Social media platforms are powerful cultural forces that shape our perspectives of the world, having the power to threaten society’s social norms. The recent popularity of the “tradwife” (short for “traditional wife”) trend exemplifies how algorithms and artificial intelligence (AI) can filter, amplify, and promote specific values that undermine notions of progressivism while enhancing a dystopian idea of femininity. The seemingly innocent videos posted by “tradwives” are systematically being promoted by algorithms that reiterate sexist and racist ideals, threatening progressive and inclusive ideas around gender, race and femininity.
Platforms use algorithms and AI technologies to filter large amounts of content. However, these technologies are not neutral. As Dr. Joy Buolamwini, digital activist and author of Unmasking AI: My Mission to Protect What Is Human in a World of Machines, has researched, algorithms are shaped by the prejudices of those who design them. Specifically, Buolamwini emphasizes how many AI systems, particularly facial recognition technologies, have repeatedly failed to accurately recognize Black women. This failure is not coincidental but rather stems from how these technologies were built, which rely on data collection methods that reflect existing power structures.
Further, systemic inequality within AI technologies creates biased algorithms that can compromise the reliability of the information we receive. By skewing content visibility, algorithms control information as they promote specific values and marginalize others. When algorithms push trends such as the “tradwife” trend to the forefront, they can distort public perception. Increased reliance on these biased algorithms as a means to mediate our social, political and economic lives allows racist and sexist undertones to distort societal perceptions.
While “tradwife” influencers may present their content as harmless, the trend plays into a racially and politically coded historical ideal of femininity. With bias baked into algorithms, more and more viewers internalize messages that glorify the 1950s, a period marked by systemic oppression of women, people of colour, and other marginalized groups. These messages contradict modern ideals of gender equality and instead promote heteropatriarchal norms, where heterosexual men hold dominant positions in society and women take up traditional domestic roles.
Although the world has progressed since the 1950s, “tradwife” influencers romanticize a past full of heteronormative and racist systems that perpetuate a version of womanhood where femininity is linked to fragility, domesticity, and ultimately whiteness. While some “tradwife” influencers might not overtly state their political affiliation or tie their content to white supremacy, the desire to return to “traditional values” often centres on a nostalgic image of white femininity. These trends signal a broad sense of regression toward “traditionalism” rather than progress. When social media platforms consistently promote such biased content to millions, certain social and political ideals are amplified and woven into mainstream discourse. This can subconsciously alter how people see society and women as a whole, and thus can change how people act.
The “tradwife” trend is not just a trend, but its popularity serves as a warning sign. If we fail to treat algorithmic bias as a security threat, we risk allowing AI systems to quietly promote skewed social norms via social media. The “tradewife” trend not only romanticizes a past full of homemade pies and jams, but also an era full of racist, sexist and heteronormative exclusionary ideals.