Why is it that we always have to go from this:
to this:
Deep Sigh. To say that I am disappointed is an understatement. My almost 8 year old daughter is a big Hannah Montana fan. She is not obsessive like some girls, but she likes her music, reads her books, and watches her show. I am very vigilant about the TV shows and movies that my kids watch and have treaded very carefully with this particular one because, Hannah/Miley is a teenager and her show is starting to deal with boyfriends and kissing. Thankfully, Lindsey is repulsed by that stuff and will turn it off without me having to say a word. And I'm not kidding. As the parent of a targeted fan, I now have the above picture to contend with. As the parent of the star, Billy Ray Cyrus should be ashamed at permitting his underage daughter, whose legions of fans still believe in the tooth fairy and Santa Claus, to be photographed without a shirt, draped in satin, in a provocative pouty pose. When you agree to a photo shoot with one of the edgiest, albeit talented, photographers alive in a magazine that is geared toward adults, not the mouseketeers, you're putting your child at risk. The only clothing Miley should have been permitted to remove were her shoes and socks. Psst. Here's a little secret, if ya keep your clothes on, you can't get into trouble. Period. Alas, we find out today, that Ms. Cyrus and her parents are embarrassed by the photo. My guess is that the Disney marketing machine realized that their billion dollar marquee brand, known as Hannah Montana, might be at risk when they caught sight of it. To quote one of Hannah's trademark phrases, "Ya think?" Do I think this was a misstep? Absolutely. Do I think Miley Cyrus is headed down the Lindsey Lohan and Britney Spears path. No. But I blame her parents for not protecting her. They know better. This is business, and she is the best selling product out there right now. Everyone wants a piece of her including the likes of Vanity Fair. The Cyrus's pride themselves on Miley being a role model for pre-pubescent girls all over the world. How they respond and rebound from this will be very telling. We are either headed down the crazy Jessica/Ashlee Simpson path with a father who was previously a youth pastor now turned major exploiter of his grown daughters, or the Cyrus's can be who I think they are and handle this misstep with grace, not blame, and continue to blaze the trail for modesty, respect, and decency. It's sad that her parents have put her in the position of potentially crushing under the pressure of businessmen who care more about the product Hannah Montana than the young girl, Miley Cyrus, who made the product so successful. We've seen it happen before. Shame on all of them.
18 Comments:
AMEN SISTER!!
All I could think about this situation yesterday was "how did this happen and where were her parents?"
Oh her parents were right there watching the whole thing. They all reviewed the pictures, gave their approval as they thought they were "artistic" and not "skanky"...ah sure, whatever you say. Now they are upset. They have no one to blame but themselves. I repeat, they. saw. the. pictures. ahead. of. time.
it is sad that we live in a world where it seems to be okay to "act now, apologize later"
I just heard a commentary that said that she (Miley) needed to do this to ensure that her wholesome image does not deter her from getting work after she is 18!
Sad, sad, sad.
And most of society is just fine with that line of thinking.
When I first discovered the story brewing, my first thought was let the games begin! The saddest thing to me is how we continually, perpetually, obsessively place stars on a pedestal and wait, like vultures, for one wrong move. Sadly, Miley Cyrus is an adolescent girl--worth millions--who is going to screw up. Come on people, she is a teenage girl!!! Unfortunately, she will not be afforded the luxury of doing so in private! I feel for her, her family, and our sad little culture that loves it when people make mistakes! Nuff said!
I think that Annie Leibovitz is the most amazing photographer. But I am not sure what Miley's parents were thinking when they okayed these shots. I would be shocked if Disney did not have a rep at the shoot. Did you see the picture of Miley and Billy Ray? That was something else too. My girls love Hannah Montana...and all I can say is that Vanity Fair is completely off their radar...so I don't see it being a big impact. But I am disappointed.
Trish took my exact thought. AAAAAMEN!!
For her to come out and say how embarrassed she is makes me so angry. Was she not in the photoshoot? Was the camera hidden in some way? Was she somehow catatonic when Annie said, "Hey, let's take off your clothes!"? It's stupid to say it's art one minute and that you're embarrassed the next.
I could go on and on. As a mom of FOUR fans, I'm a little fired up.
I hadn't seen the pics yet, but I knew about it. We had an article in our paper today about the pics and how Miley was embarrassed to see the pics. Yes, I do wonder what her parents/handlers were thinking to have her draped like that. Hannah Montana that is NOT. And I will say this...Vanity Fair is pretty sophisticated for her anyway...what were they thinking? Her fans aren't really their normal readers, so I'm not sure what they were aiming for with this shoot.
Ugh!
I think you said it all with "If ya keep your clothes on, you can't get into trouble."
