By Asha Lang

Oh, Mark. It’s one thing to float in virtual reality with all the grace of a glitchy balloon, but quite another to suggest your multibillion-dollar company is short on "masculine energy." Yet here we are.

Meta's founder is a man who famously roasted his own meat over backyard bonfires as a personal growth exercise – which led to author Ben Mezrich in 2008 sharing a tale in Accidental Billionaires that Mark Zuckerberg and Oracle founder Larry Ellison ate a Koala together.

The story may (or may not) have been apocryphal, but it's that kind of desperate need for approval that seems to be driving Maculine Meta's main man into the arms of a political movement that wanted him arrested.

Now, via the Joe Rogan Experience, the permanently permed CEO has decreed that his social media empire needs more testosterone-fueled vigour, though less gum leaves, presumably.

The remark was, predictably, polarizing. Some hailed it as a rallying cry for a tougher, more competitive Meta, while others saw it as a desperate bid to keep pace in an increasingly conservative tech world.

What’s clear is that the statement doesn’t hold up to even the most cursory scrutiny. With two-thirds of Meta’s executive team already male, one wonders: exactly how much more "masculine energy" does this company need before it bursts into a testosterone fuelled dumpster fire.

Zuckerberg’s choice of language reeks of calculated provocation. Let’s not pretend it’s a coincidence that this pivot to machismo comes as Meta finds itself in a precarious position, battered by criticism from both sides of the political aisle. Conservatives accuse the platform of censorship, while liberals decry its complicity in spreading misinformation.

Then there are the regulators, hopping into him with gay abandon... not that there's anything wrong with that.

Adding a dollop of "masculine energy" might just be Zuckerberg’s attempt to cozy up to the Trumpian right, positioning Meta as a rugged, free-speech frontier in the digital Wild West.

It’s a clever ploy, if cynical. By co-opting the language of strength and virility—a rhetorical style beloved by populists—Zuckerberg could be signalling that Meta is ready to take off the kid gloves and play ball in a world increasingly dominated by nationalist fervour and online culture wars. But this posturing feels like a man grasping at straws, and it belies the complexity of the issue.

What Meta Really Needs

Meta doesn’t need more masculine energy. It needs a reality check. The company’s challenges—public trust, ethical governance, innovation—aren’t going to be solved by shouting “bro!” louder or donning a metaphorical power tie. The idea that leadership qualities are inherently gendered is as outdated as Zuckerberg’s infamous gray t-shirt collection.

If anything, what Meta lacks is diversity—not just in gender but in thought. A leadership team that mirrors its user base, which skews slightly female, could provide the insight Meta desperately needs to navigate an increasingly fragmented internet landscape. Instead, Zuckerberg’s remark underscores just how out of touch Silicon Valley’s elite can be with the real world.

Pandering or Pivoting?

So, is Zuckerberg pandering to Trump? The evidence suggests he might be. By adopting the rhetoric of strength, competitiveness, and "masculine energy," he’s aligning Meta with the language of populism—a strategy that might mollify critics on the right. But this approach could alienate the progressive voices who’ve been among the platform’s staunchest defenders. Worse, it risks reducing Meta’s identity to yet another pawn in the culture wars, rather than a meaningful force for innovation and connection.

One can almost hear Zuckerberg’s defense: “It’s about energy, not gender.” But let’s not kid ourselves. In a company where women hold a minority of leadership positions, that “energy” feels suspiciously like the whiff of a stale boys’ club, reheated for public consumption.

The Verdict

If Meta is to maintain relevance, it won’t be through performative machismo or transparent pandering. It will be by acknowledging its blind spots and embracing perspectives that challenge its current ethos. Anything less is just another VR headset to nowhere.

Want to learn more: My sources are your sources, (except for the confidential ones.) The Joe Rogan Experience, The Cut, Business Insider, The Verge, and for the Koala lovers amongst you The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding Of Facebook, A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius, and Betrayal