law, firearm legislation, and freedom of speech. On MensRights, in contrast, the discourse around laws is focused on divorce and adoption law; firearm legislation also appears. Interestingly, there is a comment on MensRights in which a user states the following:

Well you aren't any better. You support a Republican and are mad a[t] Depp for supporting a Democrat. Now that Hilary will get the Democrat ticket, and every MRA should know that Hilary will support laws that discriminate against men. (Table 20, Appendix B)

As time goes on, the discourse in The_Donald seems to shift towards a discourse that is similar to that found on MensRights. In 2016-09, the discourse in The_Donald becomes somewhat more similar to the discourse on MensRights; however, the focus is still largely on immigration, politics, and religion. In 2017-01, both word clouds feature themes such as abortion, hate, and rape. These terms therefore represent a good place to start the analysis of comments on both subreddits.

Abortion The usage of the term ‘abortion’ on The_Donald focuses on pro-life and pro-choice politics, as the users of this subreddit state that being pro-choice is a ‘tent-pole issue’ for Democrats that garners the latter many female votes. Interestingly, Trump promised to appoint anti-abortion judges to the Supreme Court, and the Republican Party has traditionally been a proponent of anti-abortion laws (North). Therefore, the discourse surrounding abortion in The_Donald revolves around the debate between pro-choice and prolife perspectives. In contrast, on the MensRights subreddit, the discourse around abortion seems to revolve around the notion that a woman having a choice to have an abortion can in some ways disadvantage men, as they do not have a say in the matter. This is exemplified by a number of quotes in the comments:

women making independent decisions about their lives should not expect men to finance their choice. (Table 16, Appendix B)

Even most bible thumpers support abortion in the case of danger to the mother's life. This isn't about taking abortion rights away from women. It's about giving men equivalent choices, and a ‘way out’. The world does not revolve around vagina-owners. (Table 16, Appendix B)

These quotes indicate that MensRights users are not against abortion as such and in some way actually advocate for more freedom in this regard; however, they are also explicit in conveying the message that men do not have any choice when it comes to abortion. Therefore, they advocate that men be able to essentially ‘financially abort’ themselves from a situation in which a woman decides to have a child that the father does not want.

Rape The usage of the word rape is also relatively different on both subreddits, with discourse in The_Donald revolving around refugees and Muslims who rape. In contrast, on MensRights, the discourse revolves around issues such as the underrepresentation of male rape victims, as well as false rape accusations. Therefore, there is a decidedly different approach to rape on those two subreddits, which can be explained with reference to the way in which these two subreddits function. Naturally, on The_Donald, there is already a large amount of conversation with regard to refugees and immigrants, whereas the largest part of the discourse in MensRights revolves around issues relating to men’s rights. Therefore, the difference between the ways in which the users of these subreddits converse about these issues is understandable.

An overview of the themes found in the word clouds is included in Appendix C.

2016 - 05 MR 2016 - 05 T_D

2016 - 09 MR 2016 - 09 T_D

2017 - 01 MR 2017 - 01 T_D 61

Figure 25: Word clouds of discourse by top 300 MensRights users (2016-05, 2016-09, 2017-01) 3.3.5 Incels discourse analysis

As was found in the analysis conducted previously, incel users predominantly post on /r/Incels. Therefore, a discourse analysis is not as useful as for the other subreddits, primarily since there are relatively few comments to actually analyse. This is reflected in the table below, which presents the total number of comments per period. However, in the comments that are available, it may be possible to identify some Incel discourse seeping into The_Donald; therefore, these comments are analysed.

Table 2: Amount of comments made by /r/Incels top 300 users

2016-05 2016-09 2017-01

Incels 7 17485 30847

The_Donald 63 66 28 The word clouds from the Incel subreddit mainly reflect the ‘typical’ incel discourse, which revolves around themes such as dating, looks, personality, sex, men, and women. In this case, the discourse will most likely revolve around the belief that women will only date or have sex with men whom they deem to be attractive, as, according to incels, women will not date men based on personality. Furthermore, a number of slang terms, such as kek, normies, and Chad, are found in the word clouds from the Incel subreddit, but not in the clouds for The_Donald. It is interesting to note that kek is not used on The_Donald by users from Incel. As kek is a term that is frequently used on The_Donald, and, as the word cloud makes clear, is also employed frequently within the incel community, it is to be expected that commenters would also use it on The_Donald. Therefore, it seems as if the word kek, originally considered to be an Alt-Right term, has been adopted by the incel community. However, another explanation may lie in the origin of the term, as it was originally used on 4chan’s /r9k/ board, a place where many incels also gathered to swap experiences (Dewey).

The general discourse on The_Donald seems to focus more on political themes than the (anti)romantic themes present on /r/Incels. Themes within the The_Donald’s discourse revolve around the themes of Clinton, Trump, Muslims, violence, and religion. Naturally, there is not really a place for similar discourse in both subreddits, with typical incel discourse focusing around sex, or the lack thereof, and depression. The discourse in The_Donald is more politically minded, thus creating a divide in the discourse in both subreddits.

This divide is also reflected in the comments on the individual subreddits. As there were no real similarities between the word clouds and the number of comments on The_Donald is relatively small, there were no specific words to analyse. Posts on The_Donald seem to mostly advocate against the MSM, liberals (‘libtards’), and Hillary Clinton (‘Killary’). The primary discourse in /r/Incels, in contrast, is focused on explaining inceldom, discussing Chads and Stacies, and denouncing feminism and women in general.

The question of whether the incels discuss politics within the Incel subreddit or if they avoid such discourse remains, however. Thus, another analysis was conducted on comments containing the word ‘Trump’. This indicated that there was discourse surrounding Trump and the Alt-Right on the Incel subreddit. From these comments, it becomes clear that most, but not all, incels like Trump, as they consider him to be a Chad, which can be perceived both positively and negatively: From one perspective, a Chad is the personification of what incels wish to be, but they may simultaneously despise him due to his Chad status. In this case, it seems that the Incels appreciate Trump for his no-nonsense approach both to immigration and to the left. This is exemplified by a number of quotes:

Can't stand Trump or politics in general but being in college I got front row seats to liberal meltdowns. That Wednesday I smiled all day. (Table 23, Appendix B)

Idk i think trump could have gone with his whole idea a different way, but i do agree and support even as a non - american with what hes trying to do to stop the immigration problem. He is certainly at least doing something to keep the country safe from future planned attacks/ drugs/ crime etc. (Table 23, Appendix B)

Feminism has a strong foothold here in straya. I got in trouble at work for not buying a white ribbon for domestic violence. Will any of you american incels gay marry me for a green card so that I can live in Trump’s America? (Table 23, Appendix B)

An overview of the themes found in the word clouds is included in Appendix C.

2016 - 05 Incel 2016 - 05 T_D

2016 - 09 Incel 2016 - 09 T_D

2017 - 01 Incel 2017 - 01 T_D 64

Figure 26: Word clouds of discourse by top 300 Incels users (2016-05, 2016-09, 2017-01) 4 Results 4.1 General overview of findings 4.1.1 Activity on subreddits

The first section of the research component of this thesis was focused on the activity of the top 300 users of each of the discussed subreddits. To achieve this, the number of comments that these users posted in each subreddit was visualised in the form of a stream graph. The table below presents a brief overview of the results.

Table 3: Engagement by top 300 users, by subreddit

Top 300 users High engagement Medium engagement Low engagement Extremely low (subreddit) engagement

The_Donald The_Donald - - MGTOW, MensRights, TheRedPill, Incels

TheRedPill TheRedPill MGTOW, The_Donald MensRights Incels

MGTOW MGTOW The_Donald TheRedPill, MensRights Incels

MensRights MensRights The_Donald, MGTOW TheRedPill Incels

Incels Incels - - MGTOW, MensRights, TheRedPill, The_Donald As can be seen in the above table, both The_Donald and Incels seem to be fairly self-contained subreddits, meaning that their top users almost exclusively post on their own subreddits. However, as can be seen with TheRedPill, MGTOW, and MensRights, users also post fairly frequently on other subreddits, with The_Donald being the subreddit that all of these users most frequently post on. Therefore, it seems as though there is not necessarily a migration of users, as they continue posting on the subreddits on which they are top posters. While this may not be the case for users who are less invested in their original subreddits, for the purposes of this study, the analysis does indicate that The_Donald is a subreddit on which users who subscribe to the Manosphere can also participate.

4.1.2 Slang analysis

The second section of the research focused on an analysis of the usage of Alt-Right slang on each subreddit. The rationale behind this analysis was to assess whether users from a subreddit belonging to the Manosphere absorb Alt-Right slang from The_Donald into their own vocabularies and start using this specific slang more frequently on their original subreddits. The time period chosen for this analysis was

between 2016-07 and 2017-02, as the goal was to assess the effect of the spike in the number of comments that occurred between 2016-09 and 2016-10 on The_Donald on the amount of slang used.

