I’m a guy, and I’ve noticed this. Women in politics are scrutinized and held accountable for relatively minor peccadillos the Boy’s Club could just laugh off. Same in business. If one of you gets leadership responsibilities, you’re watched far more closely, held to much stricter standards, and cut far less slack. Cultural misogyny is real.
When I was grinding hard to build a successful career, I used to say, "Women have to work twice as hard for half as much credit." That job broke me when I moved up in roles.
America has never had a female president. Some countries have had a female president. Some have had more than one. Some have had female leaders elected twice.
America, not once.
Is it because of a lack of quality, competent female leadership?
We've had Trump twice now. Are we to believe that he is truly the better choice? He just added a Trillion dollars to the US debt. Not a peep.
I refuse to believe that the best we can do is predominantly straight, white male, married with children.
Every other industrialized nation has clear language in their constitution guaranteeing women are equal to men. The only clear Constitutional guarantee American women have rights is the 19th Amendment that allows them the right to vote. The Honorable Ruth Bader Ginsberg realized this and worked her entire career to change the language because she knew there would come a time where people would start attacking women's right to vote. If we lose our right to vote, we could lose all our rights.
We have rapists and dictators running the world and are willing to overlook their track record. Yet when women rise, really rise, we can’t tolerate it. Keep going, we need each other to raise each other in the midst of mass denial and delusion. Healing the wound of envy is massive shadow work.
Uhhh, Pedro Pascal is the most mocked actor in Hollywood at the moment precisely because he is in EVERYTHING. At least that's the case in my corner of the internet.
A swiftie here. Ooh this is a great read. Its definitely exhausting being constantly criticized by the media of being a celebrity. Everyone hates her because shes simply too successful, and most of the time, the reasons of their hate towards her are: shes privileged, shes a millionaire whos destroying the earth with her jet usage, shes greedy for doing her job, she only writes breakup songs. Other celebrities who had done things that are much worse than she did doesn’t even get the kind of hatred that she received. ☹️
I used to hate her for some of those reasons (the private jet thing is a bummer), but you're 100% right that she's far from the only one out there who does that stuff and the rest of them don't take half the shit she does. And she at least, from what I've heard, treats her crew quite generously, which I appreciate a lot.
She also donated $100,000 to the GoFundMe fundraiser for Lisa Lopez‑Galvan, who was killed in the shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl victory parade. She uses her wealth for good, which softens the blow of the jet some.
It's the exact same phenomenon when people hate the Lakers, the Yankees, the Patriots and now the Chiefs. There is a point on the success curve when you simply gain haters for your success. Frankly, it's not a woman thing or a patriarchy thing or whatever, it's a human thing. Underdogs gain fans simply because they're underdogs, uber-successful people/teams/companies gain haters simply because they're uber-successful. Actually, I think Margo Robbie summed it up pretty well and there isn't much more to it.
This was a delight to read, Celeste. I'm a casual fan, but my favorite thing about Taylor is the vision she has created. I think she is a true genius. The way all the albums tell a story and all fit together... I have no doubt that you are correct in your assessment that TTPD was her thumbing her nose at something she knew was inevitable. Gah! I could not love it more!
Thank you for yet another instance of shining a light on something that has been lurking in the shadows for far too long. Your work has been instrumental in helping me see how I have been complicit.
Uh oh you're making me actually like Taylor Swift (whom, as a metalhead by trade, I've been pointedly ignoring for a decade or more) 😅 well written, thanks as always for flushing out our dirty laundry!
Hahaha same (metalhead and other non-pop genres). Tbh probably still not going to listen to her stuff but i do have respect for her the more that i learn.
Taylor, Beyonce, Blake Lively, the list goes on. I see women facing the same at all levels of entertainment, business & manufacturing, and certainly politics. Look at AOC, Kamala Harris, Hillary if course, even Nancy Pelosi.
Our patriarchal, misogynistic society trains us all to go along with tearing down the Tall Poppies and even the emerging Tall Poppies.
every time I get a feeling of cringe about a woman in the limelight i check myself and ask what is really going on here. great analysis. i think you and your readers would like chelsea devantez’s glamorous trash podcast which also turns female celebrity stories on their head.
That cringe factor really is the tell-tale sign isn't it! I hated that when I first realized but now I love it. Took forever not to cringe at others cringing but now I'm proud to report I don't have that even!
And this is the case for everything - sports teams (I mean it's really prominent in sports), musicians of any gender, politicians, businesses, you name it. This article and most of the comments are trying to make this out like it's unique, or especially prominent among female celebrities but that's simply not the case. The only thing I'd revise about your axiom is that it's not an American thing, it's a human thing.
