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The Documentary: What Men Think: What Men Think: USA

Man on a Hilltop

21/04/2018 GMT

What Men Think: USA

What Men Think

BBC World Service - The Documentary, What Men Think, What Men Think: USA

What’s life truly like for men in these confusing times?

What’s life truly like for men in these confusing times? Tim Samuels explores an unlikely crisis.

In the Southern state of North Carolina presenter Tim Samuel finds the contradictions and cultural clashes that are playing out across the US – with men often in the middle of the fallout. 

Heading through the Appalachian mountains – where traditional blue-collar jobs have collapsed - he sees the social ravages of opioid addiction. Indeed, a doctor reveals that for the first time in generations male mortality is starting to move in the wrong direction; we are in the midst of a man crisis, he says. Away from the mountains – with their moonshine and NASCAR heritage - the clash between conservative and liberal values came to the fore over the state’s controversial transgender bathroom bill. When men’s expectations - and entitlements - for life aren’t being met, when they feel threatened, that destructiveness can turn outwards on others too. Mass shootings - a male preserve. We hear of death threats over a billboard. In Charlotte, a former drug dealer and policeman talk about how their lives were changed after a chance meeting at a race protest, whilst over at an American football game, students from fraternities – which have been under fire in recent years - talk about political correctness on campus culture.

(Photo: Lonely man looking with hope at horizon on mountain peak with dramatic sunlight at sunset. Credit: Getty Images)

The Documentary: What Men Think

Men might still the dominant gender – but for a lot of individual men these are troubling and confusing times. To see what’s really going on in men’s lives and minds, award-winning journalist and author Tim Samuels goes in search of modern masculinity in three very different cultures. He finds that the old certainties have been battered by job security collapsing, rising inequality and waves of feminism and political correctness. Across the world, men are way more likely to take their own lives, end up in jail or on the streets, or do something self-destructive or violent. Being a man is no longer straightforward.
 
In Lagos, the sprawling capital of Nigeria, Tim heads to a city that some describe as ‘the best place to be a man’; the ultimate playground for playboys. But is this only for the super-wealthy of the city? At the other end of the economic spectrum, he speaks to men who feel emasculated by their lack of work – and heads to an area that’s the world’s biggest floating slum. There a local fisherman regrets taking on his third wife, whilst the chief reveals the unusual punishment that is given to men who cheat on their wives. Tim also delves into areas that have traditionally been taboo for Nigerian men: homosexuality; and mental health. A gay designer describes how he keeps his sexuality under wraps – to avoid potential jail time – and a doctor reveals that men are finally starting to admit to having mental health issues. Throughout, Tim meets Nigerian women to get their perspective on how men are changing (or not). One female journalist reveals the perils – and prayers of her mothers – of the local dating scene.

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