There is no way that this picture could have been tasteful.. she is 15.
Now, they are talking about bringing her father up on charges... the celebrity machine is crazy.
Okay so I don't approve of what she did but I need to defend her a little bit. We all made some bad decisions in our life and probably wish we could have a do over with some of them. Thousands of people were not there I am sure to see those mistakes unlike her and her parents. I realize that she is in the public eye but she is human and does make mistakes. I think this will be a mistake she can learn from and that if the media would lay off a little she can recover from this error in judgement. There are many people making judgements about her and her family but haven't we all done somethings we are not neccessarily proud of. I hope you all have alittle bit of compassion for the family and for this young girl.
Veronica/Kimberley, you are both correct in that we need to give her a break. She IS the one I am worried about as I have a great deal of compassion for her and don't wish to see her fall from grace. I am not that type of person. I am not a consumer of celebrity gossip as I think it is a waste of time, and I am deeply saddened everytime we see the personal failings of famous HUMAN beings played out in the press for public consumption. I happen to think Miley Cyrus is a terrific young woman. What I object to is her parents permitting her to be photographed in the first place which is the point I was trying to make. She is 15, she is a minor, and she is naive. She has a father that has been in this business for years and advisors that know better. An error in judgment it was, by her parents mainly, but it could have been prevented by people she trusts the most. It was HER reputation and future on the line. And again, they didn't protect her. That is my beef.
My 2 year old is standing here singing "The Best of Both Worlds" word for word. So yeah, we rock Miley/Hannah in our house and until this most recent revelation we were always first to applaud her decency in both speech and apparel. Libbey and I saw her in concert back in December and Mikley was more appropriately dressed on stage than half the wannabes in the audience.
That being said, when I first saw the VF pic I said, "That skank!" (Yes, I'm mean that way...don't hate on me, y'all.) And then my hubby and I both said, "Her parents are dead meat!" 'Cause we knew where the blame should be placed.
Then we calmed down and literally prayed for her...to not go the way of Britney/Jessica/Ashlee. And that, my friends, is where the answer lies. Prayer--forgiveness--understanding. Yeah, I'm mad at her, her parents, her handlers, etc., but I'm willing to give her a break. Just this once. Live, learn, move on. God offers that to me, so I believe I'll extend it to her. Again...just this once. Now she knows better.
Well said. Unbelieveable too. What is it with these teenage icons? A parental decision should have been made on the spot. I am so appauled with TV anymore. ;P
Someone already took the words out of my mouth...AMEN SISTER!
Can't remember how I got to your blog...a click here, a click there. Hope to visit again soon.
daseofourlives.blogspot.com
Debbie I once again am so grateful to have found you! You make so much sense, you are a wonderful hip and cool christian Mom which is such a great example to me! And also are very real! I agree with everything you have said here. And you know I often thought about how Joe Simpson went from one road to another, I mean I have even heard him comment on his daughter Jessica's (chest) in a non-dad kinda way.....how in the world was he a pastor/ youth leader??? What happend with that family, is it money? And from day one me, my Mom etc have prayed Miley would not become one of those tabloid children, and that all the $$$ would not just persuade her parents to start letting her do these things....I mean the girl has a sheet on???? How oh how did this seem right to them!!?? It really is sad....Brianna watched it quite a bit when it first came on, but has cut back to nearly none, it was becoming a bit addictive.....but she is still a very big fan. And my Son is 13, talk about a difficult subject trying to expalin pics like that to a hormonal 13 year old???? He has not seen them but I know his first thought would be that what if his little sister saw them and what she would think, he is very protective. I pray that Billy and his wife stop and think to themselves that they went a bit too far, gosh if they let her do this at this age, by 18 what will she be like? Just very sad......
I have to admit, when I first caught wind of all this I actually thought of you and wondered what was going through your mind, I am so glad you posted on it!
Love ya!!!!!
Kelly
I got the same beef sister Debbie.
It seems like most of these girls are just biding their time playing "good" till they turn 18. Funny that when I go into WalMart I still see the MaryKate and Ashley perfume with their sweet, youtful faces smiling off the box--then look at these skanky, bug-eyed anorexic very sad looking faces of the same girls staring at me from the tabloids. I feel soooo sorry for these girls. When will the world ever learn that you just can't take happiness in wickedness--no matter how much money and fame is involved. And I wonder what it is with Annie Liebowitz and naked?!
There's website for little girls books,
http://www.meghanroseseries.com/
i love reading for children.
Well said, Debbie!
Countless times I've prayed for Brittany, (she's a MOM now!!!), Mary Kate & Ashley(I understand anorexia), and others. It's tragic! Only God knows what kind of scars this situation will leave on Miley's life! What is this world coming to?
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