I’m proud to say I didn’t watch the Teen Choice Awards this year. After all, I’m not a teen and my daughters are almost 10 years away from being teens, praise God. However, thanks to my lifeline to all things pop culture, E!’s The Soup, I did catch the spectacle that everyone’s been buzzing about: Miley Cyrus’s performance featuring a stripper pole.
Kid Glue editor/writer Germain Lussier posted his take on Miley’s performance in this post: It’s Time to Let Miley Cyrus Grow Up. I appreciate his sentiments that Miley has a lot of pressure on her that most kids don’t and that, as a parent, it is our job to be role models to our children and to help them find other suitable role models, which may or may not include Miley.
The problem is Miley is a role model whether she likes it or not. To quote the memorable and haunting Facts of Life theme song: “you take the good, you take the bad.”
If you take the millions of dollars and all the perks of fame, you also take on a responsibility to the young girls that look up to you. You should conduct yourself in a way that not only “normal” teenagers would act, but perhaps better. I don’t have teenage girls, yet, but my hope would be that when they are sixteen, they will not be dancing even moderately close to a stripper pole, be it for balance or not. I’d prefer they lose their balance and fall.
I’m wondering who is guiding Miley in making the decisions to wear certain things for photo shoots or to dance near questionable poles. While I am happy to chalk an immature Facebook photo or a older boyfriend up to mistakes that “normal” teenagers make, there are people in Miley’s life whose job it is to make the career decisions. If they can’t make good decisions for Miley based on what is best for her, maybe they can make these decisions from a career standpoint, and understand that she’ll be losing fans and their parents’ support should she continue down this road.
And I don’t care if your name is Billy Ray or not, no parent wants to see their child thrusting in hot pants on a pole.
Comments
danielle brewer
August 18th, 2009 - 1:53:18 PM
i think you all need to leave miley cyrus alone. why don't you clean up your own doorstep before you clean up her. we are not all perfect. so before you judge someone why don't you judge yourself. I will never use this website again.
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Kelly Turner
August 18th, 2009 - 2:19:11 PM
wow- danielle is PISSED, lol. I just want to say thanks for speaking of her handlers as opposed to her. These little starlets have huge throngs of people that take care of every detail of their careers- their clothes, their interview answers, and the timing of their coming of transformation.
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danielle brewer
August 18th, 2009 - 2:46:50 PM
so now you are a expert on miley cyrus sorry but you on wrong. no one but miley is a expert on her. you really need to watch your lanauage. you don't know what really goes on. i know i don't. that is why it is not our place to judge other people. if you don't like what is going on then don't watch her at all.
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Germain Lussier
August 18th, 2009 - 2:53:15 PM
Danielle, I'd just think you'd like to know that this site offered TWO different takes on this. The one above, and the one linked in the second paragraph. That one basically said what you said - leave her alone and do her own thing.
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