The wait is over: Gannett, the largest newspaper chain in the United States, has finally announced that it has hired Taylor Swift for the highly coveted job of correspondent for Taylor Swift. USA Today. The lucky Swiftie is 35-year-old Bryan West.
No wonder USA Today He was looking for a reporter to cover Swift full-time. The billionaire star has now become an economic force this year with her record-breaking Eras Tour and the film Eras Tour, which grossed $100 million at the box office. She is reshaping the music industry with the amazing successes of her re-recording projects, The latest developments 1989 (Taylor version). The impact of SWIFT has been noted in an economic report from the Federal Reserve, while analysts are calling the boost it provides to local economies the “TSwift Lift.”
Her influence even extends to the NFL and beyond, as her romance with Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce drives her legions of fans to stadiums wearing Chiefs jerseys. Swift’s debut at the Chiefs game led to Heinz releasing a limited edition “Ketchup and Seemingly Ranch” sauce after the pop singer was seen eating chicken with both sauces. The couple’s origin story boosted sales at craft suppliers like Michaels after fans learned that Kelsey had gifted Swift a friendship bracelet after seeing her perform.
West, of course, Swifty. In his video bio, in which he listed 13 reasons why he was a good fit for the job, he described meeting Swift in person, joking, “Our ears touched and for a moment I thought, ‘I could be straight.'”
But his credentials include serious journalism as well. After graduating from Northwestern University, West worked as a morning show planner, investigative producer, and then radio reporter in Phoenix. He has also won numerous awards for his work, including Emmys, Murrow, and DuPont Awards.
“I would say this situation is no different than being a sports journalist who is a fan of the home team,” West said. diverse From his new party. “I just came from Phoenix, and all the announcers there were wearing Diamondbacks gear; they wanted the Diamondbacks to win. I’m just a fan of Taylor and I’ve followed her throughout her career, but I also have that journalism background: going to Northwestern University, winning awards, working in newsrooms at All over the country.
“I think the fun of this job is that, yes, you can talk about Easter eggs, but it’s really more serious, like the impact you have on society, business and music,” he added.
All bloggers, influencers and political reporters applied to participate
When Gannett listed the job in September — along with a Beyoncé correspondent position — some speculated that it was just a publicity stunt and that the magazine wasn’t looking for a legitimate journalist for the role. After all, “anything you touch turns to gold,” as one fan put it. But Michael Anastasi, editor of The Tennessean and vice president of local news at Gannett, said so diverse That assumption was wrong.
Applicants “ranged from seasoned hard news reporters, including at least one correspondent from the White House, to Swifties who have blogs and are influencers…and of course there were a number of fans who were following their dreams and hoping to win the lottery,” Anastasi said.
“But what we ended up with is someone who I think has a great balance between being a veteran journalist with serious news pieces and someone who understands everything about Taylor’s world and the universe he’s entering into,” he added.
West will work out of the Tennessean newsroom USA Today and the chain’s local dailies, but he will do more than just write on the Swift.
“He’ll be on video, he’ll be on social media, he’ll be interacting with Swifties, he’ll be out and about at tour stops, on red carpets, at the CMAs, wherever people are enjoying or thinking about who Taylor Swift is.” said Ben Jawad, Tennessee’s news director and West’s director diverse.
“There is no shortage of things to write.”
