As we discussed Friday, Pretty Little Liars star Troian Bellisario gave a fascinating interview to Cosmo. Cosmo sent reporters to the Democratic National Convention, and Troian was there to promote her work with pro-choice organizations and to support Hillary Clinton. The bulk of the Cosmo interview was about Troian being a Bernie Sanders supporter and then happily moving to support Hillary Clinton. Troian came across as thoughtful, articulate, pragmatic and interesting. Unfortunately, Cosmo’s last question – the “just for fun” question – was about Taylor Swift versus Kimye. And Troian didn’t just say “no comment.” She said:
“Oh god, I have such an aversion to the Kardashians because I literally don’t understand people’s obsession with them and I don’t want to accept them as our closest thing to a royal family, so I guess I would be Team Taylor Swift? However, I’m so appalled by what I consider to be her false feminism. It seems like she’s this person who’s like, “Sisterhood!” and then she does nothing but tear down the women that were once her friends. So is it possible to just be, like … this is a two-party system that I don’t want to be a part of? Can I just say that? Can I say that I would choose the Green Party in this?
If you really read her entire answer, it’s clear that she doesn’t like Taylor or Kim that much. But the Taylor/false feminism thing got the most attention (that’s what I used for the headline, as did most blogs and media outlets). And Troian must have been getting slammed by touchy Swiftloonies, because she tried to backtrack a bit on Twitter (you can see her whole Twitter feed here):
@etalkCTV for goodness sake what I said about her was that I truly had no opinion on whatever matter was most recently going on with her
— Troian (@SleepintheGardn) July 30, 2016
@etalkCTV please leave me out of noise like this. I basically said I would like to have no opinion on the topic. I've never even met her.
— Troian (@SleepintheGardn) July 30, 2016
@ThePerezHilton @etalkCTV I said I couldn't care less bout another Swift feud-apparently that means Im in one w/ her pic.twitter.com/KW6pkuIbiI
— Troian (@SleepintheGardn) July 30, 2016
@enews more like I'm "appalled" by people who misquote me & attach a terrible photo of me, when really i want nothing to do gossip. peace.
— Troian (@SleepintheGardn) July 30, 2016
There were more tweets where she said that was misquoted, then she asked not to be involved, then said we need to focus on more important things, then when someone asked if she really believes that Taylor Swift tears down her former friends, Troian wrote: “she did, according to the media, I asked to not be involved in choosing sides because, right, I still dont care.”
Dear Troian: I get it. You are passionately and admirably involved in politics and you thought you were giving an interview about Hillary and Bernie and all of that. And Cosmo accurately quoted you on that part of the interview, right? Then maybe – just maybe? – learn how to say “no comment” when a media outlet asks the fun/gossip question at the end. Because if you were truly misquoted, why not clarify your real comments instead of freaking out when your ON-THE-RECORD interview made news. Taylor Swift, Kim Kardashian, Kanye West are gossip catnip, so of course if you talk about them in an interview, people will be interested in your thoughts. It’s like Gossip 101: don’t talk sh-t about really high-profile people and then claim that you were (vaguely) misquoted and that you really don’t care and “according to the media” Taylor is a terrible person. You can’t put this genie back in the bottle. Why not just own what you said? It was actually pretty balanced, in that you insulted both Kim and Taylor.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
oh come on. she wanted the free PR that came with attacking another woman. she once described herself as hyper intelligent so she really could have seen what would happen.
Well i don’t think so, when you take a look at what she said, she’s against pitting woman against each other, and clearly even if taylor is trying to make us think the opposite, taylor IS pitting woman against each other and she plays the victim whenever it is convenient for her ! I think kaiser, that Troain is afraid about the team’s swiffty reaction and she’s backing up, to me it shows that TS is manipulative and probable a mean person who do not assume her inner self.
Attacking another woman? Lord, she said she had less than favorable opinions about both sides. That’s not attacking anyone.
Yeah, saying you don’t like someone or what they do isn’t “tearing them down” or “pitting women against each other”. Claiming otherwise is exactly what Swift’s brand of feminism is; you can’t say anything negative because that’s anti-feminist.