The tables below all present the differences in the total amount of slang used per month, as well as the differences in the percentage of slang used when compared to the total number of comments made. For example, to fill the 2016-08 cells, the difference between the number of comments made in 2016-08 and 2016-09 was calculated. Therefore, each month shows the increase, or decrease, that occurred when compared to the month before. Furthermore, the total difference in the slang used from 2016-08 to 201702 is also presented.

TheRedPill

From this table, it becomes clear that the amount of slang used, as well as the percentage of comments containing slang compared to the total amount of comments containing slang in The_Donald and TheRedPill, increases in October and November of 2016. However, the temporary increase does not seem to have a lasting effect on the amount of slang that the users actually use, with the percentage of comments containing slang actually decreasing slightly from 2016-07 to 2017-02. Interestingly, TheRedPill did see an increase in the percentage of slang used from 2016-07 to 2017-02. This increase is nearly 3%, and therefore it seems as though the short time period during which users started posting more frequently on The_Donald led to the top 300 users posting a larger percentage of Alt-Right slang comments than before.

Table 4: Overview of increase/decrease in comments containing Alt-Right slang (TheRedPill)

MGTOW

The table containing the top 300 MGTOW users differs from that of TheRedPill’s users. As can be seen, from 2016-08 to 2016-09, there is a large percentage increase in comments containing Alt-Right slang (13.32%). However, this increase seems to have been short lived, with the percentage dropping down by 13.38% in the following month. The sudden increase did not seem to have a lasting effect on the amount of slang used in both MGTOW and The_Donald, as the percentage of comments containing slang decreased by more than 6%.

Table 5: Overview of increase/decrease in comments containing Alt-Right slang (MGTOW)

MensRights

MensRights’ top users also had a percentage increase from 2016-08 to 2016-09 and had a slight increase in slang in The_Donald in 2016-10. The increase in the percentage of Alt-Right slang used on The_Donald did not, however, lead to an increase in the percentage of Alt-Right slang used on the MensRights subreddit. As is shown in the total change since 2016-07, MensRights users do seem to start using more Alt-Right slang, but only when they are posting on The_Donald. In contrast, the percentage of Alt-Right slang within the MensRights subreddit decreases from 2016-07 to 2017-02. In this case, it seems that usage of Alt-Right slang is more confined to The_Donald and only increases on MensRights when there is a large increase in the amount of Alt-Right slang used on The_Donald.

Table 6: Overview of increase/decrease in comments containing Alt-Right slang (MensRights)

Incels

Lastly, the members of the Incel group, while not posting frequently enough on The_Donald to provide meaningful data, are again shown to be self-contained within their own subreddit. Furthermore, while their usage of Alt-Right discourse in absolute numbers rose from 2016-07 to 2017-02, the percentage amount decreased. This could be explained by the explosive growth of the subreddit (leading to more comments in total), and its members’ focus on their own community.

Table 7: Overview of increase/decrease in comments containing Alt-Right slang (Incels)

To summarize, the increase in activity on The_Donald around October and November by the top 300 users of TheRedpill, MGTOW, and MensRights seems to have caused users seem to start posting more Alt- Right slang; however, this effect does not seem to have lasted. TheRedPill’s users were found to increasingly use Alt-Right slang on their own subreddit but decreased their usage thereof on The_Donald when compared to 2016-07. In terms of percentages, MGTOW’s top 300 users were found to have posted less Alt-Right slang on both subreddits. Finally, MensRight’s users were found to post more Alt-Right slang on The_Donald when compared to 2016-07, while using less Alt-Right slang on MensRights.

4.1.3 Discourse analysis

The final part of the research conducted for this thesis focused on a qualitative discourse analysis, using word clouds created by counting the number of words posted over the period of a month for each subreddit. Furthermore, only the comments from the top 300 users for each subreddit were considered. The sections below present an overview of the results per subreddit.

The_Donald First, an analysis of the discourse of The_Donald’s top 300 users within this particular subreddit was conducted. The analysis indicated that the discourse, whilst revolving around the election, had different themes throughout the three months analysed. In 2016-05, the majority of this subreddit’s discourse was focused around the election. Other themes identified were general Alt-Right slang, the media, and Islam/Muslims. In the following month, 2016-09, conversation surrounding Clinton’s alleged sickness found its way into the general discourse on The_Donald, as well as discourse concerning the FBI and Comey (who was denounced as a weasel). Similar discourse was found surrounding the media and the election. In the last month, discourse surrounding the media, especially the media being perceived as fake, became more prevalent on The_Donald. This seems to have been a consequence of the election being over and Trump explicitly denouncing much of the MSM as being ‘fake’. There remains discourse surrounding ISIS/Muslims/Islam on The_Donald, as well as discourse concerning the FBI and CIA.

TheRedPill The discourse analysis of the top 300 TheRedPill users indicated that, initially (in 2016-05), users of this subreddit demonstrated some similarities in their discourse on both TheRedPill and The_Donald. In this month, themes regarding feminism and gender arose. However, as time went on, the discourse on The_Donald seems to have changed into a more general Alt-Right discourse, as the themes regarding feminism and gender disappeared and were replaced with other subjects of interest on The_Donald. Furthermore, the discourse within TheRedPill remained fairly stable as time went on, and there were no signs of Alt-Right ideology or discourse seeping into TheRedPill.

MGTOW The discourse analysis of MGTOW indicated the same general progress as that found for TheRedPill, with MGTOW’s users conversing about gender and feminism in both subreddits. Furthermore, MGTOW users even employed Alt-Right slang (e.g. cuck) on their ‘original’ subreddit. Over the following months, the discourse on The_Donald shifted toward the subreddit's more traditional themes. In 2016-09, the themes found on The_Donald were focused on politics, corruption and treason, and Clinton’s alleged sickness. Interestingly, in 2017-01, themes that are important on MGTOW, namely women and rape, once again 68

found their way onto The_Donald. The general discourse was found to be similar on both subreddits, with both having a focus on divorce rape. Furthermore, on both subreddits, users discussed rapes committed by refugees. The discourse with regard to rape does not seem to differ between these subreddits, and thus the discourse from MGTOW could possibly have been somewhat integrated into The_Donald, or was at least adopted by MGTOW users posting in The_Donald.

MensRights In some ways, the MensRights discourse analysis demonstrated the inverse of what was shown for TheRedPill and MGTOW, with the discourse on The_Donald becoming increasingly similar to that on MensRights as time passed. In 2016-05, both subreddits showed a decidedly different image, with the discourse within MensRights revolving around issues regarding gender and rights, while the discourse on The_Donald focused on immigration, politics, and religion. However, there was one similarity, namely the discourse surrounding rights and laws. On MensRights, however, users discussed divorce and adoption laws and firearm legislation. In contrast, on The_Donald, the discourse surrounding law was mainly focused on immigration and free speech, with gun laws being the one shared topic.

In 2016-09, the discourse on The_Donald became somewhat more similar to the discourse featured on MensRights; however, the focus in The_Donald is still mostly on immigration, politics, and religion. In 2017-01, the discourse within The_Donald seems to become increasingly similar to discourse on MensRights, with themes such as rape, abortion, and hate becoming prevalent in the word cloud. The discussion of abortion within The_Donald seems to revolve around the pro-life versus pro-choice debate, whereas the discourse surrounding abortion on MensRights is focused on the question of whether men should have the choice to ‘financially abort’ themselves if a woman decides not to abort, against the will of the man. Furthermore, discourse surrounding rape also seems to differ on both subreddit: The discourse surrounding rape within The_Donald is about refugees and Muslims who rape, whereas the discourse on MensRights is focused on false rape accusations.

Incels As stated previously, the Incel community is relatively self-contained when compared to the other subreddits analysed. Therefore, the discourse analysis was less effective than it was for the other subreddits. The focus was thus on the discourse within the Incel subreddit, where typical incel discourse surrounding dating, looks, personality, sex, men, and women was found. Interestingly, the top 300 users of Incels use the slang word kek, which is perceived to be an Alt-Right term, on their own subreddit, but not on The_Donald. The (sparse) discourse of the Incels within The_Donald was shown to not have any observable similarities with the discourse on The_Donald centring around the MSM, liberals, and Hillary Clinton. Therefore, Incels’ users seem to have a tendency to focus on politics on The_Donald and to only 69

express their typical Incel discourse on their ‘own’ subreddit. Lastly, after analysing comments containing the word ‘Trump’ within /r/Incels, it was concluded that most of this subreddit’s users seem to like Trump, as they perceive him as a Chad and appreciate the manner in which he addresses immigration issues, as well as his approach towards the left.

Overview To summarize, The analysis of the Incel group did not find any similarities in discourse between The_Donald and Incels. In contrast, the discourse of TheRedPill and MGTOW’s top 300 users within The_Donald did share some similarities, as both dealt with issues such as feminism and gender. However, as time went on, their discourse within The_Donald seemed to move towards more general Alt-Right rhetoric, as opposed to manospheric rhetoric. Lastly, the MensRights group was shown to have the most similarities in discourse, with their discourse in The_Donald becoming more similar to MensRights over time. Therefore, MensRights’ top 300 users seem to be the only group in which the discourse on both subreddits became more similar over time, instead of the discourses on both subreddits becoming increasingly distinct.

