Does any blame fall to the photographer, Annie Leibovitz? She’s a fantastic photographer with a very artistic eye, but what was she thinking when she decided to have Miley take off her top? Surely she could have gotten some wonderful and creative shots of Miley doing things we expect from a fifteen-year-old. I would expect to see her laying on the couch on the phone. Maybe putting on some makeup. Looking through photo albums. Playing sports. Anything, but topless.

Vanity Fair released some footage of the shoot to show that Billy Ray was there for the shoot and how innocent it was (although the video does not show the topless shot). But that backfired as many people are now screaming that the pair is very inappropriate in the video. They say the way she is looking at her dad is more sexy than lovingly and they are acting like lovers rather than father and daughter. Wow, the Cyrus family just can’t win.

Since the photo was released, Billy Ray has come out to say he was there for the shoot, but had to leave early for another commitment. He says he had no idea they were doing the topless shot and never would have allowed it if he had known.

I’d rather not see photos of a fifteen-year-old child with no top on, covered or not. But I don’t think it necessarily means Miley isn’t a good role model. I don’t think it means she’s on the same track as Lindsay Lohan or Britney Spears. I have yet to see a picture of her throwing up in the back of some car or coming out of hotels night after night with different guys. I feel like the public is trying to find whatever they can to reduce Miley to the likes of other Hollywood bad girls. Last month photos from Miley’s private MySpace page were leaked and many criticized them for being to racy. Many of them are inappropriate for a girl her age and if I was her mother I would definitely talk to her about it and make her remove them from MySpace. I don’t want my daughter to show off her bra or take pictures of herself in her underwear. But I can tell you a lot of girl’s this age do that.

About a year ago my now sixteen-year-old (as of last week) son left his camera in the bathroom. My husband looked through the pictures (there we go again not respecting his privacy) and found photos of our son in his underwear. Apparently he took these photos to send to his girlfriend on email. (He knows we look at his MySpace page so he couldn’t post them there.) He sent them because she sent him pictures of herself in her bra and underwear.

Kids this age are experimenting with their sexuality. They are trying to be cool. And in their quest for cooldom they do things parents don’t like. A LOT of kids do this. However, most kids don’t find their private photos splashed across the internet or on CNN. Unfortunately Miley Cyrus isn’t so lucky. People are looking for her to screw up. They are waiting for her to make mistakes. Some people are just dying to see her fall from grace so they can say, “See, I told you so.” But she’s just a fifteen-year-old girl who is trying to experiment and take risks and grow up before her time…just like every other fifteen-year-old girl. It doesn’t make her bad girl.

Post from: Blisstree

Is Miley Cyrus a Bad Girl?