Miley Cyrus, the extremely popular 15-year-old star of Disney’s Hannah Montana, became the focus of a national controversy this week after photos of her appearing topless and covered only in a bed sheet were published in Vanity Fair magazine.
Today's Christian News Online - The Christian Post
Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. (JN 8:32)
CP HOME
> Entertainment > Television
Miley Cyrus Photo Flap Prompts Calls for Action Against Harmful Media Messages
By
Aaron Leichman
Christian Post Reporter
Thu, May. 01 2008 10:01 AM EDT
[-] Text [+]
Prev1Next
Most Commented Articles
La. Governor Signs 'Science Education Act'
Obama Prying Loose Evangelicals from Republicans
Federal Marriage Amendment Re-introduced in Senate
Anglican Head Sees Risks in Conservative Proposals
Why I Thank God for Charles Darwin
PCUSA Assembly Approves Deleting Gay Clergy Ban
Arizona Puts Marriage Amendment on Ballot - Again
Featured Advertiser Links
Comments
Yes, time will tell if this was a simple mistake or if they got caught trying to morph Miley in to the next stage of her career. My guess is they are straddling a line of not wanting to offend her current fan base but realizing the clock is ticking down on this stage of career and wanting to reshape her image to appeal to the much more lucrative pop market. The youth pop culture is highly sexualized and it is just not Christians "prudes" who have made this observation.
First of all let me say that if this were supposed to look like a 15 year old waking up in the morning then why all the makeup and dark red lipstick?
Secondly if dear ol' mom and dad were honostly thinking with a moral heart rather than a pocket book why allow any child, let me repeat the word 'Child' to pose for a magazine such as Vanity Fair? Why not a more modest magazine?
Thid of all, there is no such thing as tween role model in the Hannah Montana show, and never has been. Its a push for Rock star glam and fashion and lifestyle. Materialism and the 'all about me' syndrom that many people are so cought up in these days.
We all make mistakes, thats life........
I saw the pictures and quite frankly a 15 year old in nothing but a sheet half covering her and the "I've just done something naughty" bed head look peering into the viewers eyes with a look as if to say "come on baby, ya know ya want me so who's next?" somehow just doesn't convince me that she or her parents (who should have exercised some tact and protection for their daughter) are devoted followers of our holy Savior CHRIST!
Please let us pray for her...and her parents!
It was mildly inappropriate. Miley apologized. What else can she do?
DByrden, so you think the point of this photo was to show the world what Miley Cyrus looks like when she gets up in the morning? If that's the case then why is she apologizing for it and why has no one used that defense as opposed to everyone pointing fingers as who is to blame for allowing this to happen. Why not just say it is a photo of a teen icon waking up in the morning. Plus ladies help me out here am I naive in thinking a normal 15 yr. old girl doesn't sleep in what appears to be as a minimum topless if not totally nude?
Star2 said: Do you believe a Christian should live godly in Christ Jesus?
I think you know that I do but why did you ask?
Please, take a good look at the 'controversial' photo. I did.
I saw a teenage girl, apparently waking up in the morning, disheveled, with an expression that says "Oh no, not another school day."
I saw NOTHING that could be called 'sexual'.
What kind of people is it, who see nudity and immediately think of sex? What kind of people read obscene meanings into simple images?
I think this has exposed the prudery and hypocrisy of many who call themselves 'Christian'.
Well, I hope from this affair that both parents and Miley Cyrus have learned from this. We are tended towards sin, but I hope that this event doesn't tear them from Christianity and they stay true to it. I hope nothing like this happens again, then it will have me rethink their relationship with God, as so said before, Hollywood more likely destroys faith.
Also the photographers should get some of the heat, since they condone this sort of behavior. I'm not saying blame shouldn't be put on Cyrus and her parents since they could've stepped up and said "no", like star2 says, but why they would go so far like this and still dare to call it "artistic expression" is beyond me.
Star2, Any Christian in the public limelight be it in the political, media, sports, business, or entertainment arena needs to be solidly grounded in the faith or their ability to keep their Christian testimony from being compromised will be minimal at best but if they're truly a believer they will not lose their salvation, unfortunately though they will very well lose the opportunity to be a light in the very places where darkness reigns, that is why we in the Christian community need to constantly hold our brothers and sisters in Christ up in prayer so they will maintain a Christlike lifestyle and witness in the midst of the darkness, do not forget that Christians in prominent positions are prime targets for Satan to take down because he knows what a domino effect it will have to the cause of Christ. But we must also remember that thanks to the cheap grace gospel there are many out there who claim to be Christians who really aren't and we need to pray that they will come to realize this before it's everlastingly to late.
ifeelfine72
Do you believe a Christian should live godly in Christ Jesus?
ifeelfine72
If you want votes as a politican then you had best profess some kind of faith in some kind of God that is in some kind of way recognized as the Christian God. Big businesses - well, I don't know anything about them.
