News

Should Taylor Swift be endorsing Kamala Harris?

Annabelle Lyons, Reporter

October 2, 2024

Credit: Vanity Fair

Taylor Swift, one of the biggest pop stars in current times, recently made a post to her 283 million Instagram followers, declaring her support for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election. Swift has received mixed emotions from critics, fans and others regarding her post. She announced,“Like many of you, I watched the debate tonight. If you haven’t already, now is a great time to do your research on the issues at hand and the stances these candidates take on the topics that matter to you the most. As a voter, I make sure to watch and read everything I can about their proposed policies and plans for this country.”

Some say Swift, along with most main-stream celebrities, should “stay out of politics.” They believe it sways the support for the candidate in which the celebrities, in this case Taylor Swift, show support for. Some people believe the “religious like worship” fans have for big stars is dangerous. If a celebrity spreads misinformation while endorsing a candidate, the public can look to blame the celebrity. They could be accused of inciting political chaos or even become looped in conspiracies.

As of 2 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 11, approximately 337,826 people had visited a custom URL that Swift posted on Instagram when she announced she was endorsing Harris. On Sept. 10, Swift wrote on Instagram stating, “I’ve done my research, and I’ve made my choice. Your research is all yours to do, and the choice is yours to make. I also want to say, especially to first time voters: Remember that in order to vote, you have to be registered! I also find it’s much easier to vote early. I’ll link where to register and find early voting dates and info in my story.” While some people argue that celebrities have the obligation to speak out on current world issues due to their influential platforms, others believe that celebrities are not politicians and should not be treated as such. It is strongly believed that celebrities should endorse their candidate because it inspires more young people to register to vote. This ongoing debate on whether large celebrities should speak on politics does not have a clear cut answer, but there are strong arguments and valid points on both sides.

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https://www.dailynebraskan.com/culture/should-celebrities-be-politically-involved/article_08d00c4c-f859-11ee-b8e6-63e736e60ad1.html

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/taylor-swift-endorses-kamala-harris-rcna170547

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/taylor-swift-kamala-harris-endorsement-vote-gov/

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About the Contributor

Annabelle Lyons

Annabelle Lyons, a junior at John Adams, excited to start her journey in finding her voice within the many topics she will be writing about this school year. Although this is Annabelle's first year with The Tower, she loves spending her time writing various different things, from songs, to short stories, and essays about her favorite artist, Taylor Swift, and the complex storylines in her music. Annabelle was inspired to start writing at a young age. She was in school for Preschool and Kindergarten but then her mom noticed how she was struggling within the traditional school setting, and elected to pull her and her sisters out of school and begin an uncommon form of schooling called “Worldschooling.” Worldschooling is a niche idea of schooling originally founded in 2010-2015. It is believed in this community that children learn faster and more complex ideas of thinking at a young age, when exposed to other cultures. Worldschooling families spend all their time traveling around the world, most without a homebase. She loved exploring and reflecting on their history through writing. When Annabelle is not writing or at school she can usually be found at home with her family and dogs or at the barn riding horses. From a young age, she expressed a lot of love for animals, especially horses. One of her best friends, Myah Arter, would describe Annabelle as a “horse girl,” but she will always deny such accusations, then proceed to spend the next 30 minutes explaining how much she loves riding and how obese her lesson horse, Jodie, is. Even though Annabelle loves animals, she wants to pursue cosmetology during and after high school. She has always loved doing makeup and hair ever since she was little, and it has been her number one way to express herself, and to help others express themselves, today. But above all of that, Annabelle is someone who you can always go to when you are in need of a friend, she is someone who will listen to and help you solve whatever problems you may be facing. You can almost always guarantee a joke will be made to help whoever she is talking to feel better. Annabelle is very excited to begin her writing journey at The Tower!