Warning: This is a tale that's guaranteed to elicit a "smh." It's also a sad portrayal of how an Internet platform meant to foster community can be extremely alienating and undercutting — regardless of a user's level of fame. The famous user in question is the new patron saint of Tumblr, Taylor Swift. She might be abandoning the microblogging site after getting caught in an alleged cyberbully's web.
The drama started after Swift shared a photo of herself kissing a fan named Johnnie's cheek at the Brit Awards last week. "Kissing my love at the BRITS," she captioned the snap. Sounds harmless enough, right?
Wrong. Apparently, Johnnie has frequently been accused of bullying other Swift fans. They were angry that Swift would shower him with affection and send him a Valentine's Day gifts. They even started the confusing hashtag #SwiftiesWantTaylorSwiftDead on Twitter to voice their annoyance.
Swift, of course, saw the drama. She didn't directly address the situation with Johnnie, but she posted a photo on Instagram urging fans to choose love over hate. She liked several Tumblr posts that supported her relationship with Johnnie. She also started liking posts suggesting she'd quit Tumblr because of all the incident and the negativity it continued to generate.
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According to BuzzFeed, which diligently chronicled the entire saga, Johnnie eventually apologized in a post on Tumblr. Taylor Swift has yet to respond directly to the incident, instead choosing to share photos of her joyous future godmother duties for Jaime King. Could this be the end of the road for Taylor Swift and Tumblr? As a wise man named Justin Bobby once said...(BuzzFeed)