But if you are a Christian before you go to Hollywood then most likely you won't be one for long since so much of Hollywood requires that you do stuff that goes against the godly living God requires of those who belong to Him.
Star2: Try politics and big business - they're much worse than Hollywood. Not many Christians there either, lots of them profess to be Christians but almost none are.
ifeelfine72
According to this article "Miley Cyrus Apologizes For Racy Photos, 'Artistic' Vanity Fair Spread: 'I Feel So Embarrassed' , Miley's parents saw the digital image of the photo and thought it "a beautiful and natural portrait of Miley". So her parents did see it and approved of it.
Here is the direct quote and you can read the entire article at
//www.mtv.com/news/articles/1586342/2008427/cyrus_miley.jhtml
"Vanity Fair spokesperson Beth Kseniak told USA Today on Sunday, "Miley's parents and/or minders were on the set all day. Since the photo was taken digitally, they saw it on the shoot, and everyone thought it was a beautiful and natural portrait of Miley."
Miley is young and bought into the lie that such a photo is artistic. She and her parents are Christians. The Word of God admonishes women to dress modestly. Miley was in no way dressed modestly. Why could not her parents see that this photo was not becoming of a Christian and put their foot down and say "NO!"? Are they so tainted by the wisdom of the world that they can't see that their daughter was being exploited for financial gain? What father would want their daughter being exposed as some sex object? Where are his morals in this situation? Where now is their Christian testimony? It is partially if not totally gone!
Hollywood has destroyed more Christians lives then probably any other profession. Hollywood is ungodly and ran by the devil. Why would any Christian want to be a part of it? For wordly fame and money? It isn't worth it. Hollywood will only destroy your Christian testimony and cause you to lose your relationship with your heavenly Father if you don't have high Christian morals that you are not willing to comprimise.
Marilyn Monroe was saved in a Pentecostal revival before she went into the acting business. Look at what happened to her. Many actresses and actors who were Christian before they went to Hollywood probably ended up like her - away from God and a destroyed life.
Some escape the ungodly clutches of Holloywood and keep their Christian testimonies but not many. Roy Rogers and Dale Evans were able to keep theirs because they say "No" to stuff that would comprise their convictions. Ellie Mae on the Beverly Hillbillies was able to retain her Christian testimony because she wouldn't comprimise. There are a few but not many.
Both Miley and Billy Ray said that he and her mom were gone by the time those photos were taken. Only her publicist and grandmother were on the set with her. It's hard to blame her dad when he was already gone and thought the photo shoot was already over. I do tend to agree with momintexas that this is much ado about nothing. However, I also agree with GreatNW in that this is exactly the way Disney couched Britney Spears when she first came out and that didn't turn out so great.
Actions speak louder than words. Love of money is evil always has been and always will be. The same with our government officials.
Believer,
Yes, her apology was well done and I only hope it was from the heart and not just damage control. But time well tell. It just seems like everyone of late, from politicians to celebrities, are out to "play" Christians for votes or to get us to buy their products.
It is amazing the influence a single image can have.
GreatNW, I have never inferred in any way that these pictures were accidental and now that I have read that her parents were present at the shoot and I have seen those pictures it just shows how low some people and even worse how low some parents will go to market their careers. I also agree with you about shopping for clothes for kids as a Pastor I've had many a parent tell how hard it is to find decent respectable clothing for their daughters especially. And to momintexas, this is a big deal because hundreds of little girls throughout our nation and even the world take their cues from Hannah Montana and she has just told them by this photo shoot that seductive is cool even for little teeny boppers. But maybe I'm being naive because I still hope that she is truly sorry for this and even if her parents don't Miley will choose to do the right thing not only because of the influence she has on her young fans, but perhaps even more importantly because of her claim that she is a Christian.
What am I missing? I think this is all a publicity stunt. The picture isn't attractive, but it certainly doesn't deserve this much coverage. How is it any different from her wear a backless shirt? I don't think it's really that big of a deal.
I am also very tired of seeing pre-teen girls running around in clothing mimicking MTV fashions. Young girls are being completing cheated out of this part of their life. I was shopping a couple of years ago in Target for my oldest who was then 7 years old. The sign above the clothing rack for girls her age said, "Fun and Flirty". Now why would a 7 year old have to worry about her clothes looking flirty? Young girls in our society are bombarded by pressures to appear sexually older and more mature than they are.
