The 'Manosphere' in Digital Spaces: Understanding Gender-Based Online Violence Against Women

• 76% of women in political or public office in Spain have experienced digital gender-based violence on social media.
• The "manosphere" has emerged as a growing, hegemonous network of misogynistic online communities in Western societies.
• Digital violence is strategically deployed to limit the public influence of women and exclude them from democratic discourse.
• Algorithms on platforms like YouTube and TikTok are identified as drivers for the spread of toxic masculinity and anti-feminist narratives.

The Manosphere: Structure and Strategy

• Defined as a collective of virtual communities for cisgender, white, heterosexual men to express frustrations regarding traditional patriarchal mandates.
• Operates as a political movement that defends traditional masculinity while reacting against women's sexual, reproductive, and cultural rights.
• Uses influencers on platforms like YouTube and TikTok to radicalize young male audiences with conservative, traditionalist messaging.
• Employs targeted harassment based on the victim's identity; racialized women face racism, older women face ageism, trans women face direct identity attacks, and progressives are challenged on their moral stances.

Evidence and Institutional Impact

• Research indicates that unlike male politicians, who are primarily criticized for their management or ideology, female politicians face gender-based insults and threats.
• A 2018 study of European parliaments found 58% of female members faced sexist attacks, with 46.9% receiving death or rape threats.
• High levels of self-censorship (52% restrict content) and temporary abandonment of digital spaces (31%) occur among victims, harming public discourse.

Ideological Polarization and Policy

• Scholars identify an "inverted gender ideological gap," particularly among Gen Z, where women increasingly lean progressive and men shift toward right-wing, populist, and neoconservative ideas.
• This polarization manifests as a "reaction" to gender equality policies, framed by these groups as a threat to traditional patriarchal values.
• Experts call for urgent institutional consensus and public policies to regulate social media usage and curb the impunity of organized, ideologically driven harassment campaigns.