However, the discourse on The_Donald does seem to be almost completely different from the discourse on each subreddit. This could also be a consequence of The_Donald not being a place where most manospheric discourse is either relevant or tolerated. Furthermore, subreddits belonging to the Manosphere do not necessarily provide space for Alt-Right rhetoric.

4.2 October spike in The_Donald

In October, there was a spike in activity on The_Donald from users ‘belonging’ to the Manosphere. Naturally, with the election nearing its end, an increase in activity was to be expected. However a number of events transpired in October that may have influenced this activity. In the upcoming sections, a number of these events and the effect that these events had on the discourse of users are further discussed.

Comey’s October surprise As the findings from the subreddit-specific user analysis indicate, there was a significant increase in the number of comments on The_Donald during October and November of 2016. Interestingly, this coincided with James Comey’s October surprise, in which Comey sent a letter to Congress stating that he wished to supplement the testimony he gave earlier in July concerning the FBI’s investigation into Hillary Clinton’s private email server. In the letter, Comey stated that the FBI had ‘learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation’ they had started regarding the private email server that Clinton, as Secretary of State, had used to send confidential documents (Silver).

Naturally, this was an opportunity that the Alt-Right seized, and the email is believed to have severely damaged the Clinton campaign. The Trump campaign had already used the controversy around the emails to attack Clinton’s campaign, with Trump urging Russian hackers to find more evidence of these emails in July of 2016 (BBC). Thus, this statement from Comey added fuel to an already raging fire and, even though other factors may also have cost Clinton the campaign, the email effectively halved the lead that Clinton had in the polls (Silver).

The sudden increase of activity within The_Donald on the part of users originating from the Manosphere could represent a ground reaction to Comey’s October surprise. This is illustrated by the MGTOW word cloud, where ‘Hillary Clinton’, ‘Comey’, ‘treason’, and ‘corruption’ are themes that appear. It is important to note that these themes do not appear in the word cloud for the MGTOW subreddit itself. Therefore, the discourse of the users on the various subreddits analysed is decidedly different, and users seem to flock towards The_Donald when discussing political issues.

Figure 27: Word clouds of discourse by top 300 MGTOW users (2016-09)

‘Sick Hillary’ The other subreddits do not necessarily demonstrate the same reaction to Comey’s October surprise, as there is no real evidence to be found in the word clouds. However, both the Incel and the MensRights clouds reflect discourse surrounding the alleged sickness of Hillary Clinton. This could be a direct consequence of a video created by Trump’s campaign in October. The video begins by blaming Clinton for creating chaos in Libya and North Africa during her tenure as Secretary of State. It then continues to display footage of Clinton coughing and being helped after tripping and members of the Secret Service escorting a visibly unwell Clinton away from the 9/11 memorial. As the footage of Clinton is shown, a

narrator states the following: ‘Hillary Clinton doesn't have the fortitude, strength or stamina to lead in our world’, which strengthens the message that Clinton is physically, and perhaps mentally, unfit to become president. The final message in the video shows a picture of Donald Trump, with the following message: ‘Donald Trump will protect you. He is the only one who can’ (Weigel).

The Clinton campaign responded a number of days later, stating that a belatedly diagnosis of pneumonia was the reason for the hasty exit from the 9/11 memorial ceremony. However, pro-Trump news sites were quick to state that it was certain that Clinton’s health was declining and that the mainstream media as attempting to conceal this fact (Weigel). This, in combination with the distrust that Trump supporters have in the mainstream media, created an environment in which discussions of Clinton’s health festered.

There are a number of reasons why users from the Manosphere may subscribe to the view that Clinton is weak and unfit for the presidency: First, within the Manosphere, there is a strong predisposition to believe that the male sex is dominant and strong, whereas the female sex is regarded as weaker and dependent on men. Furthermore, as Rational Wiki states, the Manosphere is primarily defined by its outlook on masculinity, which the Rational Wiki authors describe as having a ‘collective obsession with feminism and the weird way in which they express both a strong desire and a profound distaste for women’. There is also a strong belief that women owe men everything, as men belonging to the Manosphere feel that men have built society on their own (Futrelle, ‘>Air conditioning for women: A terrible injustice’). Considering this view on masculinity, with its strong emphasis on the belief that women are the weaker sex, it seems logical that these groups would latch onto the view that Clinton was ill. Second, the now allegedly forged doctor’s note describing Trump’s health as ‘astonishingly excellent’ in 2015 created an even greater contrast between Trump and Clinton. Again, the Alt-Right and the Manosphere subscribed to the idea of Trump being a strong, healthy individual, whereas Clinton was perceived as frail and sick.

Furthermore, another factor could be the fact that a large part of the Manosphere did not like Hillary Clinton to begin with. Even when ignoring the fact that Clinton is openly feminist and portrays herself as a champion of women’s rights, her past controversies during her tenure as Secretary of State may have also had an effect on members of the Manosphere’s choice to start supporting Trump (Khalek). This becomes clear in a comment made by a MensRights user:

A normal person will go to jail and have his entire life ruined for having weed on them. Hillary can literally break federal law thousands of times and she is allowed to run for president. Americans, I don't agree with Trump much but you always boast about your 2nd amendment. I think it's time to use that right now.

Furthermore, another user states that Bernie would have been a superior candidate:

Bernie was an honest candidate who doesn't lie and has a strong background in making the right decisions before it becomes popular (pro gay marriage, against wasting American wealth and lives invading Iraq.

These comments exemplify a dislike of Clinton in particular, not necessarily the Democratic Party in general or other Democrats.

Spike The spike in the number of comments on The_Donald was most likely the result of many different causes. First, the end of the election was nearing; thus, an increase in the amount of traffic was to be expected. For example, the number of comments on The_Donald increased by nearly 300,000 from September 2016 to October 2016 and increased by nearly 600,000 from October to November. Furthermore, the number of comments made on The_Donald by members of subreddits belonging to the Manosphere doubled between September and October (with Incels being the exception, as they are fairly isolated from the other groups). Different factors may have prompted each subreddits' members to contribute to this spike. MGTOW’s top 300 users were shown to take James Comey’s October surprise, or at least the investigation into Clinton’s use of a private email server, to heart. Furthermore, both MGTOW and MensRights users seemed to start posting about Clinton’s alleged sickness more frequently. The main focus of users of TheRedPill seemed to be on politics and religion, but they did not seem to be affected by the investigation into Clinton or her alleged illness.

4.3 Explanation for migration from Manosphere into Alt-Right

This research has found that there is reason to believe that at least parts of the Manosphere have found their way into The_Donald. This was demonstrated by the increase in the number of posts and the findings that some themes from the Manosphere have also found their way into The_Donald. Furthermore, it seems that the users originating from the Manosphere mostly follow the general discourse that exists within the Alt-Right.

The possible reasons why these users started posting on The_Donald need to be explored further before arriving at an answer to the research question.

Feminism, alpha males, and political correctness One of the possible reasons why users belonging to the Manosphere may have started supporting the AltRight or Trump is that Trump, who is perceived as an archetype of an alpha male, has openly stated that he does not consider himself a feminist, which many users from the Manosphere could potentially relate to. Even though the following statement was made at the end of January 2017 and therefore fell outside of the scope of this research, it does exemplify Trump’s views on feminism. In response to the 73

question of whether or not he was a feminist, Trump stated the following: ‘I mean, I think that would be, maybe, going too far. I’m for women, I’m for men, I’m for everyone’ (Tharoor). This statement was in no way surprising for Trump to make, as he has been known to publicly decry political correctness. As Tharoor states, Trump is ‘a poster child for the unapologetic man - loud, proud and unbowed’; a person like this is likely to strike a chord with the manospheric community, the members of which believe that men have been repressed by the current climate of political correctness and female empowerment.

Another example occurred in May 2016, when Trump addressed a crowd of supporters in Spokane, Washington, during which he lamented the state of gender relations. In this speech, Trump said the following: ‘All of the men, we’re petrified to speak to women anymore, we may raise our voice - you know what, the women get it better than we do, folks, they get it better than we do’. This statement is again directed against the climate of political correctness. Another statement Trump that made a number of weeks before May 2016 was that Hillary Clinton ‘would not even be a viable person to run for City Council positions’ were she not a woman. Both of the statements echo some of the Manosphere’s rhetoric, and therefore the Manosphere may have also found its way onto The_Donald (Landsbaum).

Furthermore, Trump’s brashness when it comes to women is not something that is new to his persona. This is exemplified by a tweet directed at Arianna Huffington, founder of the liberal HuffPost,14 which has denounced the Manosphere and is disliked in turn by the Manosphere. In this tweet, Trump wrote the following:

@ariannahuff is unattractive both inside and out. I fully understand why her former husband left her for a man- he made a good decision.

