Experiment Two

S: Hello! Welcome to [podcast name]! My name is Spencer and I’m currently a freshman at the University of Michigan! Later today, I’ll have two of my friends joining in a discussion of today’s topic: Taylor Swift and Feminism!. 

S: For those who don’t know, Taylor Swift is a singer/songwriter who debuted in 2006 with her album Taylor Swift. As of right now, she has a total of 14 albums and about 283 million followers on Instagram and 25.3 million on Tik Tok. 

S: In the past few months, Swift has been under some criticism, although this isn’t something new (people have been criticizing Swift for years based on her music, looks, presentation, and pretty much anything they can), this time fans are even stepping up and speaking against the music artist. 

S: The most recent critique has been the amount of CO2 that Swift released in her private jet flying to see her boyfriend, Travis Kelce. However, we’re here to address a different topic, an older one. What is feminism to Taylor Swift and how does that affect everyone else (her fans) understanding of feminism? 

S: The original idea of feminism was that men and women deserve equal rights, and the sex shouldn’t separate opportunities. However, the idea has since evolved to include that everyone deserves equal rights and opportunities despite their sex, race, gender identity, sexuality, religious beliefs, and so on. So essentially, feminism impacts everyone. Every individual is connected to feminism. 

S; Back in 2012, Swift declared herself to be a feminist, but people had been speculating it long before then. She declared,  

T: “I don’t really think about things as guys versus girls. I never have. I was raised by parents who brought me up to think if you work as hard as guys, you can go far in life.” 

S: This was further proven later in 2018 when she spoke up about her political stance for the first time in her career. The election involved Phil Bredesen, whom Swift spoke in favor of, and Marsha Blackburn, whom Swift spoke against. 

T: "Her [Marsha Blackburn] voting record in Congress appalls and terrifies me. She voted against equal pay for women. She voted against the Re-authorization of the Violence Against Women Act, which attempts to protect women from domestic violence, stalking, and date rape. She believes businesses have a right to refuse service to gay couples. She also believes they should not have the right to marry. These are not MY Tennessee values."

S: Now since these events, Swift hasn’t spoken much on feminism, and in fact, many opposers (of Swift) speculate that she only spoke up because feminism was “big” at the time, and it brought her more attention. 

S: Another argument that is often made is that Swift only supports what is called “white feminism,” which is feminism that only supports white women. Here to discuss this with me are my two friends, Elaina and August. Thank you for joining me today, how are you guys? Today's topic is on Taylor Swift and her impact on feminism! Now, both of you are or have been fans of Swift, correct? How do you feel she has impacted feminism, either positively or negatively?