Believer,
There was nothing accidental about this photo shoot. It was a deliberate and calculated effort to start moving her away from the image as a pre teen child star to pop star vamp. They realize she does not have many years left as a pre-teen child star before she falls in obscurity. They very much want to keep the cash train running and have her make the jump to appealing to the next age level so they can really ring the cash register. This has been the pattern with all of the Disney kiddy stars. Brittney Spears took the same path from being marketed as innocent pre teen star to pop tart.
believer
Re: In the case of Billy Ray Cyrus as a father you appear to be assuming that he knew all that was to happen at this photo shoot specifically that she was going to be asked to pose for some racy photos if that's true then you are 110% on target with your call,
following excerpt taken from http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1586342/2008427/cyrus_miley.jhtml
Miley Cyrus Apologizes For Racy Photos, 'Artistic' Vanity Fair Spread: 'I Feel So Embarrassed'
Vanity Fair spokesperson Beth Kseniak told USA Today on Sunday, "Miley's parents and/or minders were on the set all day. Since the photo was taken digitally, they saw it on the shoot, and everyone thought it was a beautiful and natural portrait of Miley."
Wow! Like why is anybody surprised that Miley Cyrus would do this? Have you ever seen any of her music videos? It's already obvious she's sold herself out to being a pop icon. I don't care how much of a "Christian" she's claiming to be. Her actions are speaking louder than her words. And what about her Dad - He was there with her at the photo shoot - It's obvious he condones her wayward behavior. By the way, if you've ever seen him on stage he
doesn't mind grabbing women's undergarments from the audience and waving them around. Is that typical "Christian" behavior. Hey, y'all out there, if you think these two didn't know what they were doing at this shoot, you are soooo naive. Remember, she's an actress.
I'm just so sick of these pop stars who say they're Christian, when they are so obviously not
GreatNW, as a father of a former teenager I can say a father can only do so much, we can do our best to train both by word and example our children in the way God would have them to both think and act, but ultimately the choice is theirs. As a father I could not be with my son 24/7 nor would I want to because sooner or later he needed to become an adult and like his father when he was a teen he made a few dumb choices, but in each case he was held accountable for not only the choices he made but the consequences of those choices as well. In the case of Billy Ray Cyrus as a father you appear to be assuming that he knew all that was to happen at this photo shoot specifically that she was going to be asked to pose for some racy photos if that's true then you are 110% on target with your call, but if he was simply under the impression that this was a routine photo shoot then the quality of his fatherhood will be seen in how he handles the consequences of his daughter's choice to include if appropriate how he will discipline her as his teen-age daughter which should be totally a private family matter and the public and more importantly the Christian community should totally respect that.
Girls may be a little more worldly than 20 years ago but the role of a Father has not changed. A 15 year girl still needs her father to provide direction. This is all on his shoulders.
Maybe I am missing something, but doesn't it seem strange that many of the very same media people who are using Miley being only 15 as a defense for her making this decision some of the very same people who say we should give these same teens free access to birth control and abortions without the consent of their parents.
When I was 15 I caddied and the Caddy Master had a saying that I believe fits this situation. When some of us were messing around he would say that you boys are about to do something that simply saying I'm sorry can't fix. I believe for this 15 yr. old this is one of those times.
Do not lose site of the fact Disney helped to launch Britney Spears, just like this.......
Billy Ray, pull your Daughter to safety before it is too late.
I too agree with some points made by "believer." Back in the day, perhaps a 15-yr-old might have been duped but not in THIS day. The young Ms. Cyrus and her dad should take credit for what they have done; they said YES to the request of Vanity Fair. VF merely did what they and others like them do. We can't get angry at a dog for barking.
Also, I was a bit suprised to find so very many Miley Cyrus items for sale at our local Mardel's Christian supply stores. I think when we allow/encourage our children to adopt role models we will do well to remember, "Lord, Lord...." [Matt 7:21-23]
Thank you.
I agree with you beleiver. I would also like to know whay Billy Ray has to say about this. This truly CAN be an eye opening expierence, and also a lesson in morality, at ANY age.
I too was dissappointed when I learned of this... The blame is plentiful enough to go around.
Vanity Fair - Taking this kind of picture of a minor.
Parents - Allowing a magazine like Vanity Fair to do the story in the first place.
Miley - Having the picture taken.
Let's remember one thing. This kid is fifteen years old. This is not a free pass from blame but it should put some things in perspective. How many people do you know who always made wise choices at that age? I know I didn't. Just because she is a celebrity at such a young age does not mean that she'll never make mistakes. The difference is her mistakes are on display to millions.
