An opinion piece by Anna Marks published in New York speculating Taylor Swift’s sexuality has sparked outrage. The article titled “Look What We Made Taylor Swift Do” suggested that the songwriter had been dropping hints about her sexual orientation through her lyrics throughout her career. The lengthy op-ed had a list of what the author termed evidence that Taylor Swift is Gay. Previously, Marks wrote a similar article on Harry Style titled “Harry Walks a Fine Line,” questioning his sexuality in 2022
The author wrote that Swift had been dropping a hairpin—a popular slang used to tell others that one is from the Queer community. She feels Swift did so by coloring her hair the color of the bisexual flag in her 2019 Lover’s Single You Need to Calm Down music video
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Taylor Swift’s team upset over the op-ed
A source told CNN Business that there seem to be no boundaries a journalist won’t cross when they write about Taylor. All gets published under the veil of an opinion piece, regardless of how untrue, intrusive, and inappropriate it is. They further added that such an opinion piece would not have been allowed for Shawn Mendes or any other male artist whose sexuality is constantly questioned by their fandoms.
Due to her immense success in the current times, the source emphasized that there seems to be a Taylor shaped hole in people’s ethics
During the re-release of her album – “1989” (Taylor Version), Swift slammed the speculations about her sexuality in a long prologue. She stated that if I hung out with my female friends, people wouldn’t sensationalize or sexualize that—right? I would learn later on that they could and they would.”
She mentioned that she predominantly surrounds herself with female friends to dissuade the public from questioning her personal life. She had sworn off hanging out with guys and focused only on herself, her music, her growth, and her female friendship. She emphasized that she has taken a step back from flirting, dating, or anything that could be weaponized against her by a culture that claims to liberate women but never fails to treat her with the harsh moral codes of the Victorian Era.
She had denied being queer during her Vogue interview in 2019. She stated that rights are being stripped from everyone who isn’t a cisgender, straight white male. She didn’t realize until recently that she could advocate for a community that she is not a part of.
In November 2023, Taylor’s publicist Tree also spoke out against another fabricated story about the pop star’s secret marriage with her ex-boyfriend Joe Alywn. She clarified that there was never a marriage ceremony of any kind, and it was such an insane thing to post. She emphasized that it is high time journalists are held accountable for the trauma caused by posts like these
Fans Reaction
Fans expressed their anger over the op-ed piece and were horrified that a publication of such standards would publish something like this. Many called the piece “sexist.”. They have called to boycott the New York Times for the piece. One user wrote, “I just canceled my subscription. This article is grossly inappropriate. Another user said, “Wow, they are throwing ethics out the window early this year.”
About Taylor Swift
The American pop icon Taylor Swift, 34,is the leading songwriter artist in the current age. She has a massive fan following and is currently on her sixth tour called the Era Tour, which has earned $1 billion in revenue. She has 10 studio albums in her career so far and has won countless awards for her discography. She is the first female solo artist to bag Grammay’s Album of the Year three times. In the Forbes list of the most powerful women, Swift ranked fifth. She was also honored as the Times Person of the Year in 2023
Also read: Taylor Swift’s 2009 Interview Goes Viral: Predicts Romance With Travis Kelce
