Taylor Swift
Photo by SUZANNE CORDEIRO:AFP
Taylor Swift's legal team sent a cease-and-desist letter to a University of Central Florida student who runs several social media accounts tracking the use of private jets by celebrities. Jack Sweeney, who is 21, was contacted by an attorney working on Swift's behalf in December, the Washington Post reports, and accused him of "stalking and harassing behavior."
Swift, who won Album of the Year at the Grammys and announced details of a new album this week, has long been the target for stalkers and over-zealous followers. Earlier this month a 33-year-old man was charged with stalking and harassment after being arrested near her New York home.
This kind of incident is key to the messaging in the cease-and-desist letter, in which lawyer Katie Wright Morrone wrote, "While this may be a game to you, or an avenue that you hope will earn you wealth or fame, it is a life-or-death matter for our Client." Morrone added that there was “no legitimate interest in or public need for this information, other than to stalk, harass, and exert dominion and control.”
Sweeney's "game" is tracking the jet usage of public figures like Swift, as well as tech moguls Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos. He uses publicly available data from Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and broadcast signals from aircrafts to track their carbon footprint. Sweeney's Twitter account was deleted in 2022, shortly after Musk took control of the social media platform.
Sweeney says he believes the cease-and-desist letter is a "scare tactic" and pointed out that the information he shares is already available to the public.
When asked about the letter, Swift's publicist Tree Paine, told the Guardian that the information Sweeney posts "tell you exactly when and where she would be." She told the Post, however, that Swift's jet usage is distorted by the fact she often lends it to friends to use. Additionally, Paine pointed out, the pop star buys a large amount of amount of carbon credits to offset the flights she does take.
The FADER has contacted Swift for further comment.
