Taylor Swift’s distance from controversial global conflicts is a hallmark of her superstar status. For some fans in Israel, it’s also a selling point.
Michal Paz-Klapp, editor of young adult literature at the renowned Israeli publisher Modan, seized the opportunity to publish a Hebrew-language edition of “Who Is Taylor Swift?” by Kirsten Anderson. The US children’s book was published in April as part of Penguin Workshop’s bestselling series “Who Was?” and “Who Is?”, a series of illustrated biographies about famous people from Ruth Bader Ginsburg to Confucius.
The Hebrew version of “Who is Taylor Swift?” hit Israeli bookstores last week, making it the first international edition of the book.
Swift’s popularity knows no bounds, but one non-musical decision has boosted her popularity in Israel recently, says Paz-Klapp: her silence on speaking out about the war between Israel and Hamas. Her Israeli listeners are well aware of her growing isolation on the world stage as public opinion turns against Israel’s eight-month war that has devastated Gaza with a humanitarian crisis and over 37,000 deaths. Swift has scored points with Israeli fans simply by her silence, many of whom see her music as an escape from the trauma of the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks that sparked the war and growing global criticism of Israel.
“Part of the love that Taylor gets is that she – I don’t know if she actively supports Israel – but she’s not against Israel, and that’s really important for Israeli people, I think,” Paz-Klapp told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
Other fans around the world have denounced the pop star’s silence. Thousands flooded X with the hashtag #SwiftiesForPalestine in May, calling on her to take a stand after Israel attacked the southern Gaza city of Rafah and set fire to a refugee camp. Some fans accompanied her global Eras tour with Palestinian flags and signs reading “Speak Now,” a reference to her hit 2010 album.
Swift was also among hundreds of celebrities targeted by a social media campaign called “Blockout 2024,” which aimed to block artists and influencers who had not publicly spoken out in support of Gaza. Selena Gomez, Drake, Justin Bieber, Zendaya and the Kardashian family were other well-known names on the “digital guillotine” lists.
Though Swift tiptoed around political issues for years — and made headlines when she even called herself a feminist after nearly a decade of fame — she has recently used her platform in the sphere of U.S. politics. Since coming out as a Democrat and endorsing President Joe Biden in 2020, she has condemned the Supreme Court’s overturning of the Roe V. Wade ruling as well as anti-LGBTQ legislation. Last year, a message on her Instagram Story urging her followers to vote sparked a surge of more than 35,000 registrations on Vote.org.
But while abortion rights and LGBTQ issues divide the U.S. electorate, they are less controversial within Swift’s fan base, which is predominantly made up of Democrats, millennials and white women of Gen Z. The war between Israel and Hamas is a more divisive issue among young, liberal-leaning voters.
Swift’s avoidance of the subject has allowed Israelis to attach their own meaning to her music. “Bigger Than the Whole Sky,” a song from Swift’s 2022 album “Midnights” about saying goodbye to someone, has become an anthem for the friends of Roni Eshel, a 19-year-old Israeli soldier and fan of Swift’s who was killed by Hamas on Oct. 7. Eshel’s friends asked Swift to intercede on their behalf last fall before Eshel’s death was confirmed.
“When Swifties go to concerts, they make bracelets and give them to other fans around the world,” Paz-Klapp said. “In Israel, they’ve made Roni Eshel bracelets and given them away to other fans.”
Swift has not yet performed in Israel – the country’s small size and geographic isolation mean relatively few top acts stop here on their tours – but Israeli fans have flown to Europe to see her shows. A Facebook group dedicated solely to ticket resale and travel coordination has nearly 4,000 members.
Shira Ben-Choreen Schneck is an accountant at the Deborah Harris Agency, the Jerusalem-based literary agency that secured the deal to publish “Who Is Taylor Swift?” with Modan Publishing House. She played Swift’s music for the agency’s foreign rights director, Efrat Lev, and shared her own family’s fondness for the artist. Her three daughters — ages 14, 12 and 9 — are all fans of the artist.
Schneck lives in Armon Hanatziv, also known as East Talpiot, a Jerusalem neighborhood on land that Israel captured and annexed in the 1967 Six-Day War. Israel considers the entire city part of its sovereign territory, although the Palestinians claim East Jerusalem as their capital.
According to Schneck, there was a sense of camaraderie between her family and their Arab neighbors before October 7. Then tensions in the neighborhood rose. Her children were pelted with rocks and chased by a car on the street. Schneck’s 12-year-old daughter was particularly affected – and found refuge in Swift’s 20-year discography.
“She basically didn’t leave the house until February,” Schneck told JTA. “She insisted on being picked up, she didn’t want to ride the bus, she was just so shaken up by everything that had happened. She ended up doing art therapy because of it. But for all of my kids, it was just great to have a place to escape to, and I think (Swift’s) music definitely contributed to that.”
Schneck’s children already have the English and Hebrew versions of “Who Is Taylor Swift?” at home. Her 12-year-old daughter approved of the book in a message to JTA, even though she knew too much about the pop star.
“Taylor Swift’s book was very interesting,” she said. “It had a lot of facts about her. As a Swiftie, I knew most of them.”
