Angela Dunn
April 3, 2016
Blog 2
The
Sexualization of Adolescent Celebrities
During the 2009 Teen Choice Awards, Disney pop singer and actress Miley
Cyrus put on an unforgettable performance to her new hit song ‘Party in the
USA’. Being only 16 years -old at the time, Miley received a lot of negative
feedback on her ‘provocative’ and ‘sexual’ performance from the public and the
media. Wearing short shorts and black leather boots, Miley entered the stage to
perform her new song. Halfway through the performance, Cyrus climbed on top of
what appeared to be an ice cream cart and began to dance while holding onto a
pole that was attached to the cart. Many people were offended and believed that
the dance with the pole was meant to represent a stripper pole and stripper
dance moves. Cyrus received a lot of negative feedback and criticism
immediately after the performance. According to Newsday.com, a spokesperson for the network said in
a statement: “Disney Channel won’t be commenting on that performance, although
parents can rest assured that all content presented on the Disney Channel is
age-appropriate for our audience — kids 6-14 — and consistent with what our
brand values are.” Cyrus told MTV that her performance was to represent where
she was from and she wanted it to be fun. Due to what society believes and
tells us what is and what is not appropriate, Miley was unable to freely express
herself the way she wanted without being criticized and shamed by the public.
Days after her
performance, Cyrus was still receiving hateful messages and negative comments.
Fans immediately went to the Internet and debated whether or not Cyrus’
performance was appropriate or not for her age and her young fan base. Many
comments wrote that Miley was a slut, white trash, and said that she needed to
‘get with it’. Although the Hannah
Montana star did have a young fan base that looked up to her as a role
model at the time, she should not be looked at negatively or be called those
things just because she was holding onto a pole during her performance.
Along with the
hundreds of negative comments and feedback Cyrus received, some fans stuck up
for her saying that she was using the pole for balance during the performance
or said that her managers probably made her do it. “It has been noted that for many
child stars, a career move or rebranding occurs around the age of 17 or 18 and
that this transition involves an attempt to gain an adult male audience through
sexualizing the star” (Lamb and Brown, 2006). All child stars grow up and
transition at some point in their life, but Cyrus received a lot more negative
feedback on her transition than had other child stars. For example, Brittany
Spears did not receive nearly as much negative comments and criticism when she
transitioned from a Disney star to a pop singer.
Parents who made
hateful comments about Cyrus’ performance were concerned because of the fact
that Cyrus had such a powerful influence over their children and also expressed
concern that Cyrus was exploiting her sexuality at such a young age. “My job isn’t to tell your kids how to act
or how not to act because I’m still figuring that out for myself,” the 17-year
old pop star says in the February issue of Harper’s Bazaar magazine. Cyrus
continued to say that “Your kids are going to make mistakes whether I do or
not. That’s just life.” Parents were so appalled with Cyrus’ performance
because they knew how much of an influence TV and media have over their
children. Miley also knew how much of an influence she had on her fans being
the star of Hannah Montana but as a 16-year-old, Cyrus just wanted to live her
life without receiving all the negative criticism.
Agency
is a term that means doing it for yourself in spite of social structures.
Agency suggests that we can still make actions no matter what society says is
right and wrong. Miley decided to exploit herself how she felt comfortable and
how she wanted to during her performance. “The use of the ice cream cart might have been a way to
contextualize the pole dance in a set that positioned her as a kid just having
fun rather than a sexual woman dancing to attract male attention. In this way,
the ice cream cart references the innocence of childhood, therefore disqualifying
Cyrus’s act as truly sexual” Shugart et al. (2001). Being a Disney star at the time, Miley could
not escape from structural implications. Since Miley Cyrus is seen as a role
model does that mean that she is not allowed to be sexual? Society says that it
is inappropriate for a 16 year-old to be sexual or sexually express themselves.
