Before I say anything else, I don't think that celebrities should be treated as role
models for children unless they are particularly exceptional. I read the following article yesterday about the "worst celebrity role models" according to a poll of over 2,400 parents; the top female worst celebrity role model cited in the poll was Miley Cyrus:
I don't disagree with the inclusion of most of the people on either list (in fact, some are role models in how not to behave), but I'm baffled as to why Cyrus is regarded as the worst role model in the female category and as to why she attracts a significant amount of hatred in general. Granted, I wouldn't regard her as a positive role model, but I wouldn't label her as the worst either and I don't think she deserves the negative coverage.
The best reason that comes to mind is that because of her former role as "Hannah Montana/Miley Stewart", people expect her to be permanently playing that character even though the series ended in January 2011, with its filming having been completed over six months prior; until her song "Can't Be Tamed" was released in mid-2010, Cyrus had an "innocent" image and I think that some people are still holding her to that standard. I have noticed an increase in negativity towards Cyrus ever since she cut her hair last year; the last time I checked, having a change in hairstyle is not proof that someone is going/has gone off the rails. I'd go as far as to say that many of the comments I read about Cyrus, which are often deeply misogynistic in nature, are worse than anything she has done so far.
While Cyrus has sexualized her image since the end of Hannah Montana, everything should be put into perspective: as of this writing, Cyrus has never been arrested and therefore has a clean criminal record; she is not constantly entering and leaving rehab, she has not been involved in any violent altercations, has not engaged in frequent "Twitter wars" with other celebrities and has been in a relationship with one person for the past three years. I can name celebrities who have run into problems but Cyrus is not one of them.
Rather than attack someone such as Cyrus — who wasn't going to remain a child forever and would ultimately outgrow her Hannah Montana persona — for being a "poor role model", parents should be there for their children and talk to them more rather than rely on celebrities for guidance; in all fairness, the aforementioned article did say that the 58% of the parents in the poll agree that celebrities shouldn't be treated as role models. After all, even though celebrities are in the public eye, they are, at the end of the day, still people and they are not perfect; they shouldn't be considered role models unless they have led a life worthy of inspiring others
I think it has to do with her popularity. She had a long of young fans following her and the minute she turned 18, suddenly there were photos of her drinking, smoking and wearing overly provocative clothing.
ReplyDeleteWhen she was younger, she was also dating men who were a lot older than her. Even though she's over 18 now, it's still young and she has a lot of eyes on her.
True; even so, I think there are celebrities who have done far worse than what Cyrus has done, and parents should find better role models for their kids than celebrities or perhaps even be role models themselves.
Deleteyou really do make excellent and logical points, but we've never had a logical relationship with celebrities. We decide who we want them to be and when they try to be something else, no matter how true to themselves it is, we feel betrayed.
ReplyDeleteThank you.
DeleteIt is both people's expections and the media portrayal that form a particular celebrity's image; Cyrus was always portrayed as sweet and innocent, but then when she grew up and wanted to break away from her former role...
Another thing about Miley is she has been dating one guy consistently for a few years now. As opposed to Taylore Swift who has dated, what? 10 guys in the last three years? Miley is so grown up an confident in who she is, it freaks some people out while Taylor has maintained that "girl next door" look that people perceive to be so innocent and pure. Not too mention Taylor's music (at least the stuff I've heard my Nieces listen to) talks all about relationships and breaking up and boys and boys and boys. Not all of Miley's music revolves around being boy crazy. And I love that. Any way. Just adding to your rant and agreeing with you.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you mentioned this. Despite that Cyrus has been with only one man for the past few years, she is routinely labeled as a "slut"; this is both wrong and misogynistic. While I like Swift, she, as you said, has a pure/innocent image even though she has had several short relationships and breakups these past few years. Again, it's the perception and public image that matters.
Delete(For the record, I don't consider Swift to be a slut, either; I feel that's a misogynistic term and I can think of a few celebrity men who go from relationship to relationship as Swift has and that term has not been used to describe them.)
Yes, I too do not think Taylor Swift is a slut, and I apologize if it seemed like I was calling her that. But I know you get what I was saying about Miley.
DeleteYou don't have to apologize, Mandee! I was clarifying my opinion, not criticizing you; don't worry about it. :)
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