“You Can’t be That Guy,” Dana White Rips Modern Men’s Mental Health Culture

Only in recent years have people begun to give mental health and emotional well-being the same importance as physical health. That shift has also challenged the long-held idea that men must always be tough providers who hide their emotions. It’s also a change that Dana White does not seem to support.

White, President and CEO of Ultimate Fighting Championship, recently joined Katie Miller on her highly controversial podcast, ‘The Katie Miller Podcast‘. The pair took on several topics, including toxic masculinity, with several anti-feminist and misogynistic takes highlighting their long chat.

White also broached the subject of men addressing their mental health struggles online. In the podcast, he expressed disdain about how society has come to handle mental health discussions, dismissing them as overblown and misguided. White said on The Katie Miller Podcast:

I hate this whole men’s mental health bullsh*t, that they talk about. Unfortunately, when you’re a man, you are the provider. You are the one that takes care of your family. You know, you are the example for your kids when they grow up, and your sons, you know, and your daughters. And unfortunately, you can’t be that guy that, I see these guys posting on social media, ‘I had a bad day, and I’m so sad, and all this other crazy sh*t.’

Miller appeared to feel the same way, quickly joking that it was incredibly unattractive. White agreed, adding that he could only imagine how unappealing it must be to women, especially since even he found it unattractive from a man’s perspective.

Dana White explains why he hates men's mental health culture

"I hate this whole men's mental health stuff that they talk about. Unfortunately, when you're a man, you are the provider, you can't be that guy posting on social media, oh I had a bad day and I'm so sad"

"It's… pic.twitter.com/B9tLwY30Lg

— katsu (@katsuxbt) May 6, 2026

The 56-year-old’s views appeared to be rooted in the growing “alpha male” culture within the manosphere, where traditional patriarchy and capitalism often go hand in hand. The idea is that men opening up emotionally could weaken the system that expects them to constantly work, produce, and chase success to keep the labor force and profit-driven culture running.

Dana White jokes about how toxic his masculinity is

The conversation between the right-wing podcaster, Katie Miller, and the 56-year-old billionaire was centered on “toxic masculinity” before Dana White touched upon the topic of men’s mental health. He admitted that he has been accused of “being the head of the manosphere, whatever that means” and of “toxic masculinity.“

Miller responded that people who hate toxic masculinity are women who hate themselves. She later added that men need to be tougher and went on to suggest that women have been convinced to believe that a classic masculine man equals toxic behavior.

In a very unproven take, she said women want classic masculine men but choose not to because of the above.

Don’t you think it’s that women want a man to take care of them, to step into that provider caretaker role, and that so many men are not doing that these days, and that’s why it’s just called ‘toxic masculinity’ is what is a traditional gender role.

In response, White echoed that the woman, no matter how powerful she is, needs someone to take care of her, to treat her right, and make her feel safe. He attributed that things should be done by a man, and that’s how nature has been designed. He then added with a chuckle, saying:

As I get deeper into this, you’ll realize how ‘toxic’ my masculinity is.

Needless to say, Dana White’s take hasn’t gone down pretty well with many. OJ Spivey, sports writer, retweeted a post of White’s thoughts, adding, “Men who speak like this are often those who need it (mental health outlet) the most.” Online users have also brought up the slapgate incident from two years ago, where he was filmed on camera slapping his wife, Anne.

In retweets and comments, many highlighted that men who don’t deal with their emotions take it out on their spouses and children. Furthermore, some critics argued that White and the other podcasters tend to focus on surface-level talking points instead of addressing deeper issues such as the struggling economy, rising unemployment, and increasing living costs affecting millions of people.

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