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Media misogyny is pervasive. It filters throughout our culture. And it contributed to the strange legal takeover of superstar Britney Spears's freedom, rights, and life.

In 2021, Britney Spears broke free of her toxic 14-year conservatorship. And she is finally escaping an abusive legal arrangement that unquestionably enriched her father, business manager, and a large number of attorneys more than it did the iconic superstar. 

In February, the documentary “Framing Britney Spears” was released. It pointed to the 2003 interview that showed the attitude of the media towards Britney. And journalist Diane Sawyer was one of the journalists to come under fire for their treatment of the pop star. 

Dad Jamie Spears’ lawyer, Alex Weingarten, says his client is not to blame for the 2003 interview. He hasn’t commented on why certain media platforms were being paid tens of thousands of Britney’s money to improve the image of the abusive conservator management.

Escaping an abusive conservatorship

Britney Spears is arguably one of the most successful performers of all time. She is a talented,  beautiful, and much-loved personality. It looked like she had everything. Then in 2008, she had a very public meltdown. That’s when the people that were always trying to control her life got the legal right to micromanage it.  

Her father, extended family, and an allegedly shady “business manager” were in charge.

Britney continued to make millions. And it is now being alleged that her estate has been badly mismanaged.

In August the attorney of her own choosing, Mathew Rosengart claimed, “There has been an evident dissipation of assets of Ms. Spears Estate, and that dissipation is ongoing.” 

And more recently the fight continues with Spears' dad and her business manager.  “TriStar filed a motion to quash subpoenas that were served on TriStar, as well as Robin Greenhill, and that’s something the court is going to address during the hearing on January 19,” Rosengart said.

How did this happen in the first place? And could it happen again? 

The interview reveals Media misogyny

The now free 40-year-old pop diva is speaking out after over 13 years. And she described her interview with Sawyer in a now-deleted Instagram post. 

“Do we dare forget the Diane Sawyer interview in my apartment almost 20 years ago?” she wrote, according to screenshots. “What was with the ‘You’re in the wrong’ approach?? Geeze... and making me cry???”

“Something I never shared when I had that big breakup years ago was that I couldn’t talk afterward. I never spoke to anyone for a long time ...I was in shock,” she added, “pretty lame of my dad and three men to show up at my door when I could hardly speak ... two days later they put Diane Sawyer in my living room ... they forced me to talk !!!”

In 2003 Sawyer hit Britney with her high-profile breakup with boyfriend Justin Timberlake. For some reason, Sawyer seemed to take sides. And she blamed Britney. Sawyer asked Spears, “You did something that caused him so much pain, so much suffering. What did you do?”

ABC spent a lot of time focusing on Spears' body and wardrobe. Sawyer said that the space between the superstar’s  midriff and belly button ring was “the most valuable square inch of real estate in the entertainment universe.” 

And she even claimed that Spears was “getting burned by the fire she lit herself.”

The interview ended when the star began to cry. But the cameras kept rolling to capture her breakdown after she asked to stop the interview.

A media history of shaming women 

From the 1960s through the 1990s it was all about audience share. And in the early 2000s, it became about clicks and pics with the new wave of 24-hour journalism. 

Long before the MeToo Movement went public, media misogyny was on full display. And body shaming, invalidating, and belittling primarily women were tools of the trade. Britney Spears was a focal point. 

Before and after the Sawyer interview there was innuendo directed at Britney Spears.  

There were a few examples in the documentary. A male “shock-jock” radio host asked Timberlake about sleeping with Spears. He was direct “Did you fuck Britney Spears?” to which Timberlake laughed and said, “OK, I did it.”

Timberlake finally apologized after the documentary was released.  “I failed,” he claimed.

A male journalist asked a teenage Spears about her breasts.  Jay Leno often made Britney the punchline in his late-night jokes. And during her infamous 2008 breakdown, Britney was hounded by the paparazzi. 

The images of helicopters filming the young woman as she was being loaded into an ambulance still remain. She was chased, hounded, and maligned.

It is still debatable if the media was telling her story or trying to destroy her to get a better story.

Britney speaks out on media misogyny

Women are often treated as objects and sexualized in stories. And there are also nasty and untrue narratives created to garner attention.

Newly-freed Britney Spears has been speaking out. And more is coming to light. There is enough blame to go around. But in the case of Britney Spears, it may be one of the worst cases of media misogyny ever.

And just a few weeks ago when Britney was leaving a coffee shop photographers were surrounding her car. They spoke only to her fiance. And they were asking him about her mental health. One of them called out “She should be grateful to have you taking care of her.”

It never ends...