One comment wrote, “I’d understand is she was 20 or older for that to be okay,
but it’s not at her age. I feel that she made a very bad choice here”. When is
a right age that society will accept someone to be sexual? Since sex is
socially constructed, Miley was shamed for her age and her ‘sexual’ acts in
front of a public audience. Cyrus exemplified the term agency during her
performance by doing what she wanted aside from what society tells us is the
right and wrong thing to do. Another fan wrote, “She needs a new adult image to
be successful in life. So… right on Miley!” Miley expressed herself how she
wanted and disregarded what society had to say about her age and her ‘inappropriate’
acts.
Miley Cyrus did not let society stop her
from doing what she wanted. At some
point, child stars transition from adolescents into adults, just like everyone
else in the world. Since Cyrus’ 2009 performance several years ago, her career has
flourished and she has formed into the adult that she is comfortable being
despite what society has to say about her. No matter what, society will always
have negative things to say about public figures and will criticize their
acts. In my opinion, Miley is a role
model for going against what society says is right or wrong and being herself.
Miley received a great amount of criticism from her Teen Choice Award
performance. As a 16 year-old Disney star, Miley could not escape structural
implications and was constantly being judged for her acts. Although the media
has a powerful effect on it’s viewers, people need to realize that child stars
are going to grow up and make a transition from adolescent to adult at some
point.
References
"Miley
Cyrus' 'Teen Choice' Performance Sparks Debate." Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times, 12 Aug. 2009. Web. 04 Apr. 2016.
"Miley
Cyrus' Pole-dancing Sparks Criticism." Newsday. N.p., n.d. Web. 04
Apr. 2016.
Lamb
Sharon, Graling Kelly, and Wheeler E. Emily, “ ‘Pole-arized’ discourse: An analysis of responses to Miley Cyrus’s Teen
Choice Awards Pole Dance”. University
of Massachusetts.
Following Miley while she grows up in the public eye has certainly been interesting. I remember reading an article fairly recently about how she felt filming Hannah Montana and how it resulted in her developing body dysmorphia because she played a character that was only famous when she didn't look like herself. Basically she had to be tall, blonde and skinny. I loved that show when I was younger and I had never thought of it that way until reading her interview, and it's so true. Child stars go through so much. I also recently read an article about Judy Garland and her terrible experience on the set of the Wizard of Oz and how it led to her alcohol and drug problems... definitely a common theme among child stars.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your post completely, we see this happening with so many TV stars, and people do not realize that they are human just like us and are going to make mistakes along the way. It is important that we do not get too caught up in what the media has to say, because half the time the media will say whatever just to grab people's attention.
ReplyDeleteI think many young girls, including myself, followed Miley as she progressed through her disney channel career. I remember being surprised when I found she had changed her image so much. Being Hanna Montana for so many years and playing the innocent girl on a Disney Channel show was never going to be enough for her. But I wonder if it was her own ambition or perhaps the media's lens of the male gaze that really affected her. Or both. Society loves to shame women for being sexual beings, while simultaneous exalting men for their sexual prowess- making it difficult for a young girl trying to figure out who she truly is. Miley is just a representation of the thousands of young women who are struggling to express themselves in such a critical world.
ReplyDeleteThe part I found most compelling about this post was the ideal that young stars rebrand themselves for the "adult male audience through sexualizing the star." The male gaze is such a powerful tool that many media outlets use in order to help sell and brand their items. An article I read recently on the male gaze for a previous class said that by trying to attract to the male gaze, women's worth becomes just that of her physical attractiveness and sex appeal. Through Miley's performance, she may have been trying to go for a bigger sex appeal in order to attract men. This is a shame that our society feels the need to attract the male gaze in order to make one's brand larger.
ReplyDeleteThe part I found most compelling about this post was the ideal that young stars rebrand themselves for the "adult male audience through sexualizing the star." The male gaze is such a powerful tool that many media outlets use in order to help sell and brand their items. An article I read recently on the male gaze for a previous class said that by trying to attract to the male gaze, women's worth becomes just that of her physical attractiveness and sex appeal. Through Miley's performance, she may have been trying to go for a bigger sex appeal in order to attract men. This is a shame that our society feels the need to attract the male gaze in order to make one's brand larger.
ReplyDelete