Dear Scott Borchetta,
I would like to believe, as someone who does not know you personally, that selling Taylor’s catalogue to Scooter was not a malicious act. You mentioned that you “did not experience” Scooter bullying Taylor, and, to your credit, you may be correct in this fact.
You say you don’t recall Taylor talking about Scooter “in tears or close to”. Please realise that this is because you come from the perspective of severe male privelidge and may not have necessarily realised that Taylor, a woman, was feeling victimised and bullied at the hands of a man.
Simply saying you don’t recall it is not good enough! If you want to claim that you, and he, are men who respect women, then you need to be open to listening and hearing a woman when she says that she feels bullied, no matter whether you agree or not. Dismissing a womans pain, especially when it involves other issues such as revenge porn, will get you nowhere and further pushes patriarchal ideals and narratives.
Furthermore, using Taylor’s declination of offers for charity performances as further defamation of her character, in order to deflect public attention when your own character is being targeted (which is something that Taylor has dealt with for years, all the while earning money for your company) is weak.
As someone who has supported Taylor for many years (albeit at your financial gain), it’s disappointing to see that, business contracts and specifics aside, you refuse to stand by her now. Upon the news release of Scooters acquisition of your company and Taylor’s subsequent response, it would have been nice to see you acknowledge the pain and victimisationshe alluded to. Instead, you sided with the man who has made someone you “respect” to feel victimised, belittled, ashamed and reduced to nothing.
I do not pretend to understand the full story, nor will I comment on the specifics of the contracts and deals regarding Taylor’s catalogue because it’s not my place. I even understand that potentially burning a bridge with a man who has just paid you $300 million dollars may have been intimidating, but was it worth this?
I hope you know that, as a community of fans, we are siding with @taylorswift not just because we love her, but also because we see you. We see your current cowardice, for what it is. Please show some respect, and listen to Taylor, not because it will necessarily change anything that has now happened, but because it may allow for you to see the gaps in your understanding regarding equality and humanity, and allow for personal growth.
#WeStandWithTaylor
#ListenToWomen