Images: Wikimedia Commons
Meow! The entertainment news industry is all a titter today about a brewing feud between two of the brightest stars of pop: good girl Taylor Swift and girl-kissing bombshell Katy Perry.
A brief recap, for those not knee-deep in the dirt: Swift told Rolling Stone that a new song on her album, "Bad Blood," is about a fellow star who got on her bad side. Soon after her comments were published, Katy Perry tweeted cryptically, "Watch out for the Regina George in sheep’s clothing…"
Naturally, the timing of the Mean Girls-themed tweet has everyone convinced that the "bad blood" is between Swift and Perry.
You can't blame people from jumping on this news with glee; everyone loves a good old-fashioned catfight, and this one's a doozy. The problem? The media has blatantly overlooked the facts in favor of perpetuating nasty stereotypes about women.
According to Swift, the beef was purely professional—her back-up dancers were stolen from her, and it made her mad. She even explicitly stated "It wasn't even about a guy." But that hasn't stopped many from assuming that the real reason for the ill will was John Mayer, whom both women once dated—and it's not hard to see why.
A catfight about a business beef? Boring. A catfight about a guy? The stuff male fantasies are made of.
The media's arguments for why Mayer is the real culprit for the fight are laughable in their flimsiness, and maddening for their assumptions.
Here's how The Wire explained the feud:
"According to Page Six—and despite Swift's specific claim to the contrary—the beef began over a dude. Specifically John Mayer."
Apparently, the fact that Swift said there was a "personal element" to the fight is proof-positive that it has to do with Mayer. Because, you know, the only personal thing that can exist for women is men. The Wire also took question with Swift "actively omitting the fact that she and Perry had an ex in common." You could read this as Swift not caring that she and Perry have an ex in common. But no, in The Wire's estimation, this proves that she's being shady and concealing the truth.
The Daily Caller, which condescendingly headlined its story "Taylor Swift And Katy Perry Are In A Pillow Fight" (hot!) was even more direct in its sexism:
"What could the two be fighting over? Airstrikes in Gaza? What to do about the Islamic State? Who will get the iPhone 6 first?
Nope. It’s because someone stole someone’s back-up dancers, John Mayer, probably Pumpkin Spice Lattes, etc."
Here's a newsflash: Women think about other things besides boys, including (yes) Gaza and the Islamic State and the iPhone 6. They also get angry at each other for reasons having nothing to do with Y-chromosomes, including (yes again) matters that are entirely professional in nature.
Let us also point out here that Swift and Perry are both single, wildly successful and rich beyond measure. They have infinite more clout and status than any of the (mostly male) pundits commenting on their catfighting and supposed boy obsessions.
Here's hoping both women can, as they always have, brush off the sexism and continue to find phenomenal success. They've never needed John Mayer or any other man to find it in the past.
