I don't know about you, but I spent an inordinate amount of time this summer listening to Nicki Minaj's "Anaconda." The ode to booty (what J.Lo and Iggy Azalea collab?) brilliantly repurposed Sir Mix-A-Lot's Baby Got Back, featured twerking dancers, a rejected Drake and plenty of phallic innuendo in its explosive video and swept aside any competition vying for the title of "song of the summer."
What "Anaconda" also did was start a wave of blog posts, editorials and thinkpieces both criticizing and praising Minaj for her sexism and her feminism, her crudeness and her nuance. This onslaught of opinion continued the swirling maelstrom that had already circled other female entertainers like Beyoncé (who stood squarely in front of the glowing word "FEMINIST" at her MTV VMA performance) and FKA twigs (who sang about oral sex and masturbation on her debut album).
As a self-identified feminist and lover of media critique, this was all perfect summer reading. But something unexpected happened: I actually grew tired of all the dissection and analysis. My fatigue continued into the Emma Watson situation. Watson made a speech about feminism at the United Nations Headquarters, which was received well by most corners of the internet. One of the few dissentors was the underground forum 4chan, whose members threatened to leak nude photos of Watson in retaliation (thankfully, the threat was a hoax). It was all very dramatic, but I just couldn't click any links debating Hermione's politics and/or dissecting rape culture in light of the 4chan threat.
After some reflection, I figured out why discussing the gender politics of women in entertainment has lost its appeal. Asking if a singer is feminist seems a pointless and circular exercise when we have only incomplete quotes, cryptic songs and polarizing videos to go on, especially in a media system in the grip of listicles and clickbait. Emma Watson can make a speech declaring herself feminist and inviting men to join the cause – but then you'll get people criticizing the name of the campaign "He For She" and unearthing an old quote where Watson takes a slut-shaming stance on wearing revealing clothing.
Nicki Minaj can be praised for proudly flaunting her sexuality in "Anaconda" – but then come under fire for the supposedly skinny-shaming line "Fuck all these skinny bitches in the club." Everyone is problematic and everything is confusing. Trying to answer an intensely difficult question – what qualifies someone as a feminist – in a system that loves to twist the truth seems less a meaningful activity and more an excuse to hold these women and their work up to unfair scrutiny in the media. After all, how often does the media poke and prod the gender politics of male entertainers?
And after determining that entertainer X is feminist and a good role model – what then? Does this conclusion lead to any concrete feminist progress for women's rights? It's good news to hear that after some flip-flopping, Beyoncé now unequivocally embraces the feminist label. But isn't it more important to ask if government officials in charge of education, healthcare etc. and the politicians representing their constituents feel the same way?
Celebrities do hold huge sway over their fans, and if they're influential enough, even modern culture. Taylor Swift has recently spoken about how she wished she had someone like Emma Watson explain feminism for her and set an example. But celebrities still lead charmed lives out of the average person's reach, and thanks to modern fame, their experiences are pulled ever farther from those most marginalized by institutionalized sexism and misogyny. Celebrities' influence cannot be taken lightly, but it can also only go so far.
Refraining from confirming celebrities' gender politics also shouldn't mean giving rape anthems like "Blurred Lines" a pass. Blatant sexism, misogyny and rape culture shouldn't go unquestioned. But not all songs feature lyrics which cry for condemnation, like "I'll give you something big enough to tear your ass in two." Not all songs – or in fact, media in general – are quite so black-and-white about how problematic they are. Thinkpieces and opinion articles can help open up discussion around these shades of grey.
At the same time, I still can't shake my discomfort at the media circus that revels in throwing female entertainers into the ring, determined to discover just whether they are feminist or not (whose definition of feminism is being used, anyway?). Female entertainers are people, and people are complex. It's exasperating seeing something complex clumsily dissected with blunt tools and incomplete knowledge. The media should sharpen those scalpels and turn the spotlight on people of power whose gender politics have more concrete consequences on the general public.