Time Magazine's "Person of the Year" was confirmed Wednesday as "The Silence Breakers," a group of influential women who came forward with stories of sexual harassment and assault. Singer Taylor Swift was featured as one of the five women on the magazine's cover, prompting criticism from some on social media.

Time's cover pays tribute to the anti-harassment movement that has drawn headlines throughout 2017. The movement was sparked in October after decades-old allegations of sexual misconduct from more than 50 women surfaced against movie producer Harvey Weinstein. The movement led many notable women from a variety of industries to speak out about their experiences, including the four featured with Swift on the cover: Ashley Judd, Susan Fowler, Adama Iwu and Isabel Pascual.

Swift had brought her harassment battle to the public by going to trial against Denver-based DJ David Mueller, who allegedly groped her backstage at a meet-and-greet in Colorado. Critics wrote that they didn't "understand" the publication's decision to have Swift on the cover, with one noting, "she remains silent on literally everything." Some even suggested more drastic measures, such as calling for a "petition to replace Taylor Swift's spot."

Some social media users did come to Swift's defense. Many cited her sexual harassment trial against Mueller and paying the legal expenses for singer Kesha's lawsuit against her former producer Dr. Luke as a reason for why she deserved to be featured on Time's cover.

In a statement published Wednesday on Time's website, Editor-in-Chief Edward Felsenthal explained why the women featured in the story and on the cover were chosen. Felsenthal had even referred to Swift's court case as "raw" and "defiant."

"It became a hashtag, a movement, a reckoning. But it began, as great social change nearly always does, with individual acts of courage," Felsenthal said. "The galvanizing actions of the women on our cover — Ashley Judd, Susan Fowler, Adama Iwu, Taylor Swift and Isabel Pascual —along with those of hundreds of others, and of many men as well, have unleashed one of the highest-velocity shifts in our culture since the 1960s."

Swift isn't typically outspoken on social issues, which has been a criticism of the 27-year-old pop star. However, she detailed her experience with Mueller in court. She won the case in August, but only requested to be paid $1 for Mueller's misconduct — a compensation she has revealed to have not yet received.

"I was angry. In that moment, I decided to forego any courtroom formalities and just answer the questions the way it happened," Swift told Time. "This man hadn’t considered any formalities when he assaulted me, and his lawyer didn’t hold back on my mom — why should I be polite?"

"I'm told it was the most amount of times the word 'ass' has ever been said in Colorado Federal Court," Swift added.

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