She should have just stuck with what she originally said. The K-Klan is pretty shameful and the almost decade long back and forth between Swift and West is deeply petty and ludicrous.
Free PR? By attending the Democratic National Convention to support Bernie Sanders-Hillary Clinton, freedom of women to decide on their own health issues and giving a lengthy interview about politics except for ONE question about the Petty Princess? LMAO.
Yes going to the DNC is how to get free PR. Along with answering questions honestly. Guess she should have set up a pap friendly make-out session instead to show she is a female friendly serious person!!!!!
+ 100000000000000000 🙂
She was probably caught up in the political atmosphere/interview and let her guard down. IMO, she wanted to give a “clever” political analogy and it backfired on her. I don’t think she was misquoted, but I think people also blew her quote out of proportion and now she wishes she didn’t say anything.
No comment next time will do the trick.
Exactly. She’s now a part of this Kim/Kanye/Taylor narrative mess, and she hates that
+1
Her only follow up comment should have been “yeah they both suck.” I agree- own your words and your truth.
I would have more respect for her OG comments if she called out BOTH Taylor’s false feminism and Kanye’s misogyny. But yeah she can miss me with her backtracking.
She just has cold feet and don’t want to face the Swiftie backlash.
totally agree – had an opinion, shared it, got told by management that she isn’t a big enough celeb to take of Swifty and her stans.
I can’t keep up! I did try to read the whole post but I just get boggle-eyed at all this back and forth that goes on when two sides are blind to anything else but proving THE OTHER PERSON is the biyotch.
This is what I have to offer: I have never seen Pretty Little Liars but, by amazing coincidence, was schooled on it just the other night*. It promotes teachers banging students, I am told. What the bloody what?!
So this one can shut up about Swifty because I’m seeing pots and kettles.
*The other night my friend and her two daughters came over. Adults were talking and the girls wanted to watch Twilight on the TV. The Sixlets grumpily agreed. I almost fainted! I knew Twilight was bad but within the first twenty minutes we saw gaslighting, stalking and negging, all presented as romantic. My friend told me to be thankful I have boys because it’s easier to train them not to adopt toxic masculinity than it is to raise girls who are immune to all the bullcrap pumped out at them. I think she might be right – and hence being told about Pretty Little Liars.
Troian is also very vocal about her own show and criticizes it.
So, no pots and kettels.
Oh, ok! That’s good. I take it back. I am very unschooled in teen girl entertainment.
freebunny says:
July 31, 2016 at 8:37 am
Troian is also very vocal about her own show and criticizes it.
So, no pots and kettels.
Sixer says:
July 31, 2016 at 8:39 am
Oh, ok! That’s good. I take it back. I am very unschooled in teen girl entertainment.
Not being sarcastic or combative; not judging TB, either, but, what makes that better? Criticizing, yet, staying on the show?
@LinaLamont
First I LOVE your name, just love Lina ;).
I have no opinion cause I never see her show and didn’t know who she was 3 days ago. But yeah, maybe it makes her an hypoctrit. I don’t know.
Lina – I suppose in the acting world, you can’t always afford to turn down jobs. So the best you can do is speak up in interviews about any dodgy plot arcs?
I’m inclined to say that shows intended for teen girls shouldn’t present romanticised versions of what are, essentially, abusive/power imbalance relationships that should be avoided in Real Life. They should show them, if they show them, for what they are. But I’m only speaking on my friend’s reportage of Pretty Little Liars: not seen it myself.
On the other hand, watching Twilight with two tween girls and two tween boys the other night was actually useful. Because the four kids got sensible critical messages about what was being shown from three sensible adults. I mean, at least the Sixlets know what gaslighting is and negging is now and if their mother catches them at either when they do get girlfriends, they will be in Terrible Trouble!
Hi, freebunny…
@Sixer
I don’t know the show (know of it, only), don’t care about her, although, her original statements were thoughtful…. all I’m saying is that there’s enough hypocrisy to go around. I’m not singling TB out. Again, I’m with you in that, for the most part, I come here for the snark. The political threads are a different story.
Lina: Actually, I quite like the political threads. I don’t contribute much – being on the other side of an ocean an’ all, I don’t come from a position of knowledge – but I find the discussions more illuminating than any amount of news items. Hopefully, from time-to-time, I can return the favour by illuminating the social/political context here in the UK.