This tweet serves as an example of Trump’s lack of political correctness, which resonates with the Manosphere. The fact that someone like Trump is running for president could, for the majority of the Manosphere, mean that there is finally someone who uses a rhetoric that is similar to their own. Therefore, users from the Manosphere are more likely to subscribe to Trump’s ideology or at least more likely to do so than they are to admire Clinton’s ideology. Those users on Reddit who were already present on the platform as The_Donald emerged found an ally to their perceived cause of eliminating political correctness and feminism.

14 Previously known as Huffington Post 74

5 Conclusion and discussion

5.1 Conclusion

This study sought to provide an answer to the question of whether it is possible to empirically determine if a migration of individuals belonging to the Manosphere to the Alt-Right occurred. Therefore, it aimed to provide an answer to the following question:

To what extent can empirical research prove that a migration of users has occurred from manospheric subreddits to more general Alt-Right subreddits such as /r/The_Donald?

For the purposes of the study, the emphasis was on four subreddits belonging to the Manosphere and the most important Alt-Right hub on Reddit, /r/The_Donald. To answer the question of whether it is possible to empirically determine if this possible migration occurred, a number of methods were used. The first analysis indicated that there is some basis to believe that users who subscribe to the Manosphere’s philosophy do indeed migrate to the Alt-Right in some way. First, an analysis of a number of comments made by the top 300 users of various subreddits belonging to the Manosphere indicated that these users also post on The_Donald. Three of these subreddits, namely TheRedPill, MGTOW, and MensRights, even demonstrated a spike in the number of comments made during October and November of 2016. Interestingly, while there was some activity on the Incels subreddit, it seemed to be fairly self-contained, and its users did not post on other subreddits nearly as frequently as the users of the first three subreddits did.

Therefore, there is some basis to believe that the users who subscribe to the Manosphere could also find their way into the Alt-Right. To further analyse this possible migration, a second analysis was conducted on the usage of slang belonging to the Alt-Right by users originating from the Manosphere. In this analysis, a glossary containing Alt-Right slang was used to create a query that extracted the comments posted by these top 300 users from each subreddit that contained Alt-Right slang. Furthermore, the number of comments containing Alt-Right slang were compared to the total number of comments made by these users. This analysis demonstrated that, while there was an increase in the number of comments containing Alt-Right slang on both their original subreddits and The_Donald during the periods in which these users started posting more frequently on The_Donald, the increase in the use of slang did not last long in most cases. Between 2016-07 and 2017-02, there was an increase of 2.76% in the number of comments containing Alt-Right slang on TheRedPill, whereas there was a decrease of 0.72% on The_Donald. MGTOW was found to have a slight decrease of 0.14% on MGTOW and a larger decrease of 6.23% on The_Donald. MensRights’ users were found to have reduced the number of comments they made containing Alt-Right slang by 1.20%, whereas an increase of 3.88% was found on The_Donald.

Lastly, Incels’ users were found to have a decrease of 5.12% in their own subreddit, but they did not post frequently enough on The_Donald to provide meaningful data.

The final component of the data analysis was more qualitative than the others, as it involved analysing word clouds derived from the most-used words of the top 300 subreddit users on both their ‘own’ subreddits and The_Donald. The purpose of this analysis was to determine whether the discourse on their 'original' subreddits and The_Donald was similar or decidedly different. Furthermore, this analysis aimed to identify the themes that are important to the top 300 users on both subreddits. As the analysis indicated, the Incel group’s discourse had nearly no similarities to that of The_Donald. However, the discourse of TheRedPill and MGTOW’s top 300 users had similarities with the discourse found on The_Donald, as both focused on feminism and gender; however, as time went on, the discourse of these users seemed to have moved towards a more general Alt-Right rhetoric. Finally, the MensRights group was shown to have the most similarities to The_Donald, with the discourse actually becoming more similar over time. This group therefore seems to be the only group whose discourse on The_Donald became more similar to that found on their ‘original’ subreddit. However, even though the discourse became more similar, it still seems that the discourse of these groups is significantly different on The_Donald than on their ‘original’ subreddits. This could be a consequence of The_Donald not being welcoming to most manospheric discourse. Furthermore, subreddits belonging to the Manosphere do not necessarily provide space for AltRight rhetoric.

Nagle and Massanari It may prove to be interesting to return to Nagle and Massanari’s theories and assess what this research means for their work. To reiterate, Nagle stated that there was a cross-pollinating section within the AltRight milieu, that consists of various subcultures within the Manosphere (15-17). Furthermore, Massanari stated that Reddit implicitly allows anti-feminist and racist communities to take hold, in addition to allowing users to switch between cultures. As was demonstrated in this research, there is certainly an empirical basis for these claims, as the users of all subreddits belonging to the Manosphere, with the exception of Incels, were proven to also post on The_Donald. Naturally, further research will be needed to assess the full extent of this possible migration. However, this research has also provided a methodological framework for assessing the potential migration from subreddit to subreddit of Reddit users.

On Reddit, it seems as though some users subscribe to both the Alt-Right and the Manosphere and that users who initially only subscribed to the Manosphere may have started posting more frequently on The_Donald over time. However, their general discourse seems to be dependent on the subreddit that they

are posting on; this is largely due to the fact that subreddits are often specifically focused on certain topics and are therefore not necessarily open to outside rhetoric or themes.

Nagle and Massanari’s claims do seem to ring true when assessing the cause of the migration, as the AltRight and Manosphere have similar ideologies. However, these two groups' beliefs do not necessarily focus on the same issues. For example, both subcultures have an aversion towards political correctness, as well as anti-feminist views. The similarities between both subcultures paired with Reddit’s infrastructure, which allows users to readily switch between communities, seem to provide a hotbed for both the migration of users and the merging of ideologies. Furthermore, as was discussed in the theoretical framework, online mediated communication also plays a major role in this process. Not only does online disinhibition encourage users to be more open about their opinions, the thin line between agonism and antagonism is often crossed due to the perceived anonymity offered by a platform such as Reddit. Furthermore, trolling culture has created an environment in which many users who may not even truly be sexist and racist choose to portray themselves as such because they find doing so to be entertaining. As Massanari stated, an online platform such as Reddit can, in some ways, encourage this type of behaviour.

Research question Returning to the research question, which is once again repeated below, it does seem that empirical research, or at the very least empirical research on Reddit, can prove that a migration of users from the Manosphere towards the more general Alt-Right, specifically The_Donald, has occurred.

To what extent can empirical research prove that a migration of users has occurred from manospheric subreddits to more general Alt-Right subreddits such as /r/The_Donald?

The methods employed in this research aimed to first identify the most frequent users of a certain subreddit, in this case the top 300 users with the highest comment scores over a particular period. Subsequently, the different subreddits on which these users post, as well as the number of times that these users commented on each specific subreddit, were analysed. For most subreddits, this led to the identification of a specific time period during which further research could be conducted. Furthermore, to assess whether there was a migration of ideology in addition to users, an analysis of specific slang words was conducted. This research demonstrated that, during periods of increased activity on The_Donald, the amount of Alt-Right slang employed also increases. Interestingly, this increase seems to be temporary in most cases.

Lastly, a qualitative analysis was conducted to assess the general themes that these specific users focus on on both their ‘own’ subreddits and The_Donald. This analysis indicated that users of certain subreddits (MGTOW and TheRedPill) started by incorporating their own ideologies and themes on The_Donald but

seemed seemed to adopt the more general Alt-Right ideology found on The_Donald over time. The themes addressed on their original subreddits did not seem to change significantly. When it comes to the MensRights group, its members seemed to increasingly incorporate MensRights issues in their discourse on The_Donald as time went on, but they still seemed to go along with the general Alt-Right discourse.

In conclusion, it seems as though it is clearly possible to map the possible migration of users on Reddit by analysing their activity and by investigating the language that they use within each subreddit. It is important to note that the definition of migration in this case does not seem to be a migration in the sense that users leave one subreddit completely for the other; rather, this is a form of migration whereby users temporarily leave. Alternatively, it may even be a form of integration, as users may take to posting on AltRight subreddits in addition to posting on subreddits belonging to the Manosphere. Furthermore, the extent of this migration could be further analysed in future research by focusing on specific slang terms, as well as by increasing the number of users analysed.

This research’s relevance is therefore twofold, as it provides both an empirical basis for Nagle and Massanari’s claims and a method for conducting possible future research on migration within subcultures, particularly on Reddit.

5.2 Limitations of this research

As was discussed in the conclusion, the research did provide an answer to the research question. However, this work does have some limitations; these are discussed below.

