Judgement Call

It has been a week of headlines and drama and scandal. all regarding a little photo from a little photo shoot for a little magazine. It has been covered on the internet, on the news stations and on the cover of publications from sea to shining sea. And, finally, last night (having had a week to think about it), I turned to Pat and said


"Shame on Annie Leibovitz."

He wanted to know why I would say that - after all Robert Mapplethorpe took photos of younger children, completely nude. Yay, quote I; he did. They are considered art but they are innocent photos of innocent children in a non sexual manner (and I have blurred the privates of the the little boy in the Mapplethorpe photo I took off the internet for this story - not because I find it, in any way, pornographic; but out of respect for the comfort level of my readers). People take snapshots of their kids, nude, all the time. It's a natural (and often humourous!) state for a young 'un to run around the house naked. Ha ha, isn't that cute, get the camera.

In the case of Miley Cyrus and Annie Leobpvitz, though, we aren't talking about an innocent child. We are talking about a young girl, old enough to bear children, old enough to spark the interest of boys and girls, men and women, child molesters, rapists and pervs, around the world. In my opinion, no teenager should be photographed in a state of undress, no matter how provocatively or unprovocatively that state of undress may be; and I find this to be provocative. It doesn't matter that all that is shown is her back; it doesn't matter that she might be fully covered underneath that sheet: what matters is the public perception of the fifteen year old. Miley Cyrus works for Disney. Miley Cyrus has millions of underage fans who are going to want to emulate her. Miley Cyrus has overage fans who are going to want to do more than emulate her. She is a fifteen year old girl photographed with a hairdo that looks exactly like (what I can only describe as) "freshly fucked" and makeup that is far too pronounced and sophisticated for her. This is an iconic image people have of the greatest sex symbol of all time, Marilyn Monroe. If you open books on Marilyn, do a google image search on Marilyn, hell - if you go to some museums or art stores, you will see photos of a naked Marilyn Monroe wrapped up in a sheet. This is not the way a fifteen year old should be photographed. And I am aware that Britney Spears was photographed in sexy ways when she was a teenager.

WELL.

Does that say enough?

Pat, having heard my reasoning, suggested that it was the parents' fault and that, had they been there, it wouldn't have happened. He's right. That says a lot, too. Miley may be a superstar but she is a FIFTEEN YEAR OLD. She shouldn't have to make these decisions on her own. Any adult guardian, be in parent, grandparent, manager or agent, should have said NO, Miley won't do that. But, for me, the bottom line is that NO photographer should have suggested it in the first place. I DON'T CARE what Mapplethorpe did. I don't care if Miley was shot on a bear rug at the age of two. I don't care if Miley suggested it. A responsible photographer, famed or not, should not promote (especially in this day and age when a pervert with an active imagination, who cannot get to Miley Cyrus; and who will set his or her sights on another young girl..say, for example, one of OUR daughters, neices, grandaughters, goddaughters!!) teenage sexuality. THIS should NEVER have been suggested, let alone executed.

If I were Miley, though, I would be much angrier about the fact that I was used in so uncontionable a manner.

She should be pissed off because she doesn't even look pretty in the photo.