But you’re right. We’re all hypocrites to one extent or another. Look at me above, rushing to judgement on little knowledge, than having to retract, partially at least. That’s just life though, I think. We’ll never banish hypocrisy in ourselves entirely. We can just keep on trying to reflect on ourselves.
@Sixer
NO! I wasn’t calling YOU or freebunny hypocrites. I was taking about the celebrities.
And, yes, I like(d) the political threads here. Past tense, because, I just can’t anymore. I swear, talking about this election to Trump-troglodytes, Hillary-haters, Bernie-or-Busters makes Giuliani giving his RNC speech look like someone in a Valium-induced coma compared to me. I’m going to have a stroke.
I know how you feel about not being able to chime in. I feel that way about Brexit.
I know you weren’t! Sorry! Wasn’t clear. I was just trying to say that Whatsherface above may or may not have been hypocritical. Likewise, all of us commenting here can be equally on the line of hypocrisy as we critique what the celebs are saying. That’s what I meant.
I do see what you mean about your current electioneering. I think, firstly, human beings tend to the tribal and also to identify others tribally, which is why you get the a) the teams themselves and b) the endless slotting of others into said teams when they’re not, they’re just being a shade of grey. Secondly, it’s not just the US. We are at the end of an era of capitalism – call it third way, Washington consensus, neoliberalism, whatever term doesn’t annoy you! – and are waiting for the new one to come about. These changeovers are always full of strife and extremism is always more noticeable. Eg Brexit, eg Trump, eg everything else going on worldwide right now!
Sixer, Troian is very smart, very articulate, she was valedictorian and in general is really in tune for an actress on a hot tv show. She’s a breath of fresh air, actually.
She was ALSO on this incredible show on WIGS on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLCTP481uj2b9bysof9sSpDe5M4OvpGyWd ) about a military officer who gets raped while working and the goes to fight against the military’s treatment of women; she stars with the luminous Jennifer Beals. That show seems to be more in line with Troians real life politics. (:
Take it back x 2!
Sorry chaps: you have to remember I have never even heard of most of the people written about here. I should probably stick to the posts where I DO know of the people concerned. That would be um… LEGS and the BRF then! After that, I’m mostly stumped!
Actually seeing some episodes of the show, it doesn’t really promote teachers and students dating, girl’s parents in question are against it in the show, and basically it’s a stupid teen tv show, no beter than Beverly Hills 90210 for example. It’s like you’re saying that Criminal minds promote disgusting deviant murders just because someone told you that those go on in every episode and you never even watched one.
And I don’t understand even if PLL promoted student teacher relationship how does that make an actress in the show (who doesn’t even play that character) equal to Taylor Swift?
Yeah, I think of this show as being like 90210. Even Saved by the Bell (the University Years?) had a storyline between a teacher and a student (I think Kelly Kapowski dated her professor). Not that that makes it better, but these shows are basically soap operas like Grey’s Anatomy (where interns also date their superiors) made for teens. Though I’m not even sure that only teens are watching shows like PPL. A lot of older people seem to watch them too, which is probably why the teachers and students look the same age (about 30?).
Yeah I agree. I haven’t watched PLL in a few years but I remember it being a silly somewhat entertaining mystery teen show. Nothing more, nothing less. The teacher/student thing is just one of many subplots.
I don’t think the show actually promotes relationships between teachers and students. It’s just one of those stupid plot lines you’d seen on a soap opera.
@Sixer
Agree the back and forth is confusing on this post without context. You will probably get a better view of her with the link to Kaiser’s previous post. She was being a good citizen by attending a politician convention to advocate for her nominee Bernie Sanders and promote freedom of choice for women as well as other liberal ideas. When Hillary was accepted as the Democrat’s nominee she accepted it maturely and decided to help Hillary win.
She was only giving an interview to Cosmo to discuss politics and encourage other young Bernie fans to switch over to Hillary for the good of the country. The Taylor Swift question was slipped in lastly by the reporter (probably thinking to get more clicks on an otherwise intelligent interview). And she simply answered based on her politician beliefs. Not being hypocritical. Then her words were taken over by sensational media and turned into “beef with Taylor/feud with Taylor).
