The Alpha Male Myth

Endless Thread

WBUR

Reddit, Technology

4.1 • 2.7K Ratings

🗓️ 23 January 2026

⏱️ 28 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In 1970, a young biologist named David Mech published what could be the most consequential book on wolves ever written. At the time, The Wolf: The Ecology and Behavior of an Endangered Species, was the most complete collection of scientific knowledge on wolves money could buy, and it became best seller for Dave's publishers. But outside of the world of wolf biology, the book is also credited with unleashing a certain idea into our popular lexicon: The Alpha.

The thing is, Dave made a mistake – and the alpha wolf, doesn't exist.

This week on Endless Thread, Ben and Amory track down the origins of "the alpha," and whether this idea – which has been recanted by the very scientist who popularized it – has any legitimacy when talking about people.

Show notes:

The Myth of the Alpha Wolf (The New Yorker)*
Do alpha males even exist? (The Guardian)
Elon Musk Shares Theory That Only ‘Alpha Males’ Should Vote (Newsweek)

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, it's Dean Russell, senior producer of podcasts at WBUR.
0:04.7	You hear from me and the team all the time.
0:07.1	We are so grateful you listen, but we want to hear from you too.
0:11.8	Tell us in your own words, how can we make our shows even better?
0:15.8	Our audience survey takes just a few minutes.
0:18.3	Head to wbUR.org slash pod survey.
0:21.6	That's POD survey to share your thoughts with us.
0:25.7	Thanks.
0:30.7	WBURP Podcasts, Boston. Okay, today we're going to be talking about a story we have been working on for what feels like a dog's age, or maybe we should say wolf's age, Amory?
0:50.5	Yes, maybe we should. because this story begins with wolves.
0:57.2	Specifically, a book about wolves called The Wolf, the ecology and behavior of an endangered
1:03.7	species. You could even say it's the book about wolves. You could say that because the wolf,
1:10.6	which is by biologist David Meach, might just be the most
1:14.3	consequential book on wolves ever written, but not for the reasons you might think.
1:20.4	When it was published in 1970, the wolf was the most complete collection of scientific knowledge
1:25.9	about wolves you could buy.
1:28.4	But today, it is also credited with unleashing a certain idea into our popular lexicon.
1:36.0	How would I describe myself?
1:37.6	Three words.
1:38.9	Hardworking.
1:40.1	Alpha male.
1:41.8	Jackhammer.
	...

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