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The Conners REPORT |
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May 2008
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Usually, I reserve this blog for news content issues ... but this time, I'm writing as father and step-father. With massive help from their mothers ... I've raised 2 girls who now are 28 and 30, and I am currently raising an 11 year old. Any parent knows that there are challenges when it comes to raising children .. boys or girls. I only know what it's like to raise girls ... and from my experience... it is very, very hard. It is a time filled with frustration, anger, disappointment ... and that's just from the kids' viewpoint. Still, it also a time of love, laughter and joy... and that's from the kids' and parents' viewpoint. One other point ... IF ... I thought that I did a good, make that, fair job of raising my first two girls ... my stepdaughter is proof that I still need training. At age 11 .. almost 12 ... she is a Hannah Montana fan ... watches her tv show, listens to her music and would have gone to her concert .. if I been ahead of the curve and got her tickets. (Another personal failing on my part? Maybe not.) The pictures in Vanity Fair show Miley in some poses that border on provocative and at the very least are dramatically different than the image she has in her tv show. One picture shows Miley holding a sheet across her obviously naked chest while exposing her back. Remember, this is a 15 year old. The photos were taken by famed celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz, and Miley is quoted as saying: You don't say No to Annie. There's no doubt Miley is a big star. She has the Number One cable show for kids 6-14 and in Networks .. Number Two behind American Idol for that age group. So, now, here is she is ... bare-back naked with a look from her eyes that is more like what men imagined when reading Vladimir Nabokov's 1955 novel "Lolita". Miley is now apologizing .. supposedly to fans and family. She is quoted as saying that she was "embarrassed". She says that she took part in a photo shoot that was supposed to be "artistic". At one point did Miley ... her agent .. or any adult with some sense of decency realize ... THIS IS A 15 YEAR OLD GIRL! We've covered stories where someone wants a photo shop to develop pictures of children in suggestive poses. In those stories, a concerned photo shop employee would call police, and that would trigger an investigation of possible child pornography. Similiar cases have involved pictures exchanged over the internet. The sad fact is .. this is the kind of picture that pedophiles like. On one hand, I don't blame Miley so much. Maybe, she's young and naive .. and maybe, she truly, truly didn't understand the impact of what she was doing. Maybe. Maybe, she's not so naive and thought it was time to reach beyond her bubble-gum chewing fans. Maybe she thought Britney Spears was a good role model ... on how to evolve from a child star. In fact, Britney at about the same age had her own show on Disney .. before becoming a "train wreck". Disney Studios accused the Vanity Fair editors of creating a situation to : "deliberately manipulate a 15 year old". Photographer Annie Leibovitz says: I'm sorry my portrait of Miley has been so misinterpreted. She goes on to say that she and Miley did discuss the photo shoot and discussed the picture in that context. The Deputy Managing Editor of People Magazine says: She has to find a way to gain a new following. So, is Miley so innocent or just caught with her top down? Vanity Fair points out .. Miley's father was with her... and he thought the pictures were artistic. Really? In addition to the photo of Miley draped in a satin sheet .. there are pictures of Miley and her father together. Again, these pictures are posed in such a way that it appears a 15 year old is with a 35 year old boyfriend .... not pictures of a father and his daughter. Those images are very disturbing given what happens behind doors in some homes. So, I guess Miley's father didn't see any need to keep Miley covered up .. to protect her from pictures that are beyond her years. That's a shame. She will grow up soon enough. 4 CommentsLeave a comment |
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I do believe Ms. Cyrus could have been duped. If you go to the VF website and look at the "behind the scenes" photos, the scene looks a lot different than the finished product. She is sitting on a make-up chair, surrounded by technical types, and the photographer, and her parents. The sheet looks more like something to protect a person from heavy stage makeup. I can imagine that, to her, the scene may not have been much different than any other normal, show-business type experience, and the shot may have seemed like nothing more than a mildly suggestive candid.
That said, everyone not 15 should have known better. Leibovits certainly knew what she wanted, and got it. Dad, Mom, and the "handlers" (whatever that means) must have come across this kind of deception and manipulation before.
Or...I'm just reading too much into the "behind the scenes" stuff.
Its very simple, there is no gray area. This is the reason we have laws that protect minors,because they are not yet old enough to make good and safe decissions on thier own. Every adult on that set should be held accountable for taking advantage of this girl.This is clearly not art, its what it was meant to be promoting sex of a underaged girl.Anyone else would be charged with a crime on a minor.
I can't help but believe the whole thing is some sort of publicity stunt, after the apology it pushed the teen star and vanity fair into the lime light. so much so that local news stations are talking about it. With that said, I think the people most at fault are the parents. Her father was present at the shoot. While I personally don't find the photo's provocative, I at the same time wouldn't want my daughter or sister to take that pose. It hasn't been very long since I was 15 I know at that age I made decisions without thinking of the consequences, but luckily I had parents who did what they could to keep me from things that they knew wouldn't be beneficial . But in this case I cant help but believe that mileys parents were more concerned with their financial benefit that their daughters well being
The people involved got exactly what they wanted...PUBLICITY. Remember, you can't hold her responsible because after all, as has been repeated "she's only fifteen". This is not a bad thing for Miley Cyrus, this will not hurt her, in fact it is and will help her career. It's all about getting your name out there and keeping it out there.