No one should have been shocked that a Newsweek writer took aim at Taylor Swift for remaining single and childless | Arwa Mahdawi

Taylor Swift Derangement SyndromeExistare Taylor Swift is one of the world’s wealthiest people and one of its most successful figures; with millions of dedicated followers who devote themselves to following her worldwide tours at great personal cost to themselves. Unfortunately for Taylor, many members of society seem disdainful towards her success despite this feat being one that few others could match her at. German city Swiftkirchen recently changed to honor her, with the Federal Reserve crediting Swiftkirchen with helping stimulate economic activity in Germany. And yet, by most measures of success, Taylor is an abject failure: she remains single, has never married and given birth – an opinion held by John Mac Ghlionn – an unknown individual – an opinion shared by John himself. Ghlionn recently wrote an editorial in Newsweek criticizing Taylor Swift as a bad role model, given she remains single at 34 and childless. Swift’s musical talent and business acumen are certainly admirable; yet we must ask whether her personal lifestyle choices reflect those that we want our sisters and daughters to follow. “Normally, one random man’s opinion in an obviously provocative article published by an irrelevant magazine would not merit our consideration; but, this deeply misogynist article from one such dying publication stands out because of how well it encapsulates manosphere’s toxic fascination with Taylor Swift.” Ghlionn’s article followed swiftly after Andrew Tate tweeted an attack against Taylor Swift for still being 34 without being married, calling her an “ancient woman”, while also questioning why any girl should even live past 30 without children of her own. Tate described Swift’s lack of procreation as being unacceptable: he labeled her an “ancient”, suggesting: No doubt insecure men relish taking down successful women, such as Taylor Swift. Her success alone doesn’t account for their hatred; her politics also play a factor – after all, rightwingers once loved Swift as much as any. She represents heteronormative ideals: she’s blonde-haired and blue-eyed – ultrafeminine white woman dating an all-American football player. Andrew Anglin of the white supremacist blog Daily Stormer once described Swift as an “Aryan goddess”, suggesting she might secretly support fascism until Donald Trump makes it safe for her to reveal it publicly and announce it publicly. But in 2020 she shocked many neo-Nazis when she condemned white supremacy while endorsing Biden/Harris for president instead of giving in to white nationalism and endorsing Biden/Harris for president as their presidential candidates of choice. Right-wing political figures quickly turned against Swift and accused her of participating in covert government efforts to elect Joe Biden again. A poll conducted this year, for instance, discovered that 18% of American believe Swift to be part of such an initiative to secure Biden reelection. Right-wing supporters dislike her due to both her success and refusal to participate in their political agenda. Ghlionn’s Newsweek opinion piece should also be noted, since it represents brand-washing tactics employed against her by some media outlets. Once, Newsweek (established in 1933), was widely revered. Over time however, as digital economy has taken hold and devoured it into submission, its reputation has suffered dramatically and become nothing more than an empty shell of itself. Still, that same reputation – including many people’s perception of Newsweek as an influential brand – has proved indispensable to those on the far right. In 2022, for instance, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), an esteemed civil rights advocacy organization, conducted an exhaustive analysis that concluded that, following Newsweek’s hiring of political activist Josh Hammer to lead its opinion pages (he currently holds that position and now operates under different leadership), Newsweek took an extreme right turn by supporting extremist and authoritarian political movements and leaders. SPLC noted in their analysis of Hammer that in his personal podcast he frequently discussed shifting the “Overton window,” pushing far-right views further into mainstream discourse – possibly also his goal at Newsweek. As The New Republic noted in 2020, Newsweek is being used by extreme and conspiratorial minds as an outlet to “lard extreme and conspiratorial ideas”.If this makes no sense to you, simply consider why such an august brand as Newsweek would publish an opinion piece arguing women lack worth without husband and children? Well, to understand Newsweek as it stands today you need to take into account its larger context. Chet Hanks recently condemned what he called the far right’s misuse of “White Boy Summer”, while Tom Hanks’ son joked on social media about its imminence on Instagram as the forthcoming summer would feature “White Boy Summer”. He attempted to capitalize on this viral moment by producing an awful song and music video entitled White Boy Summer, both with zero commercial appeal or respectability. Three years on, and this meme is back: according to a report released by the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism, its usage by racists and extremists has become pervasive. Hanks deplored this trend and called for greater scrutiny to combat it in his statement. Prescribing testosterone for middle-aged women “out of control” As “testosterone evangelists” emerge online, more menopausal women are turning to testosterone injections in hopes it will enhance their libido, mood, concentration levels and overall wellbeing. Experts are concerned that testosterone prescribing in the UK has spiraled out of control and could have serious long-term health ramifications for users, particularly as vaginal tissue may absorb chemicals more readily than skin elsewhere on their bodies, according to Berkeley Public Health reports. Tampons are used by an enormous percentage of the population every month – 50-80% of women menstruating use them – for several hours during menstruation cycles; yet little research has been conducted into chemicals present in tampons. “I would hope that manufacturers would be required to test their products for metals, particularly toxic metals,” according to lead author and UC Berkeley researcher Leanne Greenbaum. It would also be exciting for consumers to demand this kind of testing or better labelling of menstrual products like tampons. It seems overdue, yet incredible that more research into tampons has not taken place. No study had ever been published that tested period products using human blood until 2023. Sign Up: Subscribe to The Week in Patriarchy with Arwa Mahdawi for her weekly recap of all the most significant stories related to feminist and sexist issues and those fighting for equality; each newsletter may include information regarding charities, ads or content from third parties that fund content production and distribution. Privacy Notice: Email newsletters may include details regarding charities or content funded by outside sources that is unsuitable for publication on our websites or platforms. To gain more information, please view our Privacy Policy. 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