She seems to just want to focus back on the election and getting out the vote and doesn’t want to enter the tabloid world.
I have seen a few clips of youtube where serious actors are just walking from A to B and photographers are screaming questions at them like “Who has the better butt Kim K or JLo??” . They must get this over and over and over again and occasionally they bite. I don’t think it is always a PR decision, for many it is just boredom or irritation. It doesn’t matter what they say anyway it will be misquoted and taken out of context.
Trojan really comes off badly. She’s doing shows produced by her dad and she really hasn’t had to work for anything.
So Just like Taylor right?
Well they both have to do something, they can’t just come and stand there as trees and make money on it. Taylor sings and whatever else, Troian goes to filmings and so on, what does it matter if they’d had a head start in life? You don’t choose what family you’re born into, but you choose to do the best with what you have and they both would be stupid not to make the most out of their priviledge.
I checked her dad’s IMDB and he’s not listed as a producer or director on Pretty Little Liars, which is the show she’s most known for.
I’ve seen her admit her privilege in interviews though. She seems very self-aware.
My only take: celebrities need to stop commenting on feminism. It continues to show that they don’t know the meaning.
LOL@ Troian bakctracking like a motha.
She is a 30 year old actress with a showbiz family background, plus a father with deep connections and even deeper pockets, as Bellisario fans were quick to remind us in that thread. So I don’t believe she was ‘threatened or harassed by alleged Swift fans to bring about this 180. She inserted herself into this and is now quibbling like hell to get out.
Truth is people attach too much power to Swift. I mean from implying she sabotaged talent vacuum, Camilla Bellybelly’s career – to – this! Swift makes Don Corleone look like Mary Poppins!!
I believe she truly doesn’t care about this though. Does anybody actually care about this mess, including the entertainment reporters covering it? It’s one of those “issues” you offer a throw-away opinion about because Kim and Taylor won’t go away and the media does a good job of making everybody look hilarious, but other than the participants and die-hard fans who really has that much investment in this kind of matter?
She may have backtracked to some degree, but I don’t think I even see a 180 in her tweets. Basically, it sounds like she’s saying she has no extremely deep feelings about the matter which when you think about it is probably the truth for 99 percent of the population because this is one of the dumbest feuds we’ve ever seen.
Well she was absolutely right in her original comment and should have stuck by it.
Right?!? No lies detected, girl. Couldn’t have said it better…
Agreed, she was spot on.
I believe her when she says she truly doesn’t care. She offered an opinion because she was asked, but do I think she spends the amount of time gossip entertainment journalists and bloggers spend thinking about this mess? – no. So, yes, I believe she’s very much telling the truth when she says she doesn’t care because even those of us on message boards giving an opinion don’t deeply care that much about this issue. This kind of “feud” is just more of a diversion where you expend some energy for 5 minutes laughing at everyone involved and then go back to your regular life. I think that’s what happened to her so I don’t find her tweets problematic or disingenuous in that regard.
In her tweet she said: “for goodness sake what I said about her was that I truly had no opinion on whatever matter was most recently going on with her”. This tweet does seem to align with what she said in her original answer when asked about the Kim/Taylor mess: ” this is a two-party system that I don’t want to be a part of? Can I just say that? Can I say that I would choose the Green Party in this?” The very last part of her answer does spell out that she doesn’t want to be part of any of this. So, yeah, I think overall her intent was to basically not choose a side because I think she may have a life life everybody else. I also don’t really think she was freaking out — I think she was simply answering back to the people who wanted to extend her into a feud she wants no part of.
Ya, I agree. The media focused on her comments about Taylor’s ‘false feminism’ but that just looks like she was thinking out loud, before delivering her final opinion that she really does not care about the feud. That’s what she emphasized in her tweets too, so that doesn’t look like backtracking to me. The media has of course decided to ignore the majority of her quote and focus on a throw-away comment so they can create another feud.
I agree with her. Don’t get involved in the petty, debatable stuff. “No comment” is a damn brilliant response when people try to drag you into nonsense. Now for the major criminal and/or bigoted stuff (e.g. Woody Allen, Mel Gibson, Donald Trump, etc.) we all have a public duty to repudiate them and fight against them whenever possible (whther it’s to boycott a movie or to vote in a presidential election).
