Pop N Good #3
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image copyright: Vanity Fair
Our society has created an industry that thinks nothing of following a
person around, constantly tracking their every public move, waiting
hungrily for them to slip up so they can pounce, marinade them in
scandal and devour their disgraced persona. It is the age of blogs,
where a celebrity’s every action is posted and discussed; where an
outrageous photo or shocking video spreads like a virus; where a star’s
professional life is weighted heavily against their personal one. When
you are a person in the spotlight, a mistake can quickly fester into a
scandal.
Enter Miley Cyrus. She’s the 15 year old face of one of Disney’s
most lucrative brands, Hannah Montana. It rakes in millions through
sold out concerts, 3D movies, CDs and dizzying amounts of branded
merchandise. Pre-teen girls the world over are in a Hannah Montana
frenzy and Miley is becoming one seriously rich teenager. It also means
that Disney owns her ass. An ass that they have banked on remaining
squeaky clean to please her adoring fans, and more importantly, their
mothers.
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Hannah Montana has a song that says “everybody makes mistakes”, and
Miley Cyrus has certainly made some doozies in the past few months.
It started with photos of her pants riding down, showing her
underwear, followed by a few coy shots with friends. Nothing
particularly scandalous, but the blogosphere enjoyed making a big deal
about it. Then came more risqué photos with her shirt up and kissing a
skeezy looking boy. A photo of her pulling down her top to expose a
bright green bra had jailbait written all over it. These photos were
enough for American media outlets to take notice.
And then came the photo that opened the floodgates taken by famed
photographer Annie Leibovitz for a spread in Vanity Fair with Miley
clutching a large blanket to her chest, back exposed, appearing
topless.
Suddenly, news of the photo spread and Miley released a statement
apologising to her fans saying she felt embarrassed, backtracking on
previous accounts that she had enjoyed the shoot. Annie herself
released a statement shortly after which basically amounted to, ‘I’m
sorry you don’t like it, but it’s a fantastic photo’. It didn’t take
long for it to erupt into a full blown scandal. People were saying that
Miley had been exploited by Vanity Fair, and wrongfully sexualised.
Vanity Fair were like ‘WTF? It was shot digitally; all of her people
saw the photo!’
Outraged mothers everywhere are calling for Miley’s blood, whining
on about how she should be a role model and has tarnished the Hannah
Montana brand. Disney went in to damage control, keeping Miley out of
the public eye for the immediate future. Yes, she was grounded by
Disney.
My opinion? It is a beautiful shot. It’s not overly sexual and it
suits the magazine. Regardless, it was a bad move for Miley. She is
still at an age where people are unwilling to distinguish between her
character and herself. People should take it easy on leaked photos of
her flashing her bra and an ill advised photo shoot; it’s not like she
pulled a Vanessa Anne Hudgens or anything.
It must be quite a weight to bear for someone so young to have
every photo, video and comment scrutinised and judged. Imagine trying
to establish your own identity as a young adult when everyone expects
you to embody your clean, Christian character.
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