Camille Paglia has written a scathing critique of Taylor Swift, referring to the singer as an “obnoxious Nazi Barbie” whose “twinkly persona is such a scary flashback to the fascist blondes who ruled the social scene during my youth”.

Paglia, known for seminal feminist works such as Sexual Personae, criticised the singer for perpetuating elitism and undermining female empowerment by surrounding herself with a group of girls who were simply “performance props”.

Swift is known as the ringleader of a sisterhood of actors, models and singers, such as Selena Gomez, Lena Dunham, Cara Delevingne and Karlie Kloss, who Swift often refers to as her “girl squad”. Many joined the singer on stage during her tour for her latest album, 1989. Paglia, 68, condemned this as “exhibitionist overkill” by the singer.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest In an essay for the Hollywood Reporter, Camille Paglia writes that Swift promotes a ‘silly, regressive public image’. Photograph: Neville Elder/Corbis

In an essay for the Hollywood Reporter, the cultural critic said the “tittering, tongues-out mugging of Swift’s bear-hugging posse” was at odds with the modern era of female independence and instead promoted a “silly, regressive public image”.

She added: “Swift herself should retire that obnoxious Nazi Barbie routine of wheeling out friends and celebrities as performance props.”

Paglia said that modern girl squads could be pivotal in overcoming the obstacles still faced by women in Hollywood, in terms of representations and the gender pay gap, but said it was essential they did not simply become a “cozy, cliquish retreat from romantic fiascoes” whose focus was solely on socialising.

She called on women to aim higher as collectives, particularly in the face of the intense scrutiny faced by women in the public eye.

She said: “Young women performers are now at the mercy of a swarming, intrusive paparazzi culture, intensified by the hypersexualisation of our flesh-baring fashions. The girl squad phenomenon has certainly been magnified by how isolated and exposed young women feel in negotiating the piranha shoals of the industry.”

Paglia is the author of several books that examine the relationship between feminism and popular culture, including Sex, Art and American Culture and Vamps and Tramps.

Swift is not the first cultural figure to be on the receiving end of Paglia’s scorn. In previous essays she said the former Daily Show presenter Jon Stewart symbolised the “decline and vacuity of contemporary comedy”, criticised Lady Gaga for being “artificial and calculated” and drew comparisons between Bill Clinton and the entertainer Bill Cosby, who is the subject of more than 50 allegations of sexual assault.