If you’re anything like me, you’ve probably streamed Gossip Girl more times than you can count. As arguably the most iconic show of the early-2000s, Gossip Girl’s reach is far more vast than many people recognize. Encompassing extensive teenage drama along with illustrious images of New York wealth and glamor, Gossip Girl created a facade that thousands have aspired to since its release in 2007. However, accompanying what makes for undeniably entertaining television are the questions that it inspires. When you’ve binged a show like Gossip Girl as many times as I have, you develop a level of clarity as time passes. For me, this meant begging the question of what is the message behind this? My conclusion: Gossip Girl is considerably more political than it would appear at surface level.
Recently, I had a professor that introduced the concept of eugenics into their lecture. Their definition? Eugenics is the attempt to create a superior group of people with the “shiniest,” “designer” children. I immediately made a connection between this concept and Gossip Girl. What better way is there to describe a show that’s only objection is to highlight entitled, blameless rich kids getting every object of their desire.
While the show attempts to include different perspectives throughout the six seasons, it ultimately dismisses them, shifting back to one-sided, privileged perspectives. The most notable example of this is Vanessa Abrams. Though a true Gossip Girl fan knows her demeanor can come across as obnoxious at times and, truthfully, displaying a level of close-mindedness comparable to that of the Upper East Siders, she is often seen supporting different community organizations and advocating for change. Despite the incorporation of Vanessa to broadcast some level of awareness to viewers, the focus is always quickly shifted away from her, instead returning the attention to a superficial problem faced by one of the main characters. In pushing this message of perfect people living free from consequences, Gossip Girl distorts the reality of life and sets its younger, more impressionable viewers up for failure. What does it say about the world we live in that one of the most widely known shows of my generation and those before me is about overconsumption, indulgence and unrealistic standards on every level?
Despite my love for Gossip Girl and the never-ending entwining of bizarre storylines and subsequent plot holes, it goes without saying that the show maintained some fundamental issues during its five year run. From the exclusive nature of the Upper East Side crowd to the dismissal of real world problems, the truth of the show is one provoking viewers to rethink their reasons for watching. Regardless of the entertainment value, undoubtedly holding influence even 15 years after the premiere, Gossip Girl fans must ask themselves is this the type of media I genuinely want to consume?