This week, the girlies tackle rage bait: the content that’s engineered to make you mad and keep you scrolling. From gutting historic homes to incendiary Republican rhetoric, they explore how anger became a content strategy and why we keep falling for it. They trace the long history of provocation, once a way to challenge power and now just another feature of your FYP, breaking down how rage bait works, who benefits from it, and why nothing feels shocking anymore. Digressions include the beauty of riding a train, knowing conservative content creators in real life, and the age-old question: does being a woman count as rage bait?

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This episode was produced by Julia Hava and Eliza McLamb and edited by Allison Hagan. Research assistance from Kylie Finnigan.

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SOURCES

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Anger is an approach-related affect: Evidence and implications.

Antisocial Behavior in Online Discussion Communities

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Chris Ofili: Can art still shock us?

Chris Ofili, The Holy Virgin Mary

Emotion Shapes the Diffusion of Moral Content

Facebook Manipulated User News Feeds To Create Emotional Responses

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