[dropcap]2[/dropcap]016’s political climate was a real turning point for American mainstream media and the general public’s perception of it. The ubiquity of politics in today’s content is impossible to ignore. Sites such as Teen Vogue, Rookie, Cosmo, and of course, Affinity have opened a space for teens and young adults to enter the political discourse and provide their perspective on not only the elections, but also identity politics and social justice issues in general. And in doing so, these spaces traditionally marketed for teenagers, have produced some of the sharpest, most necessary pieces of commentary and journalism on these subjects.
An example of this would be Teen Vogue’s Lauren Duca, who wrote an incredible op-ed analyzing Trump and his “systematic attempts to destabilize the truth and weaken the foundation of American freedom.” The piece quickly went viral and it had everyone on social media discussing it, but all the praise of Duca’s writing was veiled with surprise and condescension towards the teen magazine.
The patronizing tone that most people took as they praised Duca perfectly exposed the low expectations that society has of content aimed to young women. To most people Teen Vogue and “Good Writing” is almost oxymoronic, borderline paradoxical and contradictory. There are simply no expectations of quality or substance of content made to be consumed mainly by young women, because it’s not expected of us to be engaged, to be political, to be smart.
Not only is this an underestimation of girls’ intellect, but is a byproduct of the sexist narrative that has historically accompanied teen magazines. Teen publications are seen as the perfect accessory to girls’ vapidity: a source uniquely of gossip, fashion and relationship tips. Looking past the misogyny of that implication, it completely ignores the amazing work that these magazines have done the last few years. Under Elaine Welteroth, the youngest and only second black editor-in-chief of any Condé Nast publication, Teen Vogue has grown into so much more than the stereotype that is believed to be. Rookie Magazine presents a perfect blend of style and feminism. Affinity Magazine is platform that raises the voices of young teens on issues that vary from international affairs and social justice to popular culture. Bitch, Ms., GUTS, the list goes on and on.
These publications have become spaces of radical young-womanhood that do not talk down to girls, that do not treat them as foreign and completely alien to politics and to “good writing”. They embrace, portray and accept the different nuances and sides of female adolescence. Women of all ages, including teenagers contain multitudes. We can like makeup and boybands and at the same time enjoy sharp and smartly written political commentary. These interests are not diametrically opposed, they do not cancel each other out. So you can keep to yourself your surprise and your backhanded compliments that only reinforce the narrative of young women’s content being low quality and vain. Stop expecting so little of us because our content can be and it is high quality. Good journalism occurs in a multitude of spaces, and yes, that includes young women’s publications, it’s on you to find it.
