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My Ex-Teen Icon MAG
The other day I was walking down the aisle of my neighborhood Super Walmart, desperately scanning the shelves for Honey Bunches of Oats with Almonds. To my dismay and shock, there were none. I turned to leave when suddenly I came face to face with my mortal enemy: Hannah Montana. There she was, staring into space as though a crisp hundred dollar bill was dangling from a fishing pole before her.
“Hannah Montana cereal,” I muttered, cursing Disney. But I suppose I should have known better. Did I honestly expect Disney not to cash in on every opportunity to plaster Miley Cyrus's face onto products? It was as if Disney had been shipping off Hannah Montana stickers to every manufacturer with the note, “Use these at your discretion; they'll make anything sell.” Because why wouldn't I want to buy a product if a chick in a wig is telling me to?
I was a sixth grader when the Hannah Montana phenomenon landed on our planet. My friends and I became obsessed with the show, to the point that we made our own music videos and memorized the title of every episode. When I was in seventh grade, this success grabbed the attention of those out of range of Disney Channel's hypnotron, and Miley Cyrus slowly but surely approached the teen audience, eager and cautious.
It was fine, it was all fine. No one expected her to stay young forever, she had a career to worry about and pressure to be cool among her own peers. But as the reports of tasteless photos appeared, I stopped staring with a blind eye. Who was this girl I looked up to? I was the same age this “role model” was when she started running off the track, and I had never done anything remotely like that.
So now, whenever I walk into a store, I feel betrayed by my ex-teen icon. Her very image screams “Look at me! I may act trashy and dim, but as long as I'm not caught pulling a Winona Ryder, Disney will continue paying me a gazillion bucks!” I wish I could say to her, “Be a role model or stop putting on that wig to reap all the benefits.”
I'm not as cynical as I seem though. I hope Miley takes the right path. I hope she doesn't become the next Britney. Or Lindsay. Or Jamie Lynn. But everyone grows up, and odds are that if they come from Disney, they end up in Vegas. And I don't appreciate Miley trying to persuade me to buy her bicycle.
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This article has 208 comments.
I agree with you . This article is great. the writers' feeling is there, the writer is obviously sincere abuot this and I admire said person for that, but more importantly the writer is right!.....
Your right, Miley Cyrus is a clown.... so many little girls looked up to her and now can't understand why noone likes her. It's gross and unacceptible. What she's done is just sad.
Maybe now, you wouldn't take the opportunity, because you're older and mature, but what about when you were much younger? Ask almost any young child if they want to act and sing on their own Disney show, and they won't decline.
Also, performing is her passion. Would you turn down an opportunity to pursue you're passion?
Sorry, I'm feeling very debate-y tonight.
I think this article was really good! Very nicely written and you had good supporting arguments, so when I say this, just know it has nothing to do with your article; I disagree. Yes, it's really dumb for Miley to take nudes and whatnot, but you have to look at things in her perspective. She was treated like a child for so long, I think she may have done it to feel older. She had her reasons, whether it was right or wrong. Many people, especially teenagers make mistakes. Just because you didn't make the same mistakes, does not make you any better.
As for the fact that you think she should "put down the wig" and be a role model...many adult actors who have played in children's movies do horrible things on the side. They are into heavy drogs, they are addicted to alcohol, they take nudes, they star in crude films, etc. Should they stop taking roles in any family film because of the other part of their life?
Again, the article was very well written, and everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I respect your opinion, it's what you believe, but I just disagree.
The work I have pasted here is simply my own thoughts after having come across a cereal box endorsed by Hannah Montana.
Enjoy!