Taylor Swift has been everywhere in the past few months after her landmark tour and budding relationship with NFL star Travis Kelce — the latter of which has sent Superbowl ticket prices spiralling to unprecedented heights but, in a small silver lining, shed some long overdue light on Aussie players in the NFL — but now, it seems she’s had enough of people watching her every move…
Kicking off what could be the start of a long litigious battle, Taylor Swift’s legal team has issued a stark warning to Jack Sweeney, a 21-year-old student attending the University of Central Florida who has made a name for himself tracking the private jets of the super-rich, including Tesla and Twitter boss Elon Musk.
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Swift’s lawyers allege that Sweeney’s tracking antics border on ‘stalking and harassing behaviour’, citing his publication of detailed, real-time locations of Swift’s whereabouts. The legal notice, as detailed by Bloomberg, underscores the personal safety angle that Swift’s team have taken regarding these actions which contrasts pointedly with Sweeney’s own view that he is simply making publicly accessible information — stored by the Federal Aviation Administration — more publicly appreciated.
Sweeney’s efforts have not only put a spotlight on Swift but also other high-profile figures, including politicians, billionaires, and celebrities (and sometimes those that fall into all three categories; a growing segment of the population…) raising important questions about personal privacty versus public access to information.
Calculating the carbon footprint of every tracked flight, Sweeny’s work has put a real spotlight on the massively disproportionate environmental impact these people can have versus us ‘mere mortals’. Swift has long faced criticism over the carbon emissions from her jet-setting lifestyle, with reports attributing nearly 8,300 tons of CO2 emissions to her in 2022 alone.
Despite the legal threats, Sweeney remains unfazed and drew a very interesting parallel between this cease-and-desist effort with one he’s endured previously…
“This event is eerily similar to December 2022 when Musk tweeted he would take legal action against me after he claimed someone had come after him.”
Jack Sweeney, in a statement.
Swift’s representatives responded to the environmental criticisms by pointing out her purchase of carbon credits in an effort to offset her travel emissions. However, many have questioned the efficacy of carbon credits, and it does little to beat the argument that celebrities need to lead by example in terms of their lifestyle as climate challenges become more pressing.
Sweeney has previously clashed with Elon Musk in an almost identical context. Musk’s response focused on a broader discussion around free speech and privacy concerns, a topic to which he often returns and — arguably — has been the main motivating factor in his purchase of X, formerly Twitter.
Is Taylor an eco-hypocrite who needs to reign in her luxuries or, at the very least, accept the public’s right to scrutinise them? Or should the rich and famous be entitled to their privacy, no matter how bad it is for the planet? Let us know.