That Miley Moment
Posted on May 4th, 2008 – 9:32 PMBy May Chen
This is a little beyond Cribsheet’s demographic, but I’d like to know what you think about the Miley Cyrus-Vanity Fair-wrapped in nothing but a bedsheet fracas. After all, my Zoe is only 6 or so years away from the world of Hannah Montana. Or whoever the next overly-mature teen of the future may be.
For now, the most shocking part for me is finding out that Miley Cyrus is the daughter of Billy Ray Cyrus! Mr. Achy Breaky Heart himself!
So do you think, like this grandma who wrote to the Star Tribune, that the grownups around Miley should have used better judgement? Or, like the mom sitting with her latte next to me at Starbucks Saturday, that Disney dreamed up the stunt to see if Miley has what it takes to make the transition from child star to something more lasting?
(Now if only I could get “Don’t break my heart, my achy breaky heart…” out of my head….)
10 Responses to "That Miley Moment"
I tend to agree with the Starbucks lady. Miley Cyrus is such a huge money-maker for Disney, there is no way they wouldn’t have had someone present at the Vanity Fair shoot. Or at the very least knew what was going to be done.
As my former marketing professor used to say “Bad press is still exposure.” I’m guessing the controversy around these pictures has introduced a whole new set of people to Miley Cyrus, most of whom have never been interested in Hannah Montana. Present company included.
[…] David Card wrote an interesting post today on That Miley MomentHere’s a quick excerptOr, like the mom sitting with her latte next to me at Starbucks Saturday, that Disney dreamed up the stunt to see if Miley has what it takes… […]
[…] That Miley Moment Posted on May 4th, 2008 – 9:32 PM By May Chen This is a little beyond Cribsheet’s demographic, but I’d like to know what you think about the Miley Cyrus-Vanity Fair-wrapped in nothing but a bedsheet fracas. After all, my Zoe is only 6 or so years away from the world of Hannah Montana. Or whoever the next overly-mature teen of the future may be. For now, the most shocking part for me is finding out that Miley Cyrus is the daughter of Billy Ray Cyrus! Mr. Achy Breaky Heart him Source: That Miley Moment […]
I think there are far worse things she could have done, and far more important things for people to be worried/focused on.
I agree with Erin. It’s really not something that concerns me.
This isn’t my demographic as a parent, as my kids are 4 and 1, but with nieces and nephews that range from 9 to 24, it falls in my demographic as an aunt. I think the whole thing just opens a door for conversations about your own values, and about choices and consequences. In this world of teens posting pictures on the internet, they are discussions that need to happen anyway, so Miley’s photos only help facilitate that.
And her dad is Billy Ray. And he was there. I could never have done that at 15 with my Dad in the room. It creeps me out just a little bit.
I don’t think that the Miley photos are something that Disney came up with. I think they know that they are being scrutinized because of the Jamie Lynn Spears pregnancy scandal, and the Vanessa Hudgens pictures controversy, from not too long ago. Miley is such a huge moneymaker for them that I don’t think they would do anything to risk it at this point. I think Disney would prefer to wait until she is 18 and is old enough to do these types of photos and she is growing too old for the tween market. I know that the reports said that Miley did have her manager on set with her, so perhaps Disney thought that with her parents was enough supervision. Also, I’m not sure that Disney has the right to supervise her every move….sure she has a show with them, etc., but she is still a free individual and they can’t tell her what to do in all aspects of her life.
I don’t think the pictures of her are a huge deal…she is not revealing anything and it’s nothing compared to those other two scandals. But I tend to agree with the grandma who says it reveals a real lack of judgment from the adults that were supposed to be supervising her. I do think Miley is very intelligent and capable of thinking for herself, but she is still an impressionable teenager at the same time, and was eager to please a photographer that she admired. I just hope they all use better judgment for her in the future. The tabloids are very eager to find a real Miley scandal and imagine the number of magazines they would sell if they ever caught her drinking, smoking, etc.
I think this all got molded in the editing phase of the shoot. Miley and her parents were made comfortable with the photographer and trusted her. And the photographer took her own liberties to make photos “artsy”. I had read a couple articles on Miley’s parents and they sounded like responsible parents and were proud of her wholesome image and supported that.
I think it’s sad that now Miley’s trust in people is shaken. This event is a huge life lesson for her…I guess it’s a part of growing up.
I’m no prude, but I have to say that I found the picture a little disturbing today when I saw it for the first time.
I thought the photos were beautiful, and don’t get what the fuss is all about. I find the marketing shots for Beyonce’s girls clothing line to be MUCH more disturbing (pre-K kids in heels). You can see it here: http://theimproper.com/Template_Article.aspx?IssueId=3&ArticleId=1504


