The Case for Men Consuming More Things by Women

No blame or shame, but come on now. It's time.

Have you ever noticed that men, as a whole, don't really read books by women, don't listen to podcasts by women, and don't consume much media in general by women? This isn't my observational bias—though I definitely observe it. These are documented facts.

Of course it doesn't apply to all men. We really don't need to go there. However, if you are one of the men who regularly consumes media by women, please realize you're a minority.

Have a look at Joe Rogan's guest list on his podcast (one of the top consumed podcasts globally). You'll find that he doesn't really bring many women on his show. Is that because he's catering to his mostly male listener base, who aren't interested in women's thoughts or opinions? Is it because Rogan himself isn't interested in women's thoughts or opinions? Either way, it's not a great look from where sit.

If there do happen to be men reading this woman-authored blog, don't worry. This piece isn't a scathing review of men's failures. I'm not here to hate on you. I want to make a case for why men should consume more books and podcasts and movies and even social media content by women.

Before that, though, I would like to say how much it bothers me that men—not only historically but continuously—mostly just want to listen to what other men have to say. It makes me sad. Women are interesting. We are smart. We are wise. We are funny. Our perspective on things is often notably different from men's because our lived experience of the world is different.

And at the same time, our opinions can be remarkably similar to many men's as well. After all, our human brains, regardless of gender, are very much the same.

And without a doubt, women recognize that men have thoughtful, interesting things to say. I mean, how could we not? We've been overwhelmingly bombarded by content created by men all of our lives, starting in school. Books about male friendship? Yes, please. Podcasts run by and featuring male guests? If I'm interested in the topic, I'm there. Movies primarily featuring men? Also yes. It's not hard for me, and many other women, to see, that men's opinions and perspectives are worthwhile.

Also, I'm not going to go deeply into the reasons why men don't consume media by women. It's partly standard patriarchy stuff:

• Society has been conditioned to think we're airheaded, etc.

• Society has conditioned us to look at men who care about feminine perspectives as sissies.

You know these types of narratives because they surround us and permeate our lives.

And the other part might just be habit. Anyway, enough preamble. Here are some reasons why I think men should consume more media, art, content—whatever you want to call it—by women.

1. It will improve our relationships with each other.

Men consistently complain that they don't understand women. Consuming the things we create is a really big step to understanding us, our perspectives, how we think and feel and react and decide. And with that understanding will inevitably come easier conversations, compassion, empathy, and realizations about our intersections and deviations. Through all of that, it will make our differences less uncomfortable to confront when a difficult conversation is needed.

Plus, it'll naturally improve intimacy, as our conversations also become more interesting, more dynamic, more interactive, more complex. Consuming media by women, slowly your understanding of us will enter into your subconscious. You won't need a checklist of "things to remember about women." It'll simply be there, and that will make our interactions at large much more fluid and chill.

2. It will broaden your perspective of us.

When you're exposed to our stories, our storytelling, our ways of thinking and being and interpreting, I just know you will realize how smart, insightful, and interesting we are. Because we are smart and we are insightful and we are interesting. It won't always be a mirror of your own experiences—though sometimes it will—but that's really, really good.

Our experience of the world can be vastly different from yours for many reasons: oppression, violence, social expectations, autonomy, representation, labor discrepancies, you name it. It's not really about hearing "both sides" though.

Yes, society does tend to position men's experiences as universal and women's as niche—media created by men is for everyone, while media created by women is for women.

However, I think you'll end up finding our unique worldview enlightening and valuable, and you'll have a better chance of internalizing there isn't a default or correct way of thinking. Plus, you'll see that there are a lot of things about our perspectives that you can and will deeply relate to.

3. It'll make your daily life more interesting and enjoyable

As I said, women are smart and interesting and funny. So adding women into the mix will give you a whole other world of media to consume that can be entertaining, educational, whatever.

And I think you will really start to notice and appreciate things you would have overlooked before.

For example, maybe a book by a woman changes how you view emotional labor in your relationships, making you more aware of the effort women put into social cohesion. That awareness will create a shift in you. Or maybe a female-led podcast introduces you to humor or insights that you wouldn’t have encountered otherwise, and bam, your worldview shifts again. Or maybe a movie centered on female friendships helps you recognize and value different kinds of connections in your own life.

It could be so many things. Not consuming media by women, you're missing out on these opportunities for enjoyment and expansion in all kinds of ways.

4. It will support your emotional growth

Many men don’t prioritize their emotional growth. It's not because you don’t want to, but because society hasn’t encouraged it in the same way it has for women. Women talk about emotions constantly. We write about them, process them, dissect them, and find ways to grow through them. But it's not because we're more emotional. It's just more acceptable for us to show our emotions. This is a huge disservice to men, but it won't change without action on your part.

When you consume media by women, you’re without a doubt going to be tapping into a wealth of emotional intelligence that you may not have had easy access to before. Books, podcasts, and films by women more often explore vulnerability, self-reflection, and personal growth in ways that mainstream male-centered media tends to avoid.

Instead of relying on action-oriented solutions or suppressing emotions altogether, there's a good chance that women’s storytelling is going to encourage deeper introspection and connection. It normalizes self-awareness, the value of community, and the process of working through feelings instead of ignoring them.

So, if you make the decision to consume women's content, you're naturally going to run into these things more often. It will expand your emotional vocabulary, you'll develop a healthier relationship with yourself and others, you’ll gain insights into handling conflict, you'll express yourself more openly, and you'll recognize patterns in your own behavior more easily.

The benefits in that are for you and for everyone else too. You'll likely end up being a better friend, partner, father, boss, coworker, and overall human being.

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If you're a guy and you are realizing how little media you consume by women, it's okay. I'm not trying to blame or shame you here. It would just be nice for everyone—you, women, even your fellow men—if you would consciously make a change.

Consume things made by women, about women.

There are so many options to choose from, so many topics. It's not all relationships and emotions. It's science and math and comedy and history and on and on, just from a female perspective. That little change in perspective injected into the things you're already interested in is going to be positive and meaningful, I swear.