Image via The Knot and Fashion Magazine Taylor Swift has once again found herself in the middle of a headline she likely didn’t ask for—this time, it’s not about the Chiefs fandom and her constant presence at her boyfriend, Travis Kelce 's games. No, this time her name appeared in Blake Lively ’s sexual harassment lawsuit against Justin Baldoni . This is a masterclass in weaponizing fandoms and public opinion, and somehow Swift is now part of the conversation.
Baldoni’s team wanted to weaponize Taylor Swift’s fandom The lawsuit filed by Lively is heavy. It accuses Baldoni of creating a hostile work environment during the production of It Ends With Us . The legal filings go way further, all the while exposing emails and documents allegedly from Baldoni’s crisis management team.
The emails detailed plans to manipulate public opinion against Lively. And this is where Taylor Swift finds her name mentioned, or even 'embroiled' in this controversy—Swift’s name comes up in these emails. One document reportedly acknowledges the overlap between Lively’s fanbase and Swift’s.
The email read, “BL does have some of the same TS fanbase, so we will be taking it extremely seriously.” What does this suggest? Well, on the surface this could easily be used strategically. Another proposal explored planting narratives about the “weaponization of feminism” with Swift as a pointed example.
The goal here was to discredit Lively by drawing parallels between her and Swift.