Leibovitz Makes Bad Judgement (Mirror Image)

Leibovitz Makes Bad Judgement

I don't feel too bad for Hannah Montana, Miley Cyrus and neither does my colleague, Karen Heller. By now you all know the teen country singer says she was duped into what she says were whack pictures taken by fashion photographer, Annie Leibovitz. The photos are to run in the June issue of Vanity Fair. I saw the pics all over the news Monday. Maybe Cyrus thought the artful nudes would be more demure than racy. She did have the allusion of wearing just a bedsheet. Nope. instead she was framed as a hungry, prepubescent sex pot. Of course Cyrus is more worried about her Disney image. But then you gotta ask: Why would she agree to pose nude? On the other side: Why would Leibovitz take such a picture of a 15-year-old in the first place?

This brings us to the serious issue of the rampant sexualization of young girls in the fashion industry. It keeps getting worse and it's more egregious than the overuse of too skinny models and lack of minorities in the fashion industry. Cyrus is just 15. We all know she's just 15. This is really slimy.

But it's not the Cyrus' of the world who are in danger. They are protected by bodyguards and fame won't be victimized like the story that broke today about the young Austrian woman who was repeatedly raped by her father from the age of 11 and bore him seven children. How could a man, let alone somebody's daddy, be turned on by his own little girl? I'm sure part of it has to do with these kinds of inappropriate images. What do you think?

Here is another question: We weren't even sure if we should post the images with this blog since were in fact, denouncing it. What do you think? If we had posted without the pic, would you have wanted to see them? Are people making too big of a deal?

Posted by Elizabeth Wellington on April 28, 2008 5:08 PM | Permalink

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Comments (2)

mark:

and even more shocking, her father was present during the photo shoot. But after seeing the way she was dressed while co-hosting the CMT awards with her father, perhaps this shouldn't be a surprise.
So let's start by asking what the hell are her parents thinking of.

And perhaps Ms. Liebovitz was turned on by tarting up the young Ms. Cyrus.

Posted by mark | April 29, 2008 2:26 AM

Posted on April 29, 2008 02:26

Bobbi Lee Hitchon:

I think the only people to blame is the Cyrus family. They were there, they saw all the pictures, and any parents should have a problem with their 15 year old daughter posing even slightly nude.
Liebovitz is just a photographer, and a really good one. She's just looking to get the shot and probably has no moral connection to most of her subjects.

Posted by Bobbi Lee Hitchon | April 29, 2008 8:50 AM

Posted on April 29, 2008 08:50

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Author

The Mirror Image team consists of Inquirer and philly.com writers with a passion for fashion and an eye for the trends. We live to shop and shop to live, but always appreciate a good sale. We know that “What I am going to wear?” is a serious question, possibly requiring consultation and multiple outfit changes. We believe beauty treatments can be a necessity instead of a luxury, and consider awards shows required viewing. Above all, we strive to bring style into our daily lives – and have fun telling others about it.

Contributor Elizabeth Wellington has been the Inquirer's Fashion Reporter since 2003 and writes the Mirror, Mirror column for the Sunday Image section. She is a bargain shopper who hates buying pants and rarely meets a dress she doesn’t like.

Contributor Chris Gray is the editor of the Image section, and has been a reporter and editor at the Inquirer since 2001. She believes you are never too tall for heels and considers text messaging a vital form of communication.

Contributor Karen Heller covered fashion for several years, nationally and regionally, and has an enduring interest in style and fashion. A finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in commentary, she reports on popular culture. Her column appears in the Wednesday Daily Magazine.

Contributor Kristen Graham is a Philly.com producer and columnist. She is still recovering from her mother dressing her in homemade cotton plaid bell-bottoms as a toddler, and regards religious Project Runway and What Not To Wear watching as the only way to make amends.

Contributor Jodie Chester Lowe is a Philly.com Entertainment producer and a member of the Great Expectations project team. By college, she knew she needed to expand her wardrobe beyond casual shirts and jeans. She’s branched out with the tops, but denim still gets its own drawer (or two) in her dresser.

Contributor Ellen Dunkel is the Philly.com Entertainment channel manager. She was almost literally born to shop, having grown up in Paramus, N.J., the No. 2 ZIP code in the United States for retail sales. She often serves as a personal shopper for family members who are missing the fashion gene.

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This page contains a single entry from the blog posted on April 28, 2008 5:08 PM.

The previous post in this blog was Cute dress, yes?.

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