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Don't Let Your Girls Grow Up To Be Child StarsMeghan O'Rourke takes readers' questions about Hannah Montana and the Miley Cyrus photos.

Posted Thursday, May 8, 2008, at 5:46 PM ET

(Continued from page 3)

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McLean, Va.: This whole thing reminds me a bit of this huge kerfuffle years ago when the young actor who was on the preschool show Blue's Clues dared to do a guest shot on an late-night crime show. Many parents were enraged. So I think the take-away lesson here is that parents are extremely touchy when actors in kid shows step out of character.

Meghan O'Rourke: Boy, they do seem to be, don't they? I guess it's true that we live in the age of the so-called "helicopter parent," hovering nervously and observing everything their kid does. Given how much junk there is out there, I do understand why (and given the real threats of the Internet). But some perspective also seems in order.

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Baltimore: I am wondering, how is this episode with Miley Cyrus any different from what goes on everyday, and doesn't raise an eyebrow? Magazines like Seventeen, for example, are full of articles and tips on sex and female sex appeal. Movies also often portray this—remember American Beauty (late '90s). Strangely, the public outcry back then was nowhere near what it is now. What gives?

Meghan O'Rourke: Yes, it's not that different from what goes on every day. Except in one regard: Miley Cyrus makes a lot of money for Disney because she is the star of a show celebrated for its "clean" values. So if parents get upset by her actions, Disney starts to worry—and the episode becomes a story, because everyone wonders whether the Hannah Montana financial juggernaut will crash and burn.

In a sense, this is really a story about money.

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Richmond, Va.: I might believe the Cyruses were surprised if they were regular folks with a star daughter, but her dad is a celebrity and knows that world.

Meghan O'Rourke: Absolutely true. And they did see the pictures. I just think they underestimated the response.

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Arlington, Va.: My 9-year-old goddaughter and all of her friends know about the controversy and, strangely enough, now refuse to wear their Hannah Tees. The Cyrus family may have the long-range in mind, but it sure turned off a lot of girls who bought a lot of Hannah stuff.

Meghan O'Rourke: Interesting; I've heard similar anecdotes over the past week. That's why I tend to think they miscalculated here—and genuinely didn't realize what a controversy this would become. The show's rating are tanking too, according to some things I've read.

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Concord, N.H.: Miley has started the morphing into a more adult, glamorous young woman already. She wore that slick, floor-length red gown to an awards ceremony. It looked way too old for her in some ways, but strangely not in others. She probably has seen and done more than most adults. I find it funny and a little sad that Ellen Page dresses more in the way you'd want to see from a child star than a 15-year-old does.

Part of this is Miley's willing exploration into her sexuality—she has half-naked pics of her with that non-celeb friend. She wrote that off as stuff teenage girls do, but that's more of what teenage girls do now, largely because of the constant messages in the media that girls should be sexy. That isn't what we did when I was a teenager, some 20 years ago.

And as a young girl, it was the Nancy Drews, Trixie Beldens, etc., who were my role models, because they used their brains to get ahead and didn't traffic in a Lolita appeal. They were growing up but still felt safe. The message now is, do what you have to do for 15 minutes of fame—because that's so important—and if all else fails try taking off your clothes.

Meghan O'Rourke: One thing that seems sad to me about the photos is not the photos themselves and whether or not they're "appropriate" but the fact that Cyrus is such a money-maker that everything she now does is "managed" in some sense. And for better or for worse the whole thrust of adolescence ought to be about finding your own way. You take awkward steps, and make tons of mistakes—but usually they're your own ones, and they're in front of a small group, not millions of people.

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Meghan O'Rourke: It's 4 PM and I've got to sign out, but I want to thank everyone for sharing their insights and astute questions. Thanks again.