Controversial influencer Andrew Tate this week lost his appeal to end his detention in a Romanian prison.
Tate and his brother Tristan have been jailed in Romania since late December along with two other suspects, and will now be detained until 17 February on suspected rape and human trafficking offences.
However, despite his arrest, the former kickboxer is still attracting the loyalty of his millions of followers while his social media accounts are still active.
Hashtags such as #FreeTopG and references to “Matrix” opposition have flooded social media since the influencer’s arrest, increasing concern around the hold Tate has on his fans – mainly young vulnerable men.
After losing his appeal, he tweeted: “Even if you feel powerful every day, some days you will feel more powerful than other days... Outcompete the average man’s best day on your worst.”
He went on to say after leaving court: “Ask them for evidence and they will give you none, because it doesn’t exist. You’ll find out the truth of this case soon.”
However, Julia Ebner, a counterterrorism adviser to the UN and senior research fellow with anti-hate organisation Institute of Strategic Dialogue, said Andrew Tate is only the tip of the iceberg in the field of misogynistic and sexist influencers.
Ms Ebner explained that Tate is an example of how extremist ideas are now being mainstreamed.
“Andrew Tate is just one of many examples,” Ms Ebner told The Independent.
“We’re almost in an era where the mainstreaming of extremist ideas has become easier and quicker and there is a bigger demand to fill a vacancy of frustration, anxiety, loneliness, especially among the younger generation facing this in the wake of Covid.”
Ms Ebner said Tate is “absolutely” only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to online personalities who are building communities online.
“We have seen there are many people who have spread many similar ideas to Andrew Tate. His ideas are the ones we read about in the headlines but if we look at platforms like 4Chan, Telegram, even YouTube comments, we see that these views are much more widespread and he’s just one out of an increasingly strong proportion of the population in the UK,” Ms Ebner said.
Ms Ebner, an expert in counter far-right terrorism, said many “copycat Andrew Tates” are using alternatives to YouTube such as Bitchute and Odyssee and alternatives to Twitter such as Gab, Parler and Truth Social, to bypass big tech hate speech policies and spread misogynistic and violent rhetoric against women elsewhere.
She added that since Donald Trump’s presidency and the Gamergate scandal of 2015 where groups of gamers launched an online harassment campaign against feminism, diversity and progressivism, there has been a surge in the manosphere – interconnected online misogynistic communities.
Even on larger platforms, Ms Ebner says removing hateful content is a “cat and mouse game” for companies as more and more influencers rise up as such characters see the success of the likes of Andrew Tate and an opportunity to build an audience, make money and gains millions of views.
“White supremacy and misogyny are not new ideas. But they’ve been rebranded and repackaged by these influencers. They present it as something counter-cultural and cool for the younger generations in rebellion to the status quo of today’s liberal policies,” Ms Ebner said.
She continued: “We’re no longer looking at doing research on secretive hidden forums, we’re now looking at mainstream figures like Andrew Tate who can influence society and politics.
“He’s spreading ideas that could change how we see women’s right and progressive policies in general.”
British children’s charity, NSPCC, has also expressed concern about Andrew Tate’s influence on children and young men.
Rani Govender, a child safety online policy officer at the NSPCC warned that “sexist content” of Tate and similar influencers is “shaping boys’ attitude and behaviour” and causing further harm to girls both online and in school.
Mr Govender said: “It’s crucial the Online Safety Bill is strengthened with a Violence Against Women and Girls Code of Practice to ensure sites do not amplify sexism and gendered abuse.
“The inaction of companies to combat misogynistic abuse highlights the need for senior tech managers to be held personally accountable for the safety of girls on their sites and made liable if they fuel serious harm.”
In a snapshot of an NSPCC helpline service call, one parent said: “I’m calling about my 17-year-old son. I’ve noticed his behaviour has been changing lately; he seems to have a strong dislike towards women. Like, he often refers to girls as ‘b******’ and that men are basically the superior sex.
“He spends all his time on his phone, like any teenager, and I’m worried he is being radicalised from what he’s viewing online. I can’t be sure what sites he’s looking at but he’s mentioned this Andrew Tate fella, who I’ve seen has millions of followers. This is not the kind of person I want my son looking up to. I’ve not spoken to anyone else about this and I don’t wish to involve any agencies at this point – I suppose I’m just looking for some advice.”
