Oxford University Press has crowned 'rage bait' as its Word of the Year for 2025, officially recognising what content creators have known for some time: making people furious is now a legitimate career path.
The term, which has tripled in usage over the past 12 months, describes online content deliberately designed to provoke anger and outrage. For the millions scrolling through their social media feeds, the manufactured outrage they encounter has become impossible to avoid. Enter a growing number of influencers who are capitalising on this phenomenon by creating content specifically designed to elicit reactions.
