“News influencers” are social media translators, conveying the day’s biggest stories via TikTok commentary or Instagram graphic. They also happen to be overwhelmingly male.
As trust in mainstream media lingers at an all-time low, many are turning to social media apps for their news. The relayers of news on these apps take on a prized role, lathering breaking political stories in their own opinions. According to a new Pew Research Center study, 63% of those influencers are men, a demographic that leans toward Donald Trump. Moreover, 27% of them outwardly identify as Republicans.
The men breaking news on social media
On social media, twice as many men post about the news as women. The gender gap widens and shrinks, depending on the platform: A staggering 68% of news YouTubers are men, while TikTok veers more towards 50/50. That two-thirds of news influencers are men may have some political significance, especially when paired with voting patterns: 55% of men voted for Trump, according to early exit poll data, compared to just 43% for Harris.
Of these news influencers, 52% outwardly expressed a political preference, with Republicans outnumbering Democrats 27% to 21%. Platform also matters here, with Facebook and Instagram serving as a haven for conservative news influencers, at 39% and 30% respectively. There’s a curious imbalance here, between the political identity of the influencers and the viewers. While more news influencers identify as Republicans, the most receptive group to news influencer content happens to be liberal Democrats.
Identity and political affiliation is specifically important in the social media news space, which is frequently seeped in opinion. When asked what type of information they were providing, 87% of respondents agreed that they were offering “opinions or takes on issues and events.” That high quantity of men aren’t just reporting—they’re also expressing personal beliefs.
These figures may feel frivolous. News influencers are predominantly one-offs in a broader feed, not followed with the same dogmatic reverence as a TV commentator like Rachel Maddow or Jesse Watters. But their viewership is high: 21% of Americans regularly get news from influencers, a figure that jumps up to 37% for those ages 18-29.
The evolving “manosphere” of media
With Gen Z men voting decisively for Trump in the 2024 election, many pundits and critics have turned their ire towards the “manosphere.” Most of the figures in this space aren’t explicitly making political content: Joe Rogan cracks jokes, Mark Calaway chats wrestling, and Lex Fridman talks tech. Still, they all had Trump on their shows, humanizing him in the process.
What’s notable about the “manosphere” is not just its embrace of Trump, but also its independence from the mainstream. That exists with news influencers, too. To liberals, Charlie Kirk is likely a MAGA pest who has a few viral debate clips. But to conservatives, he’s a news source. Accordingly, Kirk’s TikTok devoted to news updates and commentary has four million more followers than his debate account.
Of course, there are scores of liberal men posting the news, too. Hasan Piker is likely the biggest name in leftist internet politics; he covers the headlines for his 2.8 million Twitch followers. But as the right continues to encroach upon the “manosphere,” the sheer width of the gender gap remains daunting. Men online are falling for Trump; that includes the news influencers, too.
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