Tay Tay backs Vice President Harris, calls out Trump’s AI stunt

Tay Tay lived up to her name following the live televised debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump, swiftly endorsing* the US Vice President and praising Harris as a “steady-handed, gifted leader” in a lengthy Instagram post.

“Like many of you, I watched the debate tonight,” Swift began, alongside a photo of herself with her cat Benjamin from her December Time Magazine cover.

“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.”

Swift continued, “I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election. I’m voting for @kamalaharris because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them. I think she is a steady-handed, gifted leader and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos.”

Unlike Australia’s system, voting is not compulsory in the US, and Swift took the opportunity to encourage fans to get involved, writing: “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.”

Swift also addressed Mr Trump’s recent sharing of an AI* image that suggested the singer had endorsed him for president.

“Recently I was made aware that AI of ‘me’ falsely endorsing Donald Trump’s presidential run was posted to his site,” Swift wrote.

“It really conjured* up my fears around AI, and the dangers of spreading misinformation*. It brought me to the conclusion that I need to be very transparent* about my actual plans for this election as a voter. The simplest way to combat misinformation is with the truth.”

Swift finished her post with a cheeky dig at Mr Trump’s running mate JD Vance, who recently came under fire from US actor Jennifer Aniston for resurfaced comments he made about Ms Harris having no children of her own.

Mr Vance told Fox News in 2021 the US was being run by “a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they’ve made and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable, too.”

Swift pointedly signed off her post-debate endorsement post with, “Taylor Swift. Childless Cat Lady.”

The megastar’s endorsement is monumental* for the Harris campaign. Aside from boasting 283 million followers on Instagram alone, the singer is inarguably* one of the most influential figures on the planet.

The 34-year-old was famously apolitical* at the beginning of her career, until she made the decision to speak out after Mr Trump was elected to the presidency in 2016.

Commentators* and analysts have repeatedly suggested that the immensity of Swift’s fame gives her unique political influence beyond that of any other pop culture* figure.

Swift joins a number of celebrity Harris supporters, including Beyonce, George Clooney, Matt Damon and Olivia Rodrigo.

Trump has Hulk Hogan, Kid Rock and Elon Musk among the high-profile backers in his corner.

POLL

GLOSSARY

• endorsing: declaring public support and approval of someone or something
• stances: positions, attitudes, where they stand
• AI: artificial intelligence, computer systems doing tasks that would normally need a human
• conjured: produced, brought up, created
• misinformation: wrong or false information that is spread
• transparent: clear, explicit, unambiguous
• monumental: massive, huge, very significant
• inarguably: undoubtedly, indisputably
• apolitical: not interested or involved in politics
• commentators: people whose job is describing and analysing events as or after they happen
• pop culture: music, TV, cinema, books, etc. that are popular and enjoyed by ordinary people

EXTRA READING

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Biden out, endorses Kamala Harris

Assassination attempt echoes America’s past

QUICK QUIZ

1. Taylor Swift endorsed Kamala Harris after which particular event?
2. What was Swift referencing by signing off as “Childless Cat Lady”?
3. Swift posted her support on Instagram – how many followers does she have on that social media platform alone?
4. What is one important difference between America’s voting system and Australia’s?
5. How did Donald Trump use AI to spread misinformation about Swift?

LISTEN TO THIS STORY

CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Write the song
Imagine that Taylor Swift has asked you to write the words for a song to inspire her fans to get involved in their communities, be interested in elections, the issues and vote.

Write the words for your song. Don’t forget to include a catchy chorus!

Time: allow at least 30 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Civics and Citizenship

2. Extension
Do you think that celebrities like Taylor Swift should or should not talk about politics, or who they are voting for? Write a list of reasons for and a list of reasons against.

Time: allow at least 25 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Civics and Citizenship, Personal and Social Capability

VCOP ACTIVITY
Adjectives
An adjective is a describing word. They are often found describing a noun. Start by looking at the words before the nouns.

Search for all the adjectives you can find in the article.

Did you find any repeat adjectives or are they all different?

Extension:
Pick three of your favourite adjectives from the text and put them in your own sentences to show other ways to use them.

Have you used any in your writing?