Is this the end of MEAN GIRL CULTURE?

Almost 20 years since the film Mean Girls was released, it's no longer cool to be one. Bree Player discovers what's really motivating the movement and why it's even more damaging

- Bree Player

It all started with Selena Gomez's eyebrows. Apparently, she had over-laminated them. She wished they were more like Bella Hadid's. She shared that very sentiment in late February in a (now deleted) video with her more than 58 million followers on TikTok.

A few hours later, Kylie Jenner posted a screenshot of a FaceTime call with BFF Hailey Bieber to her more than 380 million Instagram followers. In the image, both women had zoomed in on their brows, which the internet deduced was a snide attack on Selena. And that is how the war began. 

Cries of "mean girl vibes" were hurled at Kylie and Hailey, sides were taken, fingers were pointed, a "goodie" and a "baddie' were determined, and Hailey Bieber was and the ultimate Regina George. Why Hailey over Kylie, you may be wondering? The alleged feud between Selena and Hailey is believed to have stemmed from the fact that Hailey is married to Selena's ex-boyfriend, Justin Bieber.

For those playing at home, it was easy to conclude who the internet sided with by following the numbers. Hailey lost upwards of 1 million followers on Instagram in the wake of browgate. She had 50.7 million in late February, but had just 49.5 million by late April. Meanwhile, Selena surpassed Kylie to become the most followed woman on Instagram with more than 400 million in late March. But most telling is the support squad hashtags on TikTok: #teamselena has a staggering 2.1 billion views, leaving #teamhailey for dead with 221 million

TRIAL BY TIKTOK

A disturbing new trend has emerged as a result of the anti mean-girl movement and it’s seeing everyday women being abused and even doxxed (a form of cyberbullying).