Who cares if Taylor Swift is dating Travis Kelce? Everyone. Why our obsession isn't weird

We are a nation obsessed.

With political division? Sure. With “Barbie,” still? Naturally. With free beer at baseball games? If only.

But what we really care about is Taylor Swift.

All things Taylor Swift, to the point that her going out for a night on the town with Sophie Turner — whose split with Joe Jonas got its own invasion-of-Normandy style media treatment — is covered like actual news.

Exactly like news! Gannett, the company that owns The Arizona Republic and azcentral, is looking to hire a full-time Swift reporter. And before you scoff, there is a simple reason why: People care about Swift. A lot.

Even the MTV Video Music Awards had a dedicated Swift camera, so we could see her every reaction to … everything.

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Who is Taylor Swift dating?

Of course, when it comes to Swift, what people really seem to obsess over is who she is dating. And why not? If you go out with her, you stand a better-than-average chance of having a song written about you (though be careful what you wish for). Her latest rumored romance is a perfect media storm, combining two things the country can’t get enough of — Taylor Swift, duh, and NFL football.

Swift is now dating Travis Kelce, the great tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs.

Probably. Maybe. At least that’s what his brother Jason, himself a great center for the Philadelphia Eagles, says.

Wednesday morning on the WIP Morning Show, a radio sports talk show in Philadelphia, Jason Kelce said of the rumors, “Having said that, man, I think they’re doing great and I think it’s 100% true.”

Wow. Except. …

“No, I’m joking,” Kelce said. “I don’t even know what’s happening.”

Guess which part of his quotes made headlines.

Rumors have abounded about their relationship, which in truth no one really seems to know much about beyond the “a friend confided” level. It has, however, led to some pretty funny football coverage.

Ian Eagle, the excellent play-by-play announcer for CBS, called the game between the Chiefs and the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday. Kelce caught a touchdown pass, and this was Eagle’s call: “Kelce finds a blank space for the score.”

“Blank Space” is a Swift song, for the uninitiated — a song she reportedly wrote at least in part about rumors of her dating life. This really is an endless loop.

The NFL Network’s Rich Eisen did Eagle one better, previewing Kelce’s return from injury by working in a bunch of Swift song titles, including "All Too Well," "Anti-Hero," "Style" and more.

Travis Kelce himself appreciated the effort, tweeting, “Well played Rich … Well played.”

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Who cares about Taylor Swift? You do, probably

So why do we care about Swift anyway? For much the same reason we care about Kelce and football and sports in general, as well as arguments over who the best singer of all time is or what's the best horror movie of all time. These are all things that ultimately affect us not at all. But getting all worked up about them is a harmless, and maybe even healthy, diversion from real-life worries. Above all else, it’s fun.

And make no mistake, Swift is a business. When she took over towns on her massive, record-breaking tour, the economic impact made it more than just a pop-music story.

Like it or not, it’s the media’s job to reflect those things — again, because people care about them. It’s not the only part of the job, and it’s not the most important. But it isn’t unimportant, either.

Coverage is not, as some would have it, a zero-sum game. You can cover Merrick Garland’s testimony before a congressional committee at the same time you are covering rumors about who Swift is dating. You have to prioritize your resources, yes. And don’t equate parsing Swift’s lyrics with the war in Ukraine.

There’s room for all of this. And if it bothers you? Shake it off. (Sorry. Couldn’t be helped.)

Reach Goodykoontz at bill.goodykoontz@arizonarepublic.com. Facebook: facebook.com/GoodyOnFilm. Twitter: @goodyk.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Is Taylor Swift in a relationship? Why Travis Kelce rumors matter