Joe Rogan helped define 2024 as the “podcast election.” But two years later, some of its biggest players have receded from politics or soured on President Donald Trump.
Manosphere influencers including Elon Musk, Tucker Carlson, Andrew Tate, and Joe Rogan have lost substantial approval among young men, according to new polling, reflecting broader disillusionment among the group.
Data from the Speaking With American Men Project (SAM), published by Puck and based on tracking of 2,000 young American men aged 16 to 29, shows Joe Rogan down 11 points to 42% approval, Elon Musk down 14 points to 37%, and Tucker Carlson down 8 points to 24%. Andrew Tate, arrested this year on sexual assault allegations, holds a -30 approval rating among the same cohort. The figures mark a notable contraction for figures long associated with large young male audiences.
The declines are part of a wider pattern in which many young people’s political views appear more reactive than principled. Disillusioned young men of various political leanings have sought influencers who acknowledged their concerns without condescension, ranging from figures on the far left such as Hasan Piker to those on the far right such as Nick Fuentes. These voices offered a consistent message of recognition and potential solutions.
Trump’s outreach to this audience—appearing on podcasts like Joe Rogan’s and Theo Von’s and at UFC events—proved effective in 2024, contributing to record support among young men. Researchers have examined a so-called “Joe Rogan effect.” A September Cygnal poll found 43% of young men believed the country’s rules were stacked against men like them, while 63% wanted the government to do more on issues facing young men. SAM data now shows Trump’s approval among young men falling from 55% at the start of his second term to 27%.
Liberal media have framed the influencer drops as evidence that the manosphere and MAGA are fading, yet the numbers align with a broader loss of faith among Gen Z. A Harvard Youth Poll found just 9% of Americans under 30 believe the country is headed in the right direction. Both major parties hold net-negative favorability with young men. A Public Agenda study of men aged 18 to 34 reported that 62% agreed politicians don’t care what people like them think and 56% said politicians can no longer meet the country’s challenges. A YouGov poll found one in three young male respondents agreed that a president who “tears it all down” is the only way forward.
Young men are growing more cynical amid constant political messaging, rising costs of living, and warnings from figures such as Musk that AI will eliminate jobs. Few politicians or influencers have presented a future vision that resonates with them.