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Chapter 4 - The outrage economy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 January 2026

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Summary

This chapter introduces a key site at which mainstream feminist activism tends to take place: the ‘outrage economy’ of the media and social media. This outrage economy is the result of changing media markets, which have produced a number of trends: sensationalism, hyperbole and vilification of opponents. While ‘outrage media’ has traditionally been identified on the right, it is now crossing political boundaries. Privileged white feminists, who have ready access to media platforms, have ‘invested’ their sexual violence stories in the outrage economy to generate political support. Media outrage in the form of ‘naming and shaming’ often leads to ‘bad men’ being airbrushed out of institutions without any change to structures and power relations. Politics that manipulates outrage can also lead to privileged feminists ‘pricing’ more marginalised women out of the outrage economy, especially when it comes to sex work and transgender equality.

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