Social media: the no-mans-land where anything and everything can be shared, recorded or uploaded, which is both a blessing and a curse. Young, impressionable people often stumble upon a variety of videos — and they aren’t all positive. Some of this content can serve to radicalize watchers into the depths of alt-right media, a dangerous process known as redpilling. 

Redpilling is a term that references an idea from the movie “The Matrix” where the main character must make a choice between taking a blue pill or a red pill. By choosing the red pill, the truth about society is revealed, which in the case of redpilling, targets typically young, white men using fear tactics and gender stereotypes to “reveal” the “truth” about society. 

This indoctrination is not always obvious. It can occur slowly and subtly, building overtime through digital tools like the algorithm. Interacting with one video — or even watching a few seconds extra out of curiosity — can influence the algorithm to promote similar content.  

“[The algorithms] certainly don’t have a conscience that tells them when they’ve gone too far,” Katherine Wu wrote in a PBS article. “Their top priority is that of their parent companies: to showcase the most engaging content — even if that content happens to be disturbing, wrathful or factually incorrect.” Reactionary or radical media elicits myriad responses; whether good or bad, all engagement serves to boost the content further. Eventually, it ends up on the page of people who possibly begin to resonate with the beliefs. 

In the 21st century, the demographic of young white men have voiced feeling excluded from the mainstream due to an increase in diversification through programs like Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives. Ironically, although the purpose of these programs are to strengthen and promote equality, the focus is minimally on white men, a group who historically have not needed the benefits of such efforts. One community that provides a seemingly safe space for “excluded” white men is the alt-right pipeline.

In extreme cases, hate groups like the Proud Boys or other white supremacist idealists can form within the alt-right communities. However, it claims more victims in casual content consumers that begin to internalize hateful and extremist rhetoric. For some of these victims, online alt-right forums may provide the only source of “friends” in their lives, an aspect often exploited by those in the pipeline.

Men are going through a mental health crisis; depression and suicide rates are alarmingly high. Additionally, many men are lonely, with only 27 percent reporting having more than six close friends, and 15 percent having no close friends at all, according to an American Perspectives survey. Redpilling thrives on finding and radicalizing men who may be suffering from some of these issues. Creators pressure white men by exaggerating reality, or simply lying, to instill a sense of fear and polarization. 

Common examples are the fear of being wrongfully accused of sexual assault, being unable to dominate women as a result of feminism and exclusion from growing diversity in society, among others. Oftentimes, this can be assisted by existing gender stereotypes, such as toxic masculinity. Content creators in the alt-right community, like Andrew Tate, Ben Shapiro and others tout a “hyper-masculine” alpha persona, which young men may feel influenced to emulate. 

As a result of posting alt-right centric content, influencers, famous podcasters and YouTubers like Joe Rogan, Theo Von and Logan Paul were highly utilized in campaigning for the Republican party for the 2024 election, aiming to secure a strong foundation in the young white male demographic. Another focal point of the Republican campaign that aided in securing this crucial vote was an emphasis on reducing DEI programs. Aligning and catering to the goals of redpilling and members of the alt-right helped base the campaign towards young white men, and ultimately greatly aided in winning the election for Donald Trump and the Republican party. 

While the internet is a vast, limitless field of content, it’s not guaranteed to have your best interests in mind. Interacting with radical media online can quickly spiral into a pipeline of dangerous and hateful ideas, with very real consequences.