TI Subject Description

Lizmarie Delacruz   

Department of English, The City College of New York   

Writing for the Social Sciences (ENGL 2100)   

 Professor Crystal Rodwell

March 10, 2025

The Taylor Swift fan base, referred to as Swifties, is a group that reflects the modern and
possible intensification of parasocial relationships. I intend to observe the Taylor Swift fandom,
specifically its presence on Reddit and Discord, both named r/TaylorSwift. These platforms will
allow me to view how fans share content and discuss likes and dislikes. r/TaylorSwift is a very
active subreddit in which individuals chat through images, videos, or text-based discussions.
The Reddit platform allows you to upvote and downvote posts and comments, which are visible
to anyone who sees the subreddit. There are some community guidelines which members need
to follow which enforces positivity within the community. I will also be analyzing Taylor Swift
Fans on Discord, which is more interactive than the Reddit server. Unlike the threats seen on
Reddit, discord provides a more community-driven approach, allowing you to just pick a channel
you are interested in and chat. These channels discuss merch or theories, and you can pick
tags for your profile, which allow you to connect more with others of similar interests. If that
wasn’t enough, they also have call channels that allow you to talk to one another on video or
audio calls. Similar to Reddit, there are rules to follow if you are a member and moderators who
help keep a peaceful environment within the server. Both of these interactive groups will allow
me to dive deep into an obsession with interests, the history of Taylor Swift fans and how it
started, and online engagement. Through analyzing, I will gain valuable insight and a deeper
understanding of communities within an online setting and the ability of digital spaces to connect
fans with one another and the interests at hand.