My Ex-Teen Icon | Teen Ink

My Ex-Teen Icon MAG

July 21, 2009
By Mmbusch BRONZE, Fox River Grove, Illinois
Mmbusch BRONZE, Fox River Grove, Illinois
1 article 0 photos 31 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Do not pity the dead. Pity the living. And above all pity those who live without love."


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.


The author's comments:
Hey, my name is Margaret. I'm 15 and considering becoming a journalist. When I mentioned this to my dad, he encouraged me to practice writing, as I have obviously done so. My work is nothing great, but I hope you like it. I know it has too much teenage attitude to be published as news, but your site sounds very open to all types of writing, so I hope you'll appreciate my work for its own personality. However, if not, I completely understand. I'll just keep practicing.
The work I have pasted here is simply my own thoughts after having come across a cereal box endorsed by Hannah Montana.
Enjoy!

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This article has 208 comments.


on Apr. 22 2010 at 1:09 am
mcpanicfanic SILVER, Cincinnati, Ohio
8 articles 0 photos 65 comments
You are a very good writer. Keep at it and always do what makes you happy. If you like to write, go for it.

on Apr. 11 2010 at 8:39 pm
-MidnightAngel- GOLD, A Field Of Paper Flowers, California
11 articles 47 photos 110 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I believe in everything until it's disproved. So I believe in fairies, the myths, dragons. It all exists, even if it's in your mind. Who's to say that dreams and nightmares aren't as real as the here and now?"

I don't like Hanna Montana. But I do think that people critasize her to much. She's growing up. Deal with it. Who cares if she gets a tatoo? I  agree with most of this article, so please don't think that I'm critasizing it. I like it alot:)! But I do think that it is redicules for people to get so obsesed with someone that if, god forbid, she gets a tatoo or has a picture(that if I might add was completly harmless as opposed to what the media would have had you think) that's "reaveling", they go into shock! It's rather pathedic if you ask me.

But you writting is vary good and I think that you have a good chance of becomeing a jornalist;)

*Sorry about my spelling:-/   


on Apr. 11 2010 at 4:21 pm
wordweaver96 PLATINUM, Winchester, Kentucky
37 articles 2 photos 254 comments

Favorite Quote:
" It is not our abilities but our choices that show who we truly are. "
Albus Dumbledore


See, we really DON'T have anything to fear but fear itself!

You wrote this very well. Who cares if you sound like a teenager? For Pete's sake, you are one! I have mixed feelings about Miley/Hannah. But I've thought the same thoughts, hoping she won't become a Disney has been who becomes a raunchy woman. I want to be a novelist, but I'm thinking about becoming a journalist someday. I know it might take  a really long time to be a published novelist, so that's why I'm considering journalism. Well, cool article!

on Apr. 11 2010 at 3:51 pm
S-Chique00 GOLD, Dundalk, Other
10 articles 0 photos 18 comments

Favorite Quote:
Rocky Balboa: You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't how hard you hit; it's about how hard you can get hit, and keep moving forward. How much you can take, and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done.

Finally, someone with similar tastes! I never liked Hannah Montana and never really saw what all the hype was over, even when I was in the age bracket of her target market. She can't sing without a false twang, her greasy-haired dad writes all of her songs, and her show is over-manufactured and relies on dated jokes and corney clichés. And then she was in the papers for taking her clothes off. Well done, Cyrus. Classy. Very good article, by the way.

on Mar. 26 2010 at 1:48 pm
Breezy41 BRONZE, West Plains, Missouri
2 articles 0 photos 5 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Never let yesterday's dissapointments overtake tomorrow's dreams."

Agreed! I feel the exact same way! She is such a horrible role model!

darbie BRONZE said...
on Mar. 25 2010 at 4:07 pm
darbie BRONZE, Ruston, Louisiana
3 articles 0 photos 15 comments

Favorite Quote:
Politeness, n. The most acceptable hypocrisy.
Ambrose Bierce, The Devil's Dictionary
US author & satirist (1842 - 1914)

hey, anytime!

Mmbusch BRONZE said...
on Mar. 25 2010 at 3:43 pm
Mmbusch BRONZE, Fox River Grove, Illinois
1 article 0 photos 31 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Do not pity the dead. Pity the living. And above all pity those who live without love."

Yes. I mean, true, I am criticizing some of her actions in this article and how they reflect, etc., but this doesn't mean I want her to fail in her life, career, or endeavors. Everyone deserves a happy life and I think she should have one. However, she's been mistreating her role-model position and I think it should stop. Whatever. Who knows? She may yet change for the better

Mmbusch BRONZE said...
on Mar. 25 2010 at 3:36 pm
Mmbusch BRONZE, Fox River Grove, Illinois
1 article 0 photos 31 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Do not pity the dead. Pity the living. And above all pity those who live without love."

