New Netflix show "draws attention to disconnection and radicalisation in teenage boys," says Coventry expert
Dr Marcus Maloney, from Coventry University, praises the new Netflix show Adolescence for highlighting disconnection amongst young boys
An expert from Coventry says Netflix crime drama Adolescence is a real eye opener on the topic of young boys who are radicalised online.
Over 24 million people streamed the popular crime drama on Netflix in it's first week with it's chilling plot exploring the arrest of a young boy for the murder of a school girl.
Adolescence has captured the attention of viewers with it's focus on knife crime and disconnection amongst teenage boys; topics which are becoming ever more frequent within the British media.
The success of the show has seen starring actor Stephan Graham and the show’s creator Jack Thorne being invited to a meeting in parliament to discuss the issue of online safety with MPs.
The Netflix series has even captured the attention of the Prime Minister who says he wants to show to be shown in secondary schools across the country.
We've been speaking with Dr Marcus Maloney, an Assistant Professor in Sociology at Coventry University’s Centre for Post digital Cultures. Dr Maloney has conducted research on the negative impact online influencers, such as Andrew Tate can have on some teenage boys.
Dr Maloney says the show provides insight into the wider socio-economic cultural contexts which are driving young men towards misogynistic influences online.
Dr Maloney said: "The most important thing that we need to be doing in terms of trying to understand the 'manosphere' and the popularity of reactionary male centred online communities, is to look at what what is driving boys and young men into these spaces.
"The main thing that I would say is there is an increasing sense of uncertainty about their transition into adulthood. This can be in terms of careers but also in terms of romance and intimate relationships which is becoming harder to find in the digital world.
"Youth experience for boys and young men can intersect in a problematic way with a set of traditional ideals around what it means to be a man. When boys and young men are unable to attain those ideals because of the reality of what it's like to sort of grow up, some are turning to radical and misogynistic figures such as Andrew Tate."
Whilst the storyline of Adolescence highlights the negative impact of social media and misogynist influencers on some teenage boys, it also provides an answer into how disconnection can be prevented, Dr Maloney told us more.
Dr Maloney said: "How do we prevent this or how do we deal with this increasing appeal of reactionary cultures among boys and young men is something that spoke to me throughout the series.
"I think the simple starting point is that we need to listen impartially to our boys and young men and get a sense of, you know, their lives, their biographies, their aspirations, their anxieties to help them to reconnect."