Kimes Says Networks Profit From Angry Content

ESPN analyst Mina Kimes argues platforms have financial reasons to promote outrage, as Oxford names 'rage bait' its 2025 Word of the Year.

Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Pop Culture

Flat gouache-painted editorial illustration of a red-hot fishing lure hovering above dark still water, with ripples spreading outward. — Mina Kimes says networks and online platforms have financial incentives to promote angry content, as Oxford names 'rage bait' its 2025 Word of the Year. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Do you think social media content is intentionally designed to make you angry?

ESPN analyst Mina Kimes said networks and online platforms have financial incentives to promote angry content, speaking on South Beach Sessions with Dan Le Batard. Oxford University Press named 'rage bait' its 2025 Word of the Year after a public vote of more than 30,000 people.

Why it matters

Kimes said the more provocative, angry, or political content is, the more likely it is to go viral, and Casper Grathwohl said outrage sparks engagement while algorithms amplify it. The discussion highlights how engagement-driven incentives may shape what U.S. audiences see online.

Oxford defines rage bait as online content deliberately designed to elicit anger or outrage, and its usage tripled over the past year after a public vote of more than 30,000 people. A Cambridge-led analysis of more than 2.7 million Facebook and Twitter posts found posts about political opponents were shared about twice as often as posts about one's own side.

The players

Mina Kimes

Mina Kimes is an ESPN analyst and host of The Mina Kimes Show, a football podcast produced in partnership with Omaha Productions for ESPN.

Oxford University Press

Oxford University Press is the publishing arm of the University of Oxford that publishes the Oxford English Dictionary and selects an annual Word of the Year.

The details

Kimes made the comments in a clip the show shared on Instagram, arguing that X's For You page is algorithmic and did not exist before. Kimes hosts The Mina Kimes Show, a football podcast featuring Lenny, produced in partnership with Omaha Productions for ESPN.

2025: Oxford picks 'rage bait' as Word of the Year
2026-11-03
Kimes' comments on South Beach Sessions are aired and the article is published

Culture Shift

Oxford's 2025 selection of 'rage bait' as Word of the Year signals a broader cultural recognition that deliberately provocative online content has become a named phenomenon. Kimes' argument that platforms profit from anger places the conversation within that same shift toward scrutinizing engagement-driven media.

Readers who spend time on social feeds may notice that the most provocative posts are the ones pushed most aggressively to them. Recognizing that engagement incentives can favor anger offers a practical way to decide which content to share or step away from.

The takeaway

Because outrage drives engagement, content that provokes anger may be amplified more than content that informs. Checking who benefits from a viral post can help readers decide whether to engage with it.