Warning: This episode contains strong language. Over the past decade, the Tate brothers have built a global empire around pornography, hypermasculinity and overt misogyny. At the same time, they have been repeatedly accused of assaulting and trafficking women. A Times investigation found that as their legal troubles mounted, the Tates found powerful allies in the Trump family and administration. Megan Twohey, who has been covering the story, explains just how important those alliances became and why they are now starting to unravel. Guest: Megan Twohey (https://www.nytimes.com/by/megan-twohey) , an investigative reporter for The New York Times. Background reading:  • How a manosphere star (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/10/us/andrew-tate-barron-trump-romania.html) accused of rape and trafficking was freed last year. • The Tate brothers were arrested in Miami last month (https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/18/us/tate-brothers-arrest-miami.html) as the British authorities filed new rape and trafficking charges. • The brothers, in federal custody, are seeing their powerful backers go quiet (https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/23/us/tate-brothers-trump-tucker-carlson.html) . Photo: Eduard Vinatoru/Inquam Photos, via Reuters For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily (http://nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily) . Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts (http://nytimes.com/podcasts) or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.