Top 300 users In order to clearly define the scope of the analysis across all subreddits, this research analysed the top 300 users of each specific subreddit,. However, by analysing the top 300 users, a very specific set of users was created. Naturally, these users are invested heavily in the subreddits on which they are top users. Therefore, the results are likely to be slightly skewed in favour of the subreddits that they originally started posting on. For example, a top user on TheRedPill is less likely to completely switch over to The_Donald than a casual TheRedPill user. Even though analysing the top 300 users creates a specific set of users, this may not necessarily be a negative outcome. Considering that a possible migration was found even with these top users, this work represents an important starting point for possible future research.

Slang terms In this research, an analysis was conducted on the use of slang terms within certain subreddits. However, due to the technical limitations of BigQuery, it was not feasible to extract the number of times a specific slang term was used. Therefore, due to the time constraints of this research, all Alt-Right slang terms were grouped together. Even though this did provide an overview of the amount of slang used, this analysis did

not account for the intricacies of these slang terms. For example, usage of the term kek may have demonstrated a strong increase, but it was not possible to identify which slang words were used more frequently than others in this research. In future research, it may prove interesting to analyse each specific slang term on its own in order to assess whether there are certain terms that become more prevalent over time.

Reddit The research conducted for the purposes of this study focused solely on Reddit; however, Reddit is not the only platform on which such communities reside. For example, Voat, 4chan, 8chan, and even Twitter are all in some ways hubs for both the Manosphere and the Alt-Right. Therefore, the results of this research can only be applied to Reddit. Furthermore, Felipe Hoffa’s BigQuery database only provides data for Reddit and therefore cannot be used for other platforms. Obviously, there are ways of analysing other platforms in a manner similar to that employed in this research. Future research may also benefit from focusing on other platforms to assess whether their users differ from those on Reddit.

Subreddits For this research, a number of subreddits were used, however, there are numerous other subreddits belonging to the Manosphere and Alt-Right. Most importantly, the only Alt-Right subreddit analysed was The_Donald. For future research, it may prove to be interesting to also assess other Alt-Right subreddits, as The_Donald naturally focuses heavily on Trump, compared to other Alt-Right subreddits. This may give different results.

5.3 Recommendations for future research There are a number of recommendations to be made for future research, some of which have been stated previously. These recommendations serve as possible points of departure for future research, as well as for further testing of the research conducted in this thesis:

1. Further exploration of the usage of slang terms is required. For example, further research might aim to analyse specific instances of slang usage or even individual slang terms in order to assess whether certain terms become more prevalent in Alt-Right and manospheric subreddits as time goes by. 2. The main part of the analysis was conducted over a time period ranging from November 2015 to December 2017, as this coincided with the period prior to and following the 2016 elections. It may prove useful to extend future research beyond 2015 and 2017. 3. This study only analysed the activity of the top 300 users of each subreddit, as was explained in the discussion of the limitations of this work. This may have skewed the results as a result

of only analysing users who are deeply invested in a specific subreddit. Therefore, for future research, it may prove helpful to either analyse all of the subscribers of a subreddit or different subsets of users. For example, in future research, one could analyse the top 10%, the middle 10%, and the bottom 10% to assess whether there is a difference between these users. 4. This research analysed a possible migration from the Manosphere to the Alt-Right; however, it seems feasible that the inverse is also possible. Future research could possibly also analyse migration from the Alt-Right to the Manosphere. Such research could focus on Alt-Right subreddits and assess them in a fashion similar to that used for the Manosphere subreddits in this research. Furthermore, some research may be done on different Alt-Right subreddits, instead of The_Donald. 5. As this research focused on Reddit, future researchers may consider analysing other platforms, such as Voat, 4chan, and Twitter, in order to assess whether the activities of their users differ from that of Reddit users. For such potential research, BigQuery is not an option, as it offers no database containing comments or posts for these platforms. In future research, other approaches to the data-gathering process should be identified.

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Appendix A - Queries Query 1 – Most frequently used words (per month) SELECT word, s_count, s_ratio, g_count, g_ratio, s_to_g_ratio, weight FROM ( SELECT s.word word, s.c s_count, ROUND(s.ratio,4) s_ratio, g.c g_count, ROUND(g.ratio,4) g_ratio, ROUND(s.ratio/g.ratio,2) s_to_g_ratio, ROUND(s.ratio/g.ratio,2) * s.c weight FROM ( SELECT c, word, ssum, (c/ssum)*100 ratio FROM ( SELECT c, word, SUM(c) OVER () AS ssum FROM ( SELECT COUNT(*) c, word FROM ( SELECT REGEXP_EXTRACT(word,r'([a-z0-9\-\']*)') word FROM ( SELECT SPLIT(LOWER(body),' ') word FROM [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_12], WHERE LOWER(subreddit)="mensrights")) GROUP BY word))) s JOIN EACH ( SELECT c, word, gsum, (c/gsum)*100 ratio FROM ( SELECT c, word, SUM(c) OVER () AS gsum FROM ( SELECT COUNT(*) c, word FROM ( SELECT REGEXP_EXTRACT(word,r'([a-z0-9\-\']*)') word FROM ( SELECT SPLIT(LOWER(body),' ') word FROM [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_12], )) 86

GROUP BY word))) g ON g.word = s.word WHERE s.word NOT IN ('gt', 'lt', 'amp') ) WHERE s_to_g_ratio > 5 ORDER BY s_ratio DESC LIMIT 50;

87 - Query 2 Find top users of subreddit SELECT author, subreddit, count (*) count FROM [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2015_11], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2015_12], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_01], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_02], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_03], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_04], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_05], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_06], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_07], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_08], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_09], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_10], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_11], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_12], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_08], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_09], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_10], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_11], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_12], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_01], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_02], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_03], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_04], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_05], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_06], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_07], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_08], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_09], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_10], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_11], [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_12], WHERE author NOT IN ('[deleted]', 'AutoModerator') AND LOWER(subreddit) = 'The_Donald' GROUP BY author, subreddit ORDER BY count DESC LIMIT 350

Query 3 Find amount of posts per subreddit by top 300 users SELECT subreddit, COUNT(subreddit), "2017-12" as date FROM [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_12], WHERE lower(subreddit) IN ("The_Donald", "mgtow", "incels", "theredpill", "mensrights") AND author IN ( SELECT author FROM [thesis-research-jimi:subreddit_users.MensRight_top300] )

88 - GROUP BY subreddit ORDER BY f0_ DESC;

89 - Query 4 Find the total amount of slang words used per subreddit SELECT count (*) count, '2017-01' as date, subreddit FROM [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_10]

WHERE (((lower(body) LIKE '%1488%') OR lower(body) LIKE '%((()))%') OR lower(body) LIKE '%((()))%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%/b/%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%/pol/%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%4chan%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%ally%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%ally points%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%alt-left%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%alt-light%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%alt-south%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%alt-tech%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%amerikaner%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%amren%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%anti-racist is code word for anti-white%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%attack helicopter%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%based%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%black brute%' OR lower(body) LIKE "%black don't crack%" OR lower(body) LIKE '%blood and soil%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%breitbart%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%brownshirt%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%buchanan%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%butthurt%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%cisgender%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%coat%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%crybaby%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%cuck%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%cultural enrichment%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%cultural marxism%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%deep state%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%degenerate%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%deus vult%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%dindu%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%discussion club%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%diversity%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%dysgenics%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%edgelord%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%edgy%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%ethno-demographics%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%fashwave%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%fashy%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%fashy haircut%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%feels before reals%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%feminazi%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%fourteen words%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%fraternal order of the alt-knights%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%free helicopter rides%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%free speech rally%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%gamergate%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%gender studies%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%get them out!%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%globalism%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%glorious%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%gop%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%goy%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%groyper%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%happy merchant%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%hatefact%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%identitarianism%'

90 - OR lower(body) LIKE '%identity politics%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%iq%' OR lower(body) LIKE "%it's okay to be white%" OR lower(body) LIKE '%jew%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%jew media%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%jewish question%'

OR lower(body) LIKE '%jews will not replace us%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%kek%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%kekistan%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%lebensraum%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%legacy media%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%libtard%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%listen and believe%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%low-energy%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%lügenpresse%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%masculinism%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%mass immigration%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%microaggression%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%milk emoji%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%misogyny%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%moon man%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%msm%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%muh%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%multiculturalism%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%nazi%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%neoreactionary movement%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%nimble navigator%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%normie%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%ok hand sign%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%on the alt right%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%operation google%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%oppression%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%oppression olympics%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%our guy%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%oy vey%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%paleoconservative%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%pc%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%pegida%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%pepe%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%pol%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%political correctness%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%postmodernism%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%privilege%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%progressive stack%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%proud boys%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%punchanazi%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%race mixing%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%race realism%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%real diversity%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%regressive left%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%remember the 6 trillion%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%remove kebab%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%richwine%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%rwds%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%sad!%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%safe space%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%shekel%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%shitlord%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%shlomo%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%shoah%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%social justice warrior%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%sonnenrad%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%soros%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%soy boy%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%special snowflake%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%takimag%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%the daily stormer%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%the last stand%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%the new brutality%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%tiki torch%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%triggered%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%trump%'

