Backlash Postings: Aggrieved Entitlement on the Internet

• In Event: Research on Gender Violence

Abstract

A growing body of empirical work shows that the Internet is riddled with anti-feminist rhetoric. Heavily informed by masculinities theorist Michael Kimmel’s concept of “aggrieved entitlement,” this paper presents the results of an in-depth content analysis of anti-feminist postings on social news and entertainment websites such as Reddit and Imgur. Special attention is devoted to how such postings buttress rape myths and the claim that women are as violent as men in intimate relationships.

Authors

• Walter Steven DeKeseredy, West Virginia University

• Alexis Fabricius, Invicta Self-Defense

• Amanda Sanchez, West Virginia University