Older Women Are in Demand By Younger Men
4/16/202633 min
Younger men are increasingly seeking out older women — and it’s not just a dating trend. It’s a shift in power, desire and modern masculinity.
In this episode of “The Opinions,” the Opinion culture editor Nadja Spiegelman talks with the writer and psychoanalyst Jamieson Webster and Emily Leibert, a staff writer at The Cut, about why age-gap relationships are so popular and whether they signal liberation, backlash or something more complicated.
Thoughts? Email us at theopinions@nytimes.com.
This episode of “The Opinions” was produced by Vishakha Darbha. It was edited by Alison Bruzek, Kaari Pitkin and Jasmine Romero. Mixing by Carole Sabouraud. Video editing by Steph Khoury. The postproduction manager is Mike Puretz. Original music by Isaac Jones, Pat McCusker, Carole Sabouraud and Aman Sahota. Fact-checking by Mary Marge Locker. Audience strategy by Shannon Busta and Kristina Samulewski. The director of Opinion Video is Jonah M. Kessel. The deputy director of Opinion Shows is Alison Bruzek. The director of Opinion Shows is Annie-Rose Strasser.
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Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsJamieson Webster· Guest0:00
I gave my brother a New York Times subscription. We exchange articles.
Speaker 1· Soundbite0:05
And so having read the same article, we can discuss it.
Speaker 20:07
She sent me a year-long subscription so I have access to all the games.
Nadja Spiegelman· Host0:11
The New York Times contributes to our quality time together.
Jamieson Webster· Guest0:14
It enriches our relationship.
Speaker 4· Soundbite0:16
It was such a, a cool and thoughtful gift.
Jamieson Webster· Guest0:19
We're reading the same stuff. We're making the same food. We're on the same page.
Speaker 50:24
Learn more about giving a New York Times subscription as a gift at nytimes.com/gift. [upbeat music] This is The Opinions, a show that brings you a mix of voices from New York Times Opinion. You've heard the news. Here's what to make of it.
Nadja Spiegelman· Host0:42
[upbeat music] I'm Nadja Spiegelman, and I'm a culture editor for New York Times Opinion. Recently, my 52-year-old friend separated from her husband, and so I made her a dating profile. And the response from men in their 30s was overwhelming. More young men are seeking to date older women.
Speaker 4· Soundbite1:04
So I'm 34. The oldest I've been on a date with, I wanna say, is, like, close to 50.
Speaker 1· Soundbite1:11
I am 28 years old, and my ex-girlfriend was 42. The oldest age gap that I had was eight years, and she was 35, and I was 27 years old.
Nadja Spiegelman· Host1:22
The dating app Field reports huge growth in this area in just the past two years.
Speaker 1· Soundbite1:27
Just the openness for a relationship,