In truth, by criticising pop music NME are merely biting the hand that feeds them. Pop music as every person who’s gone from clutching a copy of Madonna’s Immaculate Collection to owning Sonic Youth’s Dirty can attest, is a gateway drug.

Once you’re hooked by that excitement, that buzz and that joy of being fan you can go either way: maybe you’ll experiment, check out your dad’s record collection or yes, even buy the NME or maybe you’ll stay a fan of the charts, lapping up the sounds of Juice FM while queuing up for Beyonce tickets. Both are equally valid choices and no music press snobbery should convince us otherwise.

Those girls who’ve bombarded the NME twitter ever since defending One Direction are merely heading out on a long road of music fandom. Whichever path they take is the right one.

– Jamie Bowman, Harry Wake Up