What ‘looksmaxxing’ tells us about modern masculinity

***This episode contains discussions of body dysmorphia, self-harm, sex and drug use, and references to language that may cause offence***

A controversial internet streamer who goes by the name Clavicular has taken the internet by storm, going to extreme lengths to try to enhance his looks – from using steroids and testosterone to hitting his face with a hammer.

Clavicular has become the poster boy for an online movement called ‘looksmaxxing’, centred on maximising physical attractiveness. Like many subcultures, it has given rise to a whole new lexicon which is gradually migrating from the margins of the internet to the mainstream.

In today’s episode, we turn to journalist and documentary filmmaker Matt Shea to explain whether Clavicular – and the movement he champions – is just another viral curiosity, or a strange symptom of modern masculinity.

Producers: Aron Keller and Xandra Ellin

Executive producer: James Shield

Sound engineer: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

(Photo: A hand holding a mobile phone showing an influencer holding a hammer to his face on screen. Credit: Yui Mok/PA Wire)