OR lower(body) LIKE '%trumpwave%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%vatican city%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%vdare%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%virtue signalling%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%we wuz kangz n shieet%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%weimerica%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%western civilization%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%wetbacks%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%white devil%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%white genocide%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%white guilt%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%white sharia%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%you will not replace us%' OR lower(body) LIKE '%zionist%' ) AND (lower(subreddit) IN ("The_Donald", "mgtow", "incels", "theredpill", "mensrights"))

GROUP BY subreddit, date ORDER BY subreddit

Query 5 - Find number of posts top 300 users SELECT COUNT(subreddit), subreddit FROM [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2016_07] WHERE author IN ( SELECT author FROM [thesis-research-jimi:subreddit_users.TheRedPill_top300]) AND (LOWER(subreddit) IN ("The_Donald", "mgtow", "incels", "theredpill", "mensrights")) GROUP BY subreddit ORDER BY subreddit

Query 6 - Find discourse of top 300 users per subreddit SELECT word, s_count, s_ratio, g_count, g_ratio, s_to_g_ratio, weight FROM ( SELECT s.word word, s.c s_count, ROUND(s.ratio,4) s_ratio, g.c g_count, ROUND(g.ratio,4) g_ratio, ROUND(s.ratio/g.ratio,2) s_to_g_ratio, ROUND(s.ratio/g.ratio,2) * s.c weight FROM ( SELECT c, word, ssum, (c/ssum)*100 ratio FROM ( SELECT c, word, SUM(c) OVER () AS ssum FROM ( SELECT COUNT(*) c, word FROM ( SELECT REGEXP_EXTRACT(word,r'([a-z0-9\-\']*)') word FROM ( SELECT SPLIT(LOWER(body),' ') word FROM [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_01] WHERE author in (SELECT author from [thesis-research-jimi:subreddit_users.MGTOW_top300]) AND LOWER(subreddit)="The_Donald")) GROUP BY word))) s JOIN EACH ( SELECT c, word, gsum, (c/gsum)*100 ratio FROM ( SELECT c, word, SUM(c) OVER () AS gsum FROM ( SELECT COUNT(*) c, word FROM ( SELECT REGEXP_EXTRACT(word,r'([a-z0-9\-\']*)') word FROM ( SELECT SPLIT(LOWER(body),' ') word FROM

[fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_01])) GROUP BY word))) g ON g.word = s.word WHERE s.word NOT IN ('gt', 'lt', 'amp') ) WHERE s_to_g_ratio > 5 ORDER BY s_count DESC limit 50

Query 7 - Find specific comments containing a certain word. SELECT count (*) count, subreddit, author, body FROM [fh-bigquery:reddit_comments.2017_01] WHERE LOWER(body) LIKE '%rape%' AND author IN ( SELECT author FROM [thesis-research-jimi:subreddit_users.MGTOW_top300]) AND LOWER(subreddit)="The_Donald" GROUP BY subreddit, body, author ORDER BY count DESC LIMIT 50

Appendix B: Comments The_Donald

Table 8: Comments from The_Donalds top 300 users, containing “sick” 2016-09

Anon Folks with pneumonia aren't supposed to fly. The pressurized cabin plays havoc with the lung congestion. Also, my bet is that they've got some "high level" DNC crisis talks happening. And, I bet she's a lot sicker than just pneumonia.

Anon This is it. She is sick. She has lung issues and she is coughing phlegm like crazy.

Anon The Clintons are so fucked feared by the rest of the Democrats they're willing to play along with this charade of her being healthy. She is sick, perhaps even dying and the Democrats are just going along with it. This is insane. The whole party should be annihilated and sent to the dustbin of history.

Anon Dem leaders aren't stupid. They have to realize that Hillary is a very sick horse.

Anon She is just like my Abuela, old and sick with Parkinsons.

Table 9: Comments from The_Donalds top 300 users, containing “weasel” 2016-09

Anon A meme is born. Comey and everyone involved with this cover up = Weasels

Anon What *should* we call you then, Comey? Ferrets? Fisher cats? Meerkats? Nah, weasel is the perfect term.

Anon I'd like to see a compilation of Comey getting mad at being called a weasel interrupt with all of the "weasel words" he used during his testimony. Please, somebody make this happen

Anon Honestly, this shit is playing out so laughably predictable. Collapsing yesterday, and you can fucking bet this woman will use this as an excuse to weasel her way out of the debates. The only thing is, Assange's leaks loom, most likely before the first debate - and there could be absolutely anything in those. I'm willing to bet that its proof of her funding 9/11 and ISIS, as well as her 'plan' to win this election (I bet this 'illness' was part of it, even if it played out with a real illness instead of a fake one which she was going to play up) including proof of rigging the election itself. Then we have awesome Chaffetz subpoenaing the FBI for unredacted documents and leaving them no more wiggle room to get out of exposing Hil**liar**y as the lying evil cunt she is. I'm running out of popcorn guys! At this rate though, the chances of the first debate happening is less than 100%, despite the fact I've been waiting for that day for months now.

TheRedPill Table 10: Comments from TheRedPill’s top 300 users, containing “women” in The_Donald (2016-05)

Anon Well the age that both men and women settle down and have a family is moving backwards into the 30s. Many guys aren't having kids in their mid 20s like they used to. Even when they do get married in their 30s though, they're getting divorced often because divorce is easy and the incentive for a woman to get divorced is much higher than to work on the relationship, as feminism has promoted the "strong independent woman" archetype and the carefree party lifestyle. Historically, being divorced would have been shameful and couples were strongly encouraged to work out any issues. Now it's high-fives all round.

Anon The Democrats treat women they way they treat blacks and Mexicans, like Roman Senators treated the masses: They pander to them and give them free shit, they give them all the sex and entertainment and tell them to be as fat as they want, just vote for us. meanwhile women on anti-depressants and anti-anxiety are twenty times what they were, their happiness is plummeting, and single motherhood is on the rise. They hate women. Trump loves these bitches

Anon What are you asking? women and men are different. they want different things, women dont need to provide for a family and want social jobs.

Table 11: Comments from TheRedPill’s top 300 users, containing “women” in TheRedPill (2016-05)

Anon Yes, women need a relationship - but this does not imply it has to one long one. Serial relationships is the norm - and most women would be quite happy to have a string ex husbands paying alimony

Anon I can give you a why: the snapping point. Eventually at the current rate things are going men will snap. The current fake domestic violence and rape claims will soon be replaced with more alarming real DV and rapes but the women will report them less because those are actual manly men. Remember the muslims raping all the women in Europe and even feminists shoved that under the rug? Yeah.

Anon I should add that this should come naturally to you as you read the side bar and really take in the red pill. At this point, I don't think I could ever accidentally have "respectful love" for a women. Women *are weak*. They need protection from everybody including themselves. You can't accidentally respect that if you understand it.

MGTOW

Table 12: Comments from MGTOW’s top 300 users, containing “rape” in The_Donald (2017-01)

Anon Poor Elon Musk. A few years from being divorce raped like Johnny Depp

Anon You forgot divorce rape. (Alimony, un-audited child support, custodial rights of the children, and gets to live in the house while the man keeps paying for it)

Anon All women are fine with rape as long as the guy is hot. So really, rape is only possible if the guy is unattractive aka bottom 80%.

Anon Just think about the other timeline for a minute. 550% increase in rapefugees and basically an open border down south. We'd be hearing the same kind of shit from our apologist left (unless it was a fucking white male that did anything the left doesn't approve of).

Anon I doubt it. I imagine the feminists are saying that white men are to blame for not stopping the refugee rape games in Germany, not that the refugees doing the raping are to blame.

Table 13: Comments from MGTOW’s top 300 users, containing “rape” in MGTOW (2017-01)

Anon This woman I dated once told me this sob story about how her live in boyfriend had raped her on his weightlifting bench. Her next move? She married him. AWALT.

Anon Rest assured, they have. It's an unmistakable look in the eyes. Whereas the women look like they just divorce-raped their husbands, gained $500k, and are about to go to Starbucks.

Anon The chart is the reason I hate "Yes means yes" laws. Women can point a finger and say they were raped and the guy is punished without evidence.

Anon Absolutely. Women are the gatekeepers of sex (actual rape aside). There's no excuse a woman can give me that absolves her of consensual sex with a man while in a relationship with another. Of course the "Chad" wanted it. Of course he'll hit on a hot chick. It's her job to be a big girl and take only one cock at a time (I know it's hard apparently).

Anon Most men have to learn the hard way. You can't help them more than pointing out the problem. You'll get NAWALT and it won't happen to me...and the worst might not. He might never get divorced-raped and instead be slowly ground down to a nub over 40 years.

Table 14: Comments from MGTOW’s top 300 users, containing “suicide” in The_Donald (2017-01)

Anon Mark Cuban on suicide watch!