With Taylor, you can't discount her courting publicity, in addition to her actual work. She announced Tortured Poets onstage at the Grammys while winning a Grammy (stepping on her own moment, imo). She released the album and a few hours later the second album! She continually released special additions/remixes, allegedly to keep her top ranking safe from other artists' releases! Her fans love the frenzy, she loves feeding it, everyone else was kind of like "what's going on?" (it's me, the casual fan who couldn't keep track of everything going on.)
The best thing she did, for me, was a limited time Sirius XM Channel (a lot of artists have them, John Mayer, Kelly Clarkson, Bruce), and they played Tortured Poets entire album for about two days straight once it was released. I think she did interview clips about the songs as well. It was kind of IYKYK, because not everyone has Sirius and I don't think it had a lot of publicity around it.
Yes, Taylor understood and played the game well to maximize the exposure of her work. If a man did this (Michae Jackson for example) they would get nothing but praise.
Taylor rerecorded and released her older music because she had last legal control of the original recordings. Again, good business.
Madonna played on outage about her clothing, sexuality and religious imagery. Those that didn't like it could complain about "protecting the children" or "sacrilege". Debates about her music and image were more cultural in a way that Taylor wasn't (other than shaming Taylor for her dating).
This is just brilliant - as usual! I especially loved your comparison between Glennon Doyle releasing her third memoir and being questioned (doubted) about it by the media, whereas David Sedaris' 48th autobiographical book release is reviewed as a "must read". I love both these writers and their insights, but I get your point. Well done.
I experience this pretty much constantly even when I wouldn’t consider myself or things I’m doing as anything significant. People hate to see you (especially if you’re a black woman) be better than them in anything. It doesn’t matter if you get a compliment on your shoes, a promotion, a Grammy… there are always people who want to tear another person down because they feel insecure about themselves.
I’m a guy, and I’ve noticed this. Women in politics are scrutinized and held accountable for relatively minor peccadillos the Boy’s Club could just laugh off. Same in business. If one of you gets leadership responsibilities, you’re watched far more closely, held to much stricter standards, and cut far less slack. Cultural misogyny is real.
"But Hilary Clinton's eeeemailssss"
I will never get over that load of crap. She faced off against a rapist and felon and all anyone could talk about was the emails. Ffs...
When I was grinding hard to build a successful career, I used to say, "Women have to work twice as hard for half as much credit." That job broke me when I moved up in roles.
America has never had a female president. Some countries have had a female president. Some have had more than one. Some have had female leaders elected twice.
America, not once.
Is it because of a lack of quality, competent female leadership?
We've had Trump twice now. Are we to believe that he is truly the better choice? He just added a Trillion dollars to the US debt. Not a peep.
I refuse to believe that the best we can do is predominantly straight, white male, married with children.
Certainly a "Syndrome" from where I sit.
Every other industrialized nation has clear language in their constitution guaranteeing women are equal to men. The only clear Constitutional guarantee American women have rights is the 19th Amendment that allows them the right to vote. The Honorable Ruth Bader Ginsberg realized this and worked her entire career to change the language because she knew there would come a time where people would start attacking women's right to vote. If we lose our right to vote, we could lose all our rights.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg a true American hero. Physically small. Don't judge a book by it's cover or a judge by her size. :-)
We have rapists and dictators running the world and are willing to overlook their track record. Yet when women rise, really rise, we can’t tolerate it. Keep going, we need each other to raise each other in the midst of mass denial and delusion. Healing the wound of envy is massive shadow work.
Typical crab in the bucket mentality. People don’t like success rubbed in their face. Especially if it’s a woman.
Nobody cares if Leonardo Di Caprio or Pedro Pascal are constantly in the limelight but for other actresses the standards are different 🤦♂️
"or Pedro Pascal"
Yeah, I noticed that too.
Uhhh, Pedro Pascal is the most mocked actor in Hollywood at the moment precisely because he is in EVERYTHING. At least that's the case in my corner of the internet.
A swiftie here. Ooh this is a great read. Its definitely exhausting being constantly criticized by the media of being a celebrity. Everyone hates her because shes simply too successful, and most of the time, the reasons of their hate towards her are: shes privileged, shes a millionaire whos destroying the earth with her jet usage, shes greedy for doing her job, she only writes breakup songs. Other celebrities who had done things that are much worse than she did doesn’t even get the kind of hatred that she received. ☹️
I used to hate her for some of those reasons (the private jet thing is a bummer), but you're 100% right that she's far from the only one out there who does that stuff and the rest of them don't take half the shit she does. And she at least, from what I've heard, treats her crew quite generously, which I appreciate a lot.
She also donated $100,000 to the GoFundMe fundraiser for Lisa Lopez‑Galvan, who was killed in the shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl victory parade. She uses her wealth for good, which softens the blow of the jet some.
As u should bear wiseman 😆. You should listen to loml from her ttpd album. Her greatest song!!!!!
