People spent years taking photos of Britney Spears. But did they ever actually look?

Sign up to Roisin O’Connor’s free weekly newsletter Now Hear This for the inside track on all things music Get our Now Hear This email for free Get our Now Hear This email for free SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy By now, many in the US have seen the new FX-Hulu documentary Framing Britney Spears, which explores the iconic pop singer’s meteoric rise in the late 1990s and subsequent deterioration at the hands of the brutal 2000s media machine. Framing Britney Spears trailer Some years later, in 2012, I took a job blogging for MTV, where part of the gig involved regularly mining archived photos from previous Video Music Award ceremonies to post and build buzz for the coming year’s show. They’re not really listening to what I’m telling them.” open image in gallery Britney Spears performing in 2017 Even during her year judging on TheX Factor, a clearly uneasy Spears couldn’t escape her own assessment. “I kind of booked someone who couldn’t talk, which is a bit of a problem when you want someone to judge.” Enjoy unlimited access to 100 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon Music Sign up now for a 4 month free trial Sign up Enjoy unlimited access to 100 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon Music Sign up now for a 4 month free trial Sign up Cowell’s assessment hardly squares with the effervescent Britney introduced to the world in 1998.