100

Anon If twitter bans Trump it will be the end of Twitter. I've never seen a company commit suicide. I kinda want to watch it happen

Anon **Pew Global (2006)** * 68% of Palestinian Muslims say suicide attacks against civilians in defense of Islam are justified. * 43% of Nigerian Muslims say suicide attacks against civilians in defense of Islam are justified. * 38% of Lebanese Muslims say suicide attacks against civilians in defense of Islam are justified. * 15% of Egyptian Muslims say suicide attacks against civilians in defense of Islam are justified. **People Press Surveys** * 31% of Turks support suicide attacks against Westerners in Iraq. h **Pew Research (2007):** * 26% of younger Muslims in America believe suicide bombings are justified. * 35% of young Muslims in Britain believe suicide bombings are justified (24% overall). * 42% of young Muslims in France believe suicide bombings are justified (35% overall). * 22% of young Muslims in Germany believe suicide bombings are justified.(13% overall).

Table 15: Comments from MGTOW’s top 300 users, containing “suicide” in MGTOW (2017-01)

Anon *Men committing suicide is normalized...* Not only normalized, **intended**. Men are viewed as disposable from the start. Men are conditioned from childhood to sacrifice themselves and they are taught their lives are otherwise worthless.

Anon I love women and my relationships with them. I will never get married because it's financial and legal suicide but that's not the fault of women.

Anon First there's love, then comes marriage, then comes a baby in a baby carriage, then there's bdsm, then there's cuckoldry, then there's polyamory, then there's divorce court, then there's male suicide, then there's the death of civilization, then there's eternal nihilism, then there's rebirth (?)

MensRights

Table 16: Comments from MensRights top 300 users, containing “abortion” in The_Donald (2017-01)

Anon It's a "tent pole issue" for democrats. They can't dump abortion as a primary issue even if they wanted because it attracts too many women to the voting booth.

Anon It is heavy. That's just the gravity of the situation. Abortion is pretty horrible. It was almost too dark but then again I'm a fan of things that are too dark. The thing is most people who would be offended by this are also likely to be pro-life so they will not be offended as they understand that an ugly picture is less offensive than the ugly reality of a mutilated baby that otherwise would have very likely grown up and become a healthy adult.

101

Anon The pro-life argument comes from a good place (abortion is a sad thing and no one wants more of it), but logically it is a total failure. Being pro-life is insisting that Big Government can intrude into your life and insist, under penalty of law, that you must surrender the use of your own body against your will in order to benefit another person (the fetus). Being pro-life is the moral equivalent of supporting forced organ donation. Sorry, no. I don't care how sad it makes you that some fertilized eggs won't get a chance to become humans... it is completely immoral and anti-freedom to have the government force you to give up the use of your own body in order to benefit someone else. In fact that's one of the most evil and immoral political views I can even imagine. Want to reduce abortions? The solution is better sex education and better/easier access to contraception. It's no surprise that the Bible Belt states that fight against these ideas have the highest rates of teen pregnancy. Much like opposition to gay marriage or supporting the wasteful war on drugs, the pro-life position needs to be dumped by the Republican party and left in the past where it belongs.

Table 17: Comments from MensRights top 300 users, containing “abortion” in MensRights (2017-01) Anon They're about to lose abortion rights. No, they're not. Wake me up when it becomes impossible for any woman in the U.S. to obtain an abortion without flying to another country. If the long-term trend continues, abortion is just going to keep becoming more culturally accepted and more widely available everywhere. Having a few fundamental religious assholes in government will potential cause a few minor setbacks for abortion at most. Anon I suppose what I'm proposing (and I haven't thought this through fully) is this. Much of what first and second wave feminism fought for focussed on women's reproductive rights - access to reliable, easy contraception, abortion, adoption and so on. In that sense, and to the extent that this push succeeded, modern codes of practice and, by extension, law, have gone a long way to reduce the burden of biological heritage on women. For the most part, I have no objection to any of this. However. In bringing moral and legal codes into the intractable subject of biology and furthermore putting those legal codes that (in most cases rightly) favour women right up front, it's now at the point where those codified principles **dis**favour men. If we're going to prioritise law and "rights" over biology, then where are the corresponding reproductive "rights" (and laws) for men? Come to that, where is there even discussion about this? Leaving aside the (IMO correct) arguments about fathers' rights to financial abortion, what about a father's "right" to have the child they co-created? I mean, yes, biology; but if we insist on having laws and ethical codes that give women real rights that over-ride (or at least ameliorate) biology, then surely any society that has pretensions to being fair should consider a man's "right" to have the child he co-created. I don't pretend to have all the answers; but I do think this is a discussion that needs to be had.

Anon

If a woman makes a unilateral decision to bring pregnancy to term, and the biological father does not, and cannot, share in this decision, he should not be liable for 21 years of support... autonomous women making independent decisions about their lives should not expect men to finance their choice. - Karen DeCrow > When a female determines she is pregnant, she has the freedom to decide if she has the maturity level to undertake the responsibilities of motherhood, if she is financially able to support a child, if she is at a place in her career to take the time to have a child, or if she has other concerns precluding her from carrying the child to term. After weighing her options, the female may choose abortion. Once she aborts the fetus, the female's interests in and obligations to the child are terminated. In stark contrast, the unwed father has no options. His responsibilities to the child begin at conception and can only be terminated with the female's decision to abort the fetus or with the mother's decision to give the child up for adoption. Thus, he must rely on the decisions of the female to determine his future. The putative father does not have the luxury, after the fact of conception, to decide that he is not ready for fatherhood. Unlike the female, he has no escape route. - Melanie McCulley

Anon Dumbest, most irrelevant counterargument ever. Even most bible thumpers support abortion in the case of danger to the mother's life. This isn't about taking abortion rights away from women. Are you 12 years old? It's about giving men equivalent choices, and a "way out". The world does not revolve around vagina-owners.

Table 18: Comments from MensRights top 300 users, containing “rape” in The_Donald (2017-01)

Anon Agreed. Ideally, shoot them in the head and mail them back to their family. Maybe it'll discourage the other rapists from "seeking refugee". Tolerance to a degree is generally a good thing... But this isn't tolerance, it's complicity in large scale gang rape. For government officials to tolerate this is dereliction of duty and borderline treason.

102

Anon She safely hitchhiked from Italy to Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia, and Bulgaria. Within 2 days of entering her first Muslim country, she was raped and murdered. This happened in Turkey, the most westernized and modern of the Islamic countries. Pippa was planning to make it through Turkey and travel through Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine on her way to her destination of Jerusalem.

Anon It was never about population size, it was always about $$$. I saw a good video about this a while back, talking about "why do you think SJWs complain about every little thing that white Westerners do, but pay so little attention to the rape and murder and theft and oppression in poor countries around the world?" There's no money in it, there's no reward given to you for complaining. Abdul and Mohammed don't give a fuck about your beliefs and will keep marrying children and stoning rape victims. But if you complain to white Americans, they give you advantages in college admission and job hiring, you get "safe spaces" and other special treatment, you get sympathetic followers who donate to your Patreon account, you can be paid to give speeches and write articles about social justice... it's all very profitable.

Table 19: Comments from MensRights top 300 users, containing “rape” in MensRights (2017-01)

Anon "Men get raped more if you take into account prison rape". I would argue that traditional rape stats for men outside of prison are far, far lower than in reality due to the huge stigma around being raped as a male. This is doubly so if the man/by was raped by a woman, because you should "like" that and be grateful a woman wanted you badly enough to rape you.

Anon You'd probably be interested in statistics that show the incidence of rape plummeting in any society where access to pornography is made easier. I can't search for these at the moment, but the results are fairly conclusive and run contrary to the common narrative.

Anon You are wrong again. 22000 rapes are reported each year approximately. 5000 are sent to court and the jury finds about 2800 guilty each year. Rape is over reported in the UK. 10 years ago only 5000 rape allegations were recorded by the police. Now every woman who breaks up badly with a boyfriend and wants revenge makes an allegation of rape. Rape is vastly over reported in the UK. **Like you I have also seen figures. These show 90% of rape allegations are false**.

Table 20: Comments containing “law” by MensRights top 300 users in The_Donald

Anon > Most of his record is about requiring background checks so criminals cant get guns... He voted for Bill Clinton's assault weapon ban. He voted agaisnt repeal/amendment of Bill Clinton's assault weapon ban. He voted to ban guns for anyone suspected (*not* even charged, tried, nor convicted) of terrorism. He voted to limit firearm magazine capacities, effectively outlawing standard magazines and feeding devices. He voted against concealed carry reciprocity, in that if you are licensed to carry concealed in one state, you can do it in all states instead of the need to become licensed in states that do not have reciprocity laws in place. He voted (again) for a new assault weapons ban. He voted *against* an amendment that prohibits the United States From Entering into the United Nations Arms Trade Treaty. ... all while exempting government and giving government the above rights he voted to steal from American citizens. > I dont understand anyones problem with that (left or right). I think that is a very acceptable record. Why do you believe that a person who has broken the law and paid their debt to society should not be allowed to defend their lives and the lives of their wives, husbands, children, fellow citizens, families, friends, and property? Why do you believe that they deserve to be injured and killed? Show me where in the Constitution it states that law-abiding ex-criminals are not allowed to purchase and possess guns. Why do you believe that Statute Law trumps the highest law in the land in the Second Amendment to the US Constitution? Besides, criminals don't obey laws telling them that they can't get guns. Only law-abiding citizens obey laws.

