(CNN) — A controversial opinion article by The New York Times The actress, who openly speculated this week about whether Taylor Swift is a queer person who has yet to reveal her sexual orientation, has drawn the ire of the pop superstar's close associates, CNN has learned.
“There is a Taylor-shaped gap in people's ethics right now because of the enormous success,” a person familiar with the situation, who requested anonymity to speak candidly, told CNN. “This article should not have been written about Shawn Mendes or any male artist whose sexuality has been questioned by fans.”
“There seems to be no line that some journalists won't cross when writing about Taylor, no matter how intrusive, false and inappropriate, all under the protective veil of an 'opinion piece,'” the person added.
In the 5,000-word article written in the NYTimes Opinion section, editor Anna Marks compiled a long list of LGBTQ references — some overt, some perceived — that Swift has woven into her songs and performances. Marks suggested that Swift may have been trying to suggest that she identifies with the queer community for years.
“On their own, a loose hairpin may be meaningless or accidental, but taken together they are the unfolding of a dancer's bun after a long performance,” Marks wrote. “These dangling hairpins appeared in Swift’s art long before queer identity was undeniably marketable to mainstream America. They suggest to queer people that she is one of us.”
In the past, Swift has supported the LGBTQ community and stood up for her fans amid record numbers of anti-gay laws across the country, calling her concerts a “safe space” for people. LGBTQ. However, she denied being a member of the LGBTQ community. In a 2019 interview with the magazine Fashion, Swift said who simply resolved to be a good ally to the LGBTQ community as their rights are under threat.
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“Basically anyone who is not a straight white cisgender man is having their rights taken away,” Swift told the magazine. “Until recently, I didn’t realize that I could advocate for a community that I wasn’t a part of.”
Swift also wrote in the prologue to her re-recorded album “1989,” released last year, that she surrounded herself with female friends because society incessantly speculated about whether she was romantically involved with the men she was publicly seen with .
“If I just went out with friends, people couldn't make it sensational or sexual, right? I found out later that people could and did,” she wrote.
This is very unusual for a renowned media company like this New York Times publish an article that speculates about someone's sexuality, let alone a figure of immense cultural importance who has previously denied the advances. These types of articles are generally considered inappropriate and the New York Times He received some criticism from readers for his decision to publish it.
Marks, apparently aware of the article's questionable claims, preemptively addressed the article's critics, writing, “I know that discussing the possibility of a star being queer before a formal declaration of identity is too prurient for some and seems too gossipy to be worth discussing.” .”
“I share many of these reservations,” Marks wrote. “But the stories that dominate our collective imagination determine what our culture allows artists and their audiences to say and be. Every time an artist points out queer behavior and that broadcast falls on deaf ears, that signal dies. Recognize the possibility that “a person.” Being queer—being aware of the difference between possibility and certainty—keeps that signal alive.”
A spokesperson for The New York Times declined to comment directly on the criticism from Swift's staff, citing what Marks wrote in the essay published on the subject.