I do give her credit fo coming out before the release of the magazine and making the public apology to her fans. We will see if this becomes a pattern in the future.
Wow, I was very disappointed when this story broke. I am a Dad of two girls ages 7 and 9 who are big Hannah Montana fans. Normally, I like the show but it did go through a period of focusing too much on Miley and her need for a boyfriend. The show is like a modern day "Father Knows Best". Usually, Billy Ray ( aka Robbie Ray) warns of a consequence and the kids find out the hard way their good ol' Dad was right. He is held up as a positive light in the show unlike many other shows where the Dad is a shown an object of ridicule and scorn.
Billy Ray should have asked his TV Character, "Robbie Ray" for advise on this one
Who I am really tired of is Annie Leibovitz, the photographer. Her claim to fame is getting people to disrobe in some way to get a photo spread that no one else has ever been able to shoot, apparently. This is a very self-serving motivation.
I recently saw a news/feature segment of her which was recorded during a photo session with England's Queen Elizabeth. Annie Leibovitz wanted the queen to take off her crown. Why? I think that it was so that the photograph could subtract from the Queen's stature. Queen Elizabeth smartly declined.
Annie Leibovitz, while a technically fine photographer, has the "take something off" theme in a great many of her photographs of high-profile people. It is such a repeated request of hers that I wonder what is going on with this woman. It's time the public started taking a look, not at her pictures, but as to what is really going on with Annie L. (Yes, I took off some letters of her name, guess why?).
I think it's time the public started to smarten up about her motives. Isn't there a better way for her to conduct a photo shoot than to always ask the question, "Can you take off your . . . ?"
"Disney spokeswoman Patti McTeague also commented on the incident, adding that the magazine had deceived the teenage star to improve its ratings."
Don't forget, this hurts dad too. But this was not deception, this was called Miley getting paid more.
Nobody could have foreseen Miley's success with Disney. And appearently someone is now out to slander that success.
To the teenagers who have fallen in love with Miley, this is a sad example of how temporary popularity can be in this media driven world.
While I agree that Miley's parents should have used better judgement and that the magazine was only interested in boosting their sales, what about Miley. Here is a fifteen year old girl who is being pictured as this sweet young naive kid who was taken advantage of by this magazine, please, maybe 20 or 30 years ago that would have washed, but in this day teen-age girls know better. The major problem here is that Miley, a teen icon, has given millions of fans not only permission to do similar stupid stuff, but the freedom to not be held accountable by simply blaming their parents, the media, or whoever else they can blame. She needs to be held accountable and in her case even more so because of her celebrity status and her professing to be a follower of Christ. She didn't do this picture shoot for free, if she truly regrets what she did she may want to donate that money to a Christian agency who works with kids who have been sexually abused or sexually exploited. She has an awesome opportunity turn a dumb decision into a great testimony for the cause of Christ, I hope and pray she will.
It's not even a cute photo. It's an emo-help-me-my-dad-is-beating-me-and-I'm-huddled-in-a-corner-clutching-my-blankey photo. It's kinda ookie.
Sadly, the seed that grew the tree that bore this fruit was planted sometime ago. On her website, magazine page 21, she is dressed in some type of mini-skirt and this is what she says: “I love this outfit because it’s kind of preppy but totally edgy and fun!!! On page 7 and 8 you will find a “Love Is In The Stars” horoscope. On that same page it says, “Get the story on your crush outlook” and “read your sign’s report for your forecast.”
She definitely needs to hear a true message about Jesus Christ, who He is, and what He says in His word.
What fellowship does light have with darkness?
Entertainers who claim Jesus as savior and Lord still must keep separate from the world. perhaps they thought the publicity would be ok, but Vanity Fair has a reputation for plastering seductive pictures on the cover, also Ms. Lebowitz, a declared lesbian, has contributed to much of this reutation. How could these parents entrust their child's image to people who have this type of reputation? The money may be tempting, but in the end, I'm sure it's not worth the harm it has done to her reputation.
I agree that the parent's should be blamed, but I also blame the magazine for resorting to this to sell magzaines. I know thay are trying to make a living, but all adults need to set the example and this is a terrible example to set.
I guess I am pretty cynical where celebrities are concerned. I belive almost all of them will do or say anything that gets their name in print or on the TV. So my question becomes: Did Vanity Fair and the Cyrus family knowingly create this flap for publicity's sake?
I know that Miley and the magazine are getting ripped for this. But I really blame the parents The magazine editors are only doing what they are expected to, try and sell magazines. Miley is a 15 year old kid who showed bad judgement. I thank God that every time I showed bad judgement at that age it didn't make front page news. But his parents certainly have been involved in show business for a long time and should have shown better sense.