I have an opinion.
I don’t like people pleasers. PERIOD. Troian.
Uh…she said that she doesn’t care about any of these people, and doubled down on that opinion when asked again. How does that equate to people pleasing?
I don’t think it was a backtrack. She just reiterated that she doesn’t care. In the interview she says she doesn’t like the Ks and she doesn’t like Taylor. Of course the headlines are now she’s in a feud with Swift. It’s not a feud and she wasn’t trying to make it one. She didn’t take back her false feminist comments so she didn’t walk back much of anything
She did not say anything offensive, there shouldn’t be a need to backtrack. And I beg to differ, I think she did give an opinion though she won’t care too much. Unless she was really misquoted. I happen to like Swift songs and her style but I think her opinion is valid.
It’s sad but it was always going to be like this, that’s the fresh meat in the gossip world right now and sadly even venturing a simple “Don’t care for either one” means they’ll prop the quotes just right (like that E network one, sheesh) for maximum click-bait-a-tude.
Can I just say though I find it hilarious all those media reports are about Taylor? It’s perfectly fine to criticize Kim Kardashian apparently, take a number, but criticizing the girl who brought feminism to America? Our blond haired, blue eyed princess of pop? Oh no! *snaps fingers* That needs an article and tweeting the actress and making it seem like any negative comment is a declaration of war against Swifty.
Really does let you know where the media knows the money is in regards to her and her fan’s behaviors.
It’s sad that it has gotten to the point in which she felt like she had to backtrack, but I actually believe what she’s saying right now. It’s likely that she was asked about both Kimye and Taylor, and that she answered candidly, but without particularly making it about the most recent events involving the two parts. Just my take.
I wish the other comment was focused on. Why do they want to ignore that she said kardashians aren’t good for society? Taylor may be mean/sneaky/fake and there are always going to be mean people of both sexes. Kardashians are both mean and harmful in another way, wrong values and over the top shamelessly fake. Taylor tries to maintain some sense of honour/dignity or whatever.
If using racist pr narratives to justify her lies is dignified or funny than Taylor is the better woman, sure. If Donald Win, home she sing the national anthem
She did not backtrack, she is simply saying E! News’ interpretation of her interview is wrong. E! is claiming she is feuding with Taylor Swift whereas in her interview she only mentioned an opinion and clearly prefaced it with a lack of true interest in both Taylor and Kim. She did not take back her statement on Taylor’s false feminism or Taylor backstabbing her female friends.
She just graduated from Film school and was doing her duty as a citizen by attending the Democratic National Convention. She is not tabloid fodder and does not want to be. Her focus is on the election not Tween drama.
But this time she added the caveat “according to the media” on her Taylor Swift feminism/friendship quotes.
Making it now seem less like her opinion and more like how the media maybe spins stuff.
She gave the answer she gives her political friends at dinner parties. It’s honest and a succinct take on the situation, while showing her political position and appropriate level of disdain for fame.
She wasn’t talking to her political dinner party friends, where spoken word is probably considered safer because it’s harder to prove. She was with a journalist, who’s job is to make news, not connections, who’s burden of proof needed before action is significantly different.
So she’s back tracking because she doesn’t want to single handedly make enemies with two of the most powerful women in the entertainment world. Both proven to fight dirty a for their own. Too late though, if it registered with either.
Kim would forgive her is she apologized publicly. Taylor would pretend to forgive her if she apologized publicly.
“So she’s back tracking because she doesn’t want to single handedly make enemies with two of the most powerful women in the entertainment world.”
Or maybe she truly doesn’t care. This is not one of those issues people think about too much except when asked directly about it. Who spends that much time thinking about whether Kim or Taylor were correct in this feud except celebrity bloggers? The only reason she’s probably even answering a second time about the issue is because Twitter exists and because fans can approach her to tell her what they think and she can reply back. I don’t think a lot can be deciphered from her tweets other than that her level of engagement with the Kim-Taylor feud is probably on par with any person who is sane and probably has an actual life.
She wasn’t misquoted. She just didn’t like the part they focused on. Just own your words.