This is true, but I still wish she could have been a better role model to me.

Mmbusch BRONZE said...
on Mar. 25 2010 at 3:32 pm
Mmbusch BRONZE, Fox River Grove, Illinois
1 article 0 photos 31 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Do not pity the dead. Pity the living. And above all pity those who live without love."

Haha. You got it

Mmbusch BRONZE said...
on Mar. 24 2010 at 9:54 pm
Mmbusch BRONZE, Fox River Grove, Illinois
1 article 0 photos 31 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Do not pity the dead. Pity the living. And above all pity those who live without love."

haha! I love long, appreciative, and insightful comments! Thank you :)

Mmbusch BRONZE said...
on Mar. 24 2010 at 9:52 pm
Mmbusch BRONZE, Fox River Grove, Illinois
1 article 0 photos 31 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Do not pity the dead. Pity the living. And above all pity those who live without love."

<3 Whenever my self esteem's real low I'll come back to this site... :) Thanks

Boulangere said...
on Mar. 20 2010 at 10:31 pm
It was entertaining to read from the standpoint of a Hannah/Miley-convert and you did very well with the entertainment, and, actually, I may have enjoyed your side comment even more. Good luck becoming a journalist!

on Mar. 20 2010 at 3:30 pm
StandardToaster PLATINUM, Pasadena, California
20 articles 0 photos 209 comments

Favorite Quote:
I don't suffer from insanity; I enjoy ever minute of it."

this was great. it made me laugh cuz i realize I do the same thing too. check out my work?

on Mar. 20 2010 at 9:38 am
sky_is_womb BRONZE, Moorestown, New Jersey
2 articles 0 photos 18 comments

Favorite Quote:
All the soarings of my mind begin within my blood- Rilke

i like your writing a lot and i feel the same way. i was so obsessed with her i used to try and exactly mimic the outfits she wore on the show. now i look back and think, what was i thinking?-i think, that i thought, i could some day be a teen rock star too- but now reality has set in.

Venus_Queen said...
on Mar. 15 2010 at 7:51 pm
Thank you for saying what i have been wanting to but didnt say it!!

TheJust ELITE said...
on Mar. 5 2010 at 8:39 pm
TheJust ELITE, Ellenton, Florida
254 articles 202 photos 945 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I feel that a hero is somebody who will stand up for their values and what they believe in and that can take any form. People that have values and have thought them through rather than those who just do what they’re told."-Skandar Keynes

"When it’

I completely agree. I have to admit, I like Hannah Montana! But yeah, she says she's to old for Disney. So, why is she still with them? And what the deal with "I'm a role model, but I'll take candids in my bra..." Sorry, but she has been off my "role model" list for a loong time!

on Mar. 5 2010 at 11:28 am
Kitkat19 SILVER, Brookline, Massachusetts
5 articles 5 photos 9 comments

Favorite Quote:
If you can't explain, then you don't understand. -Me

i am a big fan of hannah/miley, more hannah. i've seen hannah montana yogurt, toothpaste, toothbrushes, memory sticks, and more. it's ridiculous, but a good (albeit very sleazy) way to market her and make money. it seems bad morally, but i find it rather amusing.

on Feb. 27 2010 at 7:47 am
Waterlogged BRONZE, Grapevine, Texas
1 article 0 photos 36 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Winston, you are drunk." To which Churchill responded, "and you, madam, are ugly. But in the morning, I'll be sober,"-Lady Astor and Winston Churchill

This was good....

on Feb. 26 2010 at 8:56 pm
writergirl13 GOLD, Cherry Hill, New Jersey
11 articles 8 photos 261 comments

Favorite Quote:
All are lunatics, but he who can analyze his delusions is called a philosopher.
Ambrose Bierce

I completely agree with your articel. It was completely normal for everyone to be a fan of Hannah Montana/ MIley Cyrus three years ago when the show started airing. The truth is, she acted like a good person and role model, but I guess later, the fame just went to her head. And if she wanted to get out of the show and Disney, I persoanlly think she could've bowed out with a little more grace and dignity. Hopefully, she'll realize her mistakes and it won't be too late to turn her life around if and when she does. Great article! You should definitely try out being a journalist, and keep practicing (writing editorials can help a little with that.) :)

darbie BRONZE said...
on Feb. 26 2010 at 4:51 pm
darbie BRONZE, Ruston, Louisiana
3 articles 0 photos 15 comments

Favorite Quote:
Politeness, n. The most acceptable hypocrisy.
Ambrose Bierce, The Devil's Dictionary
US author & satirist (1842 - 1914)

Thank you for being you...