It's the exact same phenomenon when people hate the Lakers, the Yankees, the Patriots and now the Chiefs. There is a point on the success curve when you simply gain haters for your success. Frankly, it's not a woman thing or a patriarchy thing or whatever, it's a human thing. Underdogs gain fans simply because they're underdogs, uber-successful people/teams/companies gain haters simply because they're uber-successful. Actually, I think Margo Robbie summed it up pretty well and there isn't much more to it.
I know they said the end is near, but I’m still on my tallest tip toes, spinnin in my highest heels, love, shinin just for you
I’m me, I rose up from the dead, I do it all the time
This was a delight to read, Celeste. I'm a casual fan, but my favorite thing about Taylor is the vision she has created. I think she is a true genius. The way all the albums tell a story and all fit together... I have no doubt that you are correct in your assessment that TTPD was her thumbing her nose at something she knew was inevitable. Gah! I could not love it more!
Thank you for yet another instance of shining a light on something that has been lurking in the shadows for far too long. Your work has been instrumental in helping me see how I have been complicit.
Uh oh you're making me actually like Taylor Swift (whom, as a metalhead by trade, I've been pointedly ignoring for a decade or more) 😅 well written, thanks as always for flushing out our dirty laundry!
Hahaha same (metalhead and other non-pop genres). Tbh probably still not going to listen to her stuff but i do have respect for her the more that i learn.
Same, I like her as a poet but most of the time her's is not my music. Doesn't keep me from respecting her.
To read that about Clara Bow is devastating.
Sad but true. Seems to be happening to Beyonce right now too.
Taylor, Beyonce, Blake Lively, the list goes on. I see women facing the same at all levels of entertainment, business & manufacturing, and certainly politics. Look at AOC, Kamala Harris, Hillary if course, even Nancy Pelosi.
Our patriarchal, misogynistic society trains us all to go along with tearing down the Tall Poppies and even the emerging Tall Poppies.
every time I get a feeling of cringe about a woman in the limelight i check myself and ask what is really going on here. great analysis. i think you and your readers would like chelsea devantez’s glamorous trash podcast which also turns female celebrity stories on their head.
That cringe factor really is the tell-tale sign isn't it! I hated that when I first realized but now I love it. Took forever not to cringe at others cringing but now I'm proud to report I don't have that even!
There is a maxim, which I coined years ago:
America loves an underdog, until it becomes top dog. Then America loves a dead dog.
And this is the case for everything - sports teams (I mean it's really prominent in sports), musicians of any gender, politicians, businesses, you name it. This article and most of the comments are trying to make this out like it's unique, or especially prominent among female celebrities but that's simply not the case. The only thing I'd revise about your axiom is that it's not an American thing, it's a human thing.
Agree. It’s a human nature thing, rather than an American thing.
I’ve been all three dogs, as you no doubt have been.
With Taylor, you can't discount her courting publicity, in addition to her actual work. She announced Tortured Poets onstage at the Grammys while winning a Grammy (stepping on her own moment, imo). She released the album and a few hours later the second album! She continually released special additions/remixes, allegedly to keep her top ranking safe from other artists' releases! Her fans love the frenzy, she loves feeding it, everyone else was kind of like "what's going on?" (it's me, the casual fan who couldn't keep track of everything going on.)
The best thing she did, for me, was a limited time Sirius XM Channel (a lot of artists have them, John Mayer, Kelly Clarkson, Bruce), and they played Tortured Poets entire album for about two days straight once it was released. I think she did interview clips about the songs as well. It was kind of IYKYK, because not everyone has Sirius and I don't think it had a lot of publicity around it.
Yes, Taylor understood and played the game well to maximize the exposure of her work. If a man did this (Michae Jackson for example) they would get nothing but praise.
Taylor rerecorded and released her older music because she had last legal control of the original recordings. Again, good business.
Speaking of "courting publicity", Madonna's really done that well.
What lessons could be learned?
Madonna played on outage about her clothing, sexuality and religious imagery. Those that didn't like it could complain about "protecting the children" or "sacrilege". Debates about her music and image were more cultural in a way that Taylor wasn't (other than shaming Taylor for her dating).
Or the annoying "Taylor writes songs about how her old boyfriends made her sad! What a wuss." Umm, what?
Damaged people feel threatened, when women take back their own power.
It is part of patriarchy.
This is just brilliant - as usual! I especially loved your comparison between Glennon Doyle releasing her third memoir and being questioned (doubted) about it by the media, whereas David Sedaris' 48th autobiographical book release is reviewed as a "must read". I love both these writers and their insights, but I get your point. Well done.
I experience this pretty much constantly even when I wouldn’t consider myself or things I’m doing as anything significant. People hate to see you (especially if you’re a black woman) be better than them in anything. It doesn’t matter if you get a compliment on your shoes, a promotion, a Grammy… there are always people who want to tear another person down because they feel insecure about themselves.