103

Anon There's a reason why we have laws to prevent discrimination. Not every single instance of discrimination would lead to ruining people's lives, but if you allow it on a large scale it would do a lot of harm. When I see people argue against this it reminds me of far-left lunatic who think it's OK to restrict free speech, because after all there are plenty of other places to go have free speech in, right? Screw that. Everyone should have equal protection under the law from being discriminated against, whether it's because of their skin, their orientation, or their opinions. It's not just Christianity that has to follow these rules, it's every religion. It's sad that Islam gets a pass on some things but that doesn't mean the rules are wrong, it means the rule enforcers are wrong.

Anon I disapprove of laws making it illegal to state your opinions. In the USA, it's perfectly legal if someone wants to question the holocaust, because we have free speech rights codified in the First Amendment to our Constitution. I am genuinely sorry that you lack those protections.

Table 21: Comments containing “law” by MensRights top 300 users in MensRights

Anon Well you aren't any better. You support a Republican and are mad a Depp for supporting a Democrat. Now that Hilary will get the Democrat ticket, and every MRA should know that Hilary will support laws that discriminate against men. I will have to address Trump..

Anon That's true. I think if the MR movement had the political power that feminism currently has and was unopposed like feminism has been until very recently, it would be just as bad. Maybe even worse. It doesn't have that political power right now. We don't have divorce laws shaped in men's favour by an ideologue researcher that knowingly lied and falsified results (and still has a senior teaching position at a University). "The patriarchy" is taught in University sociology programs. There's a difference here. Right now. You are dismissing the real effects because "red haired idiot was stupid and condescending" while ignoring that these stupid and condescending people are having real effects. The people that you are calling feminist - the quiet ones, the ones that want the opportunity for their daughter to take shop or be a mechanic, they *don't matter*. They are irrelevant to anything. The noisy ones are the ones affecting law and society.

Anon That is an absolute nightmare. Utah adoption law should be changed to require the mother to declare she has made her best efforts to identify and contact the father, and the adoption agency should be required to try to contact the father. The woman behaved despicably, she let him think he was OK but then conspired with her religious parents to steal his child for adoption to their friends.

Incels

Table 22: Comments from Incels’ top 300 users, in The_Donald (2017-01)

Anon Thank god arrests were made. The shitlib media keeps trying to cover up for "tolerant" lefties. Deafening silence from all MSM outlets whenever it is Trump supporters get attacked, yet they salivate over any opportunity to paint Trump supporters as a violent rabble. It's hypocritical as fuck, and it's feeding into the culture of violence among regressive lefties. You can already see it on other subs. When a Trump supporter or anyone on the right gets attacked, there will be a bunch of posts saying shit like "it's not wrong to assault people who have horrible beliefs", and so on. Good thing Trump is in charge now and will give a free hand to law enforcement to put a stop to this mob violence.

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Anon Trump may be a means to an end. Violent revolution and upheaval has been a recurring theme when empires collapse. The current American empire will likely collapse and die just like the Soviet empire did. Given the state of the US economy and political system it might not be a bad thing. It will lead to a reinvigorated American nation state. People like HRC and Soros might get put up against the wall if your lucky.

Anon Bernie might be a cucklord but he is one of the few who seems to understand. The poor guy should be in the old folks home, he's lucky to be alive after crossing Killary. But almost no one else in the party seems to understand, i think they are just going to double down in 2020.

Table 23: Comments from Incels’ top 300 users, in Incels (2017-01)

Anon Women want to change men constantly to fit their own mold. Then he turns into a beta and they become turned off by him and it ends in a dead bedroom. This is why Chads don't like to commit.

Anon rekt that feminist cunt whore.

Anon Not being able to have sex like the normies implies subhumanity, being below the average normie. It has a cause underneath it. That is what inceldom is all about. This is not just "having a dry spell" or just simply about not having sex for many incels. If you cannot ever have sex even when you try as hard as you can, you are quite literally subhuman. Below the average human. Having sex is the ultimate validation, the ultimate compliment someone can give you. Someone telling you that you are indeed "good enough". So, the point is, being able to have sex IS very important.

Table 24: Comments containing “Trump”, from Incels’ top 300 users, in Incels (2017-01)

Anon Feminism has a strong foothold here in straya. I got in trouble at work for not buying a white ribbon for domestic violence. Will any of you american incels gay marry me for a green card so that I can live in Trump's America?

Anon Love how people get so uptight when they realise their beloved quotes also fit people they don't like. Yes Trump is standing for something. Like it or hate it, but he is actually doing the things he said we will do.

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Anon No one called you liberal, learn to read stupid. You clearly are not liberal which is why to you Pence is a male with high social value. No, you would not be attracted to him as a homeless person. I'm not surprised a girl with no self respect is validating a Chad like Trump by voting for him - he only despises your kind as do you, so of course in your endless quest to stay apart from other women you vote for a dude who made it pretty clear he has no respect for you. Lol, at the point where you try to get credibility by talking about iq test results is where it gets especially weak and typical. Your mentality came through and you're dumber than an average redditor female. At least a rad fem has some self respect. You think that having a shit haircut sets you apart from other women which only again makes you a typical female. Details deliberately picked to stand apart to cover being the same. I even made a thread on this but about all you normies in general and listed haircuts and style as your ways of attempting to stand out. And really, you want to list interest in politics as a sign of snowflakeness while you just totally embarrassed yourself with complete lack of understanding of the topic. I wonder what "other girls" would say to you claiming they are less informed than you. If there's something typical for every female it's the belief they are different than other females cause men that wanted to fuck them convinced them it is so. That is how you for instance live under the impression you are smart and attractive when all it takes is for you to share an opinion and it becomes obvious both couldn't be further from the truth. Your claim that you're not a gold digger doesn't make you not a gold digger just how your claim that you're special doesn't make you special. Evidence points otherwise. It's normally what people have to actually tell you about themselves that is the opposite of truth. And your vapid little attempt at having an opinion on economy is as stupid as your attempt at politics. Stop thinking, you'll look smarter. I wish morons weren't allowed to vote.

Anon Can't stand Trump or politics in general but being in college I got front row seats to liberal meltdowns. That Wednesday I smiled all day.

Anon Idk i think trump could have gone with his whole idea a different way, but i do agree and support even as a non - american with what hes trying to do to stop the immigration problem. He is certainly at least doing something to keep the country safe from future planned attacks/ drugs/ crime etc.

Anon Then i will not care for women problems. So glad Trump is in office. Take away planned parenthood from these whores

Appendix C: Themes The_Donald Table 25: Themes found in word clouds for The_Donald

The_Donald

2016-05 Election, Alt-Right slang, media, Islam

2016-09 Sickness Clinton, Investigation FBI, Alt-Right slang , media, election

2017-01 Media, FBI/CIA, Islam/ISIS

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TheRedPill Table 26: Themes found in word clouds for TheRedPill

TheRedPill The_Donald

2016-05 Sex and gender, feminism, negative connotations towards Gender, feminism, religion, politics, race, Alt-Right slang women, relationships, manospheric slang

2016-09 Sex and gender, negative connotations towards women, Religion, politics, race, Alt-Right slang relationships, manospheric slang

2017-01 Sex and gender, negative connotations towards women, Religion, politics, race, Alt-Right slang relationships, manospheric slang, feminism

MGTOW Table 27: Themes found in word clouds for MGTOW

MGTOW The_Donald

2016-05 Sex and gender, feminism, manospheric slang, Alt-Right Politics, race, sickness Clinton, gender, feminism slang

2016-09 Sex and gender, feminism, negative connotations towards Corruption, treason, and politics, sickness Clinton women, relationships, manospheric slang

2017-01 Sex and gender, negative connotations towards women, Religion, politics, media, race, Alt-Right slang, rape, women relationships, manospheric slang, rape

MensRights Table 28: Themes found in word clouds for MensRights

MensRights The_Donald

2016-05 Gender and sex, rights, false rape, feminism, suicide and Immigration, politics, religion, race, laws violence

2016-09 Gender and sex, rights, false rape, feminism, violence Immigration, politics, religion, sickness Clinton, women

2017-01 Gender and sex, rights, false rape, feminism, violence, Media, abortion, feminism, religion, race, violence, AltRight abortion slang

107

Incels Table 29: Themes found in word clouds for Incels

Incels The_Donald

2016-05 Dating, looks, personality, sex, men, and women Election, woman (Clinton)

2016-09 Dating, looks, personality, sex, men, and women, Alt-Right Religion, election, women slang

2017-01 Dating, looks, personality, sex, men, and women, Alt-Right Election, violence, religion Slang

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