The story of Bristol Palin and Levi Johnston fascinates me. Mostly, I think, because it’s an everyman story, being played out in small towns everywhere, and occasionally on the Jerry Springer show, but almost never in the spotlight, with the air of legitimacy with which it’s been anointed, thanks to Sarah Palin’s VP candidacy.

Tyra Banks’ interview with Levi, Mercede and Sherry Johnston aired on Monday, but this is my first time watching it all the way through. While the Palin camp is busy accusing the family of doing Tyra’s show for profit, Tyra is clear that they weren’t paid a cent for the interview. I think the members of this family have passionate and non-financial motives for speaking out. Levi and Sherry, his mother, want the world to know that the Palins are keeping the Johnstons away from baby Tripp, and they want to be in his life. Levi’s not the smartest moose in Alaska — although I’m sure we can all agree we’d happily take him and his antler in the sack — but he seems like a good kid who loves Bristol and loves the baby. He wants to be present for his son, and I give him credit for that.

But Mercede? She’s the most interesting part of this interview, IMHO, and her motives are also non-pecuniary. Mercede is Levi’s sister, and, as both she and Levi confirmed, Bristol Palin hates Mercede. Why? Levi didn’t volunteer that information, but Mercede did — she’s still friends with some girls Levi used to date. Bristol resents that, and she doesn’t want her baby around those other girls, despite the fact that Levi has Bristol’s damn name tattooed on his ring finger (“I wouldn’t recommend it,” he says dryly of his decision) and is clearly head-over-heels for her. Mercede grabs every opportunity to take on-air jabs at Bristol and make herself look like a saint. Levi and Sherry are there to speak out about the child. Mercede is there for revenge.

And here’s the truth — these are just teenage girls behaving like teenage girls. This is just small-town drama thrust onto a national stage; John McCain was so desperately looking for a way to out-clever Barack Obama that he plucked a spunky but uneducated governor out of the boonies and into the limelight before he had a chance to properly vet her. And I know that, but I get sucked into it. I don’t even want to hear from Levi anymore. I just want Mercede to sit up there and talk shit. I’m just DYING to have Tyra say “Well, guess what, Merecede? We actually have Bristol Palin right here, backstage, and she has a thing or two to say to you,” and then they bring Bristol out and she runs at Mercede with a banshee scream and the hair starts flying and the bodyguards have to pull them off one another. I am watching this teenage girl tear apart another teenage girl, and I am so into it. Why is that? What is the draw of watching young women treat each other terribly? Is it because we see ourselves in it — is it relateable? Or does it make us feel better about our own girl-on-girl drama, like, “Yeah, someone talked shit about me behind my back like that too, once.”? Is it both?

I’m usually terribly bored when I watch men fight. Watching older women fight — like on Real Housewives of Orange County — doesn’t do much for me, either. But watching teenage girls fight? Yes, yes, yes. More, please. WHY IS THIS?

For the record, I like Bristol Palin. I admire her decision to speak openly to Greta Van Susteren about her thoughts on teen abstinence (“not realistic”) and the real difficulties she’s facing being a teenage mother. It took a lot of guts for her to reach out and share that message, and she deserves to be commended for it. You can watch the clip here.

The second half of the Bristols’ interview with Tyra is after the jump.

2 Responses to “Selling Out Bristol Palin: Why Do Girls Love to Watch Each Other Hate?”

1. JorgeMacD says:

   April 7, 2009 at 11:20 pm

   The fact that Tyra’s joke show is still on TV makes my head spin. I think it’s funny that even women like to see catfights.

   Reply
2. Isolde says:

   April 8, 2009 at 1:51 am

   Started reading Evil Beet and came across this new site. Really cool! So happy you started it! Thanks!

   Reply