What could happen to the culture if commitment goes viral?
When Taylor Swift began dating Travis Kelce, few anticipated the cultural earthquake that would follow. NFL viewership among women aged 18–49 surged by 63% during the 2023 season, with teenage girls seeing a 53% increase in viewership. Kelce’s jersey sales skyrocketed 400%. America’s biggest pop star had turned football into must-watch TV for millions of new fans. The relationship became a phenomenon that transcended sports and entertainment, capturing the nation’s attention in ways that seemed almost unprecedented.
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And this is why the Swift–Kelce moment matters beyond the headlines. Pop culture doesn’t just entertain; it disciples. First and foremost, our kids are being discipled by what they follow. So we should ask: Who are we letting our kids follow? What content do they attach their hearts to?
Even more introspectively, how are we running our own “PR firm” at home—modeling a life that commends commitment, sacrifice, and family?
Each of us has a platform to influence our kids, our neighbors, our church, and our extended family. How are we using it?
If Taylor and Travis make commitment aspirational—even without explicitly preaching “marriage first”—that alone will likely move thousands of private decisions at the margins, including some that would otherwise have resulted in children born outside wedlock. Cultural esteem for commitment that lifts the likelihood of marriage at all, will have good child-level consequences.
A Qualified Alignment Worth Applauding.
Swift and Kelce’s engagement offers a limited but real alignment with what’s best for children: adults publicly committing to one another before having kids. Does that guarantee mutual sacrifice or lifelong love? No. Could it still unravel next week? Yes. But one public choice so far is unambiguously child-benefiting—the sequence. By choosing marriage before children, they’ve modeled the right first step, and that signal alone is likely to shape thousands of private decisions for the better.
The question isn’t whether pop culture influences major life decisions—it does. The question is how we steward that influence. We should be careful what our children attach to. We should use whatever platforms we have—at home, in our churches and neighborhoods, and online—to celebrate the right things. And in this case, we should applaud a move toward marriage insofar as it nudges countless couples to make a choice they might not have made otherwise—especially when current sexual behavior could have led to a child born outside the protections of marriage. We’re not claiming the Swift–Kelce relationship is somehow “promoting responsible sex” or planning “kids in wedlock.” We’re highlighting that pop-culture esteem for commitment can make marriage more likely—and that is good for children. If this moment helps normalize “marriage first”—or honestly, marriage at all—that is an unmitigated good for kids.
If a reality show about teen pregnancy could measurably reduce births to unmarried teens, imagine what sustained cultural messaging about the joys of marriage and child-first family formation could accomplish. The Swift Effect might just be getting started—and if we are intentional with our own influence, we can help re-normalize the family structure that puts children first.
All of this was already clear in the original NFSS data. But just in case the skeptics weren’t convinced, something remarkable happened recently. In 2023, researchers conducted a multiverse analysis of the Regnerus data, running it through 248 different statistical models to see if the original findings held up. The result? Across every single model, children raised by parents who had same-sex relationships experienced worse outcomes. The “LGBT-parent effect” persisted, regardless of assumptions, controls, or coding differences. Regnerus’ work was completely vilified but now completely vindicated.
That should have been front-page news. But it wasn’t, because the truth is inconvenient.
We all know (intuitively, biologically, spiritually) that children long for both their mother and father. No amount of academic theory or legal redefinition can erase that basic human longing. And no amount of cultural pressure can make it disappear.
We’ve normalized every alternative. We’ve shouted down dissenters. We’ve demanded that reality conform to ideology. But children don’t lie. They remember. They know who’s missing.
It’s not bigotry to say that kids deserve both their mom and dad. It’s not hateful to acknowledge that certain family forms are better for children. It’s love that tells the truth. And the truth is this: no matter how many policies or pronouns change, biology still matters. Mothers and fathers still matter.
Why We Fight: Restoring Marriage for the Sake of Children
At Them Before Us, we defend a child’s right to their mother and father—in law and policy, with technology, and in culture. While the world centers adult desires, we center the rights, needs, and voices of children.
That’s why we’re fighting for the restoration of marriage—not as a lifestyle preference, but as a child-protective institution. Marriage isn’t about affirming adult relationships; it’s about safeguarding the child’s fundamental right to be raised by their mother and father. When we redefine marriage to suit adult wants, we sever the biological bonds children crave (all while calling it progress).
The Supreme Court’s Obergefell decision in 2015 was more than a legal shift. It was an injustice to children. By eliminating the state’s interest in promoting mother-father homes, it elevated adult satisfaction above child security. We won’t stand by in silence.
That’s why we launched EndObergefell.com—to gather those who believe marriage must once again serve the well-being of children, not the desires of adults. If you care about truth, justice, and children, now is the time to speak.
Because biology still matters. Mothers and fathers still matter. And children are worth fighting for.
Written by Them Before Us & Josh Wood
Katy Faust is the founder and director of the children's rights organization, Them Before Us, which is dedicated to defending children's rights around the world.
