There’s a mystery of violence swirling in and amongst the kids these days. Especially boys. What could it be? Snapchat? Video games? Andrew Tate? A hit Netflix series points to issues, and policy. But is it pointing in the right direction? 

Today we’ll look at “Adolescence”: the origin story, the strengths and liabilities of its one-take technique, and its deceptively conservative messaging. Should it be shown in Parliament? Schools? Does it tell us much about the kids it is worried about? Does it offload responsibility for misogyny and violence onto ambient internet chaos, when there are so many other causes closer to home? And why, if it is a meditation on violence committed by boys, do we learn so little about the girls who are harmed?

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Correction: In the episode, Matthew said that Axel Rudakabana was of South Asian descent. He was born in the UK of parents from Rwanda.

Show Notes

Brief: Tate Crime

Teachers Warn That Misogynist Andrew Tate Has 'Radicalized' School-Age Boys

180: Is This the Next Andrew Tate?

Stephen Graham shares the heartbreaking stories that inspired Netflix's Adolescence 

'Adolescence' Becomes Netflix's Most-Watched Limited Series in First 2 Weeks With 66.3 Million Views

Elon Musk blasted for spreading 'concerning' misinformation about Netflix's Adolescence 

Netflix’s Adolescence makes TV history in the UK

“Netflix hit Adolescence has lessons for us all” says Northumbria PCC Susan Dungworth, as she welcomes PM backing for it to be shown in UK Schools 

Netflix's Adolescence inspired by true story of Croydon girl's horrific murder - MyLondon 

UK experts warn of dangers of violent content being readily available online | Southport attack

Croydon schoolgirl Elianne Andam stabbed in ‘white-hot anger’, court told | UK news

Hassan Sentamu sentencing remarks 

Sentencing Remarks: In the matter of the murder of Ava White

Crime in England and Wales: year ending September 2024 

The facts about firearm violence

Firearm Violence in the United States | Center for Gun Violence Solutions  

Online gangs of teenage boys sharing extreme material are ‘emerging threat’ in UK | NCA (National Crime Agency)

Beyond the Headlines 2024 Summary | Youth Endowment Fund 

Spotify takes down Andrew Tate ‘pimping’ podcast after complaints 

Kyle Clifford watched Andrew Tate videos before triple murder

The Terrifying Truth Behind Netflix’s ‘Adolescence’ 

Stephen Graham Netflix series Adolescence inspired by two real-life crimes

"Objective realism," ethnographic cinema, and the classical model of visual-anthropological research 

PACE Code C 2023

GCSEs harm our young people. Ministers should have the guts to abolish them – and start again

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