A professor from the University of the Philippines Diliman (UPD) cited reasons for the university's elective course offer on Taylor Swift saying it is aligned with UP's purpose "to provide a space that will generate conversations."
In an article released on Tuesday, Jan. 23, titled "Why Teach Taylor Swift?" by UP Broadcast Communication Associate Professor Cherish Aileen Brillon, she said Taylor Swift embodies interests in political economy, gender, and popular culture among other issues.
"Using Taylor Swift as an example situates the course in a transnational media ecology/environment that’s vastly different from what has been previously studied," Brillon said.
Brillon also said Filipino fans have now different standards of celebrities, as people expect them to be "politically aware and vocal."
"This is something that wasn’t explicitly nor implicitly expected of them before, especially in our very rigid, hierarchical local entertainment industry," said Brillon.
Moreover, Brillon recalled that during the heightened argument on the passing of the then Anti-Terror Bill in 2020, Taylor Swift was one of the few celebrities who expressed dissent against it in her social media accounts.
Brillon also said that the fandom of Swift called "Swifties" persists in amplifying calls online against genocide incidents in Palestine.
In addition, Brillon emphasized the fact that Swift is the current biggest pop star, which "cannot be ignored" in celebrity studies.
"This also means that she appeals to a certain demographic that is media savy and digitally literate," she said.
Brillon noted that the Philippines has always been on the list of top ten countries that have huge listeners of Swift’s music, particularly placing Quezon City in the top five cities.
'Not dismissing the need to study local celebrities'
Brillon addressed the issue of not choosing local celebrities to be studied in UP clarifying that celebrities are "equally important."
"I am very much aware that there are parallel, existing realities that need attention and focus in the country and elsewhere, but it doesn’t invalidate the existence of other realities and phenomena," said Brillon.
"All are important subjects worth exploring," she added.
Meanwhile, the discourse and conversations of the public about the course offer were considered by Brillon as an academe and Filipino society evolution.
"It revealed a lot about how the academe and Filipino society, in general, have evolved, though it also showed that in some other aspects, it remained conservative, rigid, and hierarchical, especially on what is deemed as worth studying and worth paying attention to," she said.
UP College of Mass Communication will offer the elective course, "Celebrity Studies: Taylor Swift in Focus" in the coming semester, which will be taught by Brillon.