[user104658]

Originally Posted by bitontheslide

to me, it doesn't really matter how it happened, it's more the fact that there are so many nutters out there that think it's ok. All it has done is highlight that there is a massive problem in our society

In social psychology terms it's one and the same... people are suggestible and vulnerable to propaganda. The methods of social contagion ARE the problem. Some more than others, but everyone is... anyone who thinks they're not just isn't aware of the brand of propaganda they're vulnerable to. Propaganda is obviously as old as civilisation itself (witch trials, pre-WW2 Germany etc.) but I do think there's a massive new problem with social media in general and it's getting in some ways far worse with the "new" social media platforms (like TikTok), because of 1) the speed of "bite-sized consumption" (message after message after message from different people; a strong subconscious social indicator of consensus) and 2) the damn algorithms that basically detect what people are vulnerable to and automatically spam more of the same repeatedly.

Couple that with the fact that they have a massive userbase in the 13-to-25 age bracket, who are more susceptible to social influence in general, and you have an absolute mess on your hands. The Incel issue is just one branch of what is a much broader problem ... and one that is politically bi-partisan. Incel/MRA stuff is traditionally linked more to the extreme right but, let's be honest here, Incels and Red/Blackpillers have far more in common with the Anime Avatars spamming "DIE TERF" at JK Rowling on Twitter than either group would ever accept.