Kyle Obermann:

Miley Cyrus. Hannah Montana. When it comes to those names, it seems that people are either vehemently disgusted or hopelessly love-smitten. But there’s no hiding where I fall on that issue. If you don’t already know on which side of the line I stand, I hope that you will soon figure it out, exalt my opinions as truth and petition Mr. Garrison to change our school motto to “It’s all about the climb.”

Although I am sad to say I have not met her in person, I believe Miley is a sincerely good person. Now before you haters stop reading and call me a delusional Romeo and Miley a pole-dancing slut, hear me out. Miley is helping to coordinate her own youth charity organization “Get Ur Good On” (Yeah, I flinch when I see the “Ur” too, but what can you do? It’s charity). The age-and-fame-comparable Taylor Swift doesn’t have that on her resume, and everyone thinks she is perfect—but Miley has sure got her there. Miley is also an incredibly genuine and informed person, not the dumb fool so many ignorant people claim her to be. She knows what she is talking about when she talks about why she supports issues. Go check out her interview with Ellen DeGeneres on YouTube or something before you decide she is dumb.

Then there are her songs. They aren’t all love stories; they are about inspiration, freedom, and countless other things that aren’t about sex or drugs and are ultimately about things we can all listen to—even if you aren’t a 12-year-old girl.

However, I also know almost everyone knows she hasn’t written a lot of her songs, but in her new album she wrote all but two. We expect rich celebrities to be perfect geniuses when it comes to their talents, but sometimes they have their flaws. Miley is only 17—we can’t expect the world from her now—she will improve as she gets older. Give her a chance. Spiteful judging never got anyone anywhere.

However, one of the biggest complaints about Miley is the way she dresses. People complain she wears little or too showy clothing, and perhaps they are right—we all have our opinions when it comes to dress. However, Miley is a Hollywood celebrity girl, she is under tons of pressure to act certain ways, and I’m just glad she hasn’t gone down the tube like Lady Gaga in her new music video for her song “Telephone” (seriously, check it out and then try and call Miley a slut).

Another point of conflict with Miley Cyrus is her star role in the recent movie, The Last Song. People again assume that because she is just a singer and has only acted main roles as Hannah Montana that she is inadequate for the challenge. Let me tell you, despite my liking of her music, I am not a chick flick or romance movie kind of guy, but I still thought the movie was good as far as that genre goes. Miley acted well, especially considering it was her first time acting a role that was not herself. I would encourage you to not disregard the movie as trash just because she is in it but instead give it a chance.

Nobody’s perfect. Not Taylor Swift, not Gandhi, not Dumbledore, not Yoda. You don’t have to like her music, but you don’t have to hate her. Make educated opinions, educated comparisons, educated arguments, then take a stance. Don’t hate. Give ol’ smiley Miley a chance.

Juliet Prather:

Miley Cyrus. Hannah Montana. A bad role model. While those sentences may be full of different words, all three are talking about the same person and are really very interchangeable.

I’ll admit it. Little Miley started out as a fun, very likeable Disney star when she got the role of Hannah Montana, but that little girl is long gone now. In the past few years, Miley Cyrus has transformed herself into a Daisy-Duke-wearing pop “singer” who parades around the world pretending to be older than she really is.

These days, you can find her on the cover of magazines wearing clothes designed to flatter her underdeveloped 16-year-old body and sultry facial expressions designed to attract glances from men not interested in her downright awkward antics. And while her vain obsession with looking grown-up and sexy is annoying, it’s the least of what makes me dislike Miley Cyrus.

I could look past the creepiness of this underage girl wearing barely-there shorts and tank tops if the kid had any real talent to make up for it. I’m sorry (not really, I’m just saying that), but Miley just doesn’t have the goods to make up for that screechy voice and forced country accent of hers. Sure, she can keep pitch and memorize lines, but after being a part of this fine arts academy for three years, I’ve come to expect more from performers.

Yes, there are many more famous people in this world who hold no real talent, but at least they worked for their fame. While other performers were working to make themselves seen and heard, Miley was riding on the back of her daddy’s one-hit wonder. Chances are, she never would have been “Hannah Montana” if weren’t for the family connections.

Granted, I can’t hate her for being privileged (It’s not the poor girl’s fault, after all), but it bothers me when someone with such minimal talent succeeds and bombards my radio, TV, and most recently, my movie theater. When I see previews for her upcoming film The Last Song, I have to hold back laughter. I mean…really? They could have chosen any young actress in the world to help bring Nicholas Spark’s beloved book to life, and and the best they could come up with was Miley Cyrus? I can assume she will find a way to simply play herself instead of her actual character by adding in a Southern accent and a denim wardrobe, and without doubt there will countless numbers of uncomfortably self-indulgent scenes in which Miley spends far too long talking and/or trying to look good.

Now one might argue that Miley does in fact bring something to the table with her hits like “Party in the USA” and “The Climb,” but I beg to differ. Sure, those songs are catchy and enjoyable when driving around with your friends, but let’s not fool ourselves into thinking they’re something they aren’t. None of the former Disney star’s songs have any legitimate meaning or emotion behind them. Rather, they are just ways for her to make money. Miley sings, I feel, not because she loves it, but because she wants to be on those magazine covers pretending to be whatever it is people want her to be. The girl is shallow, to be frank, and her music only solidifies that.

Whether it is through her lack of talent, her attempts to be older than she needs to be, or her squeaky yet scratchy voice, Miley Cyrus is bothersome and does not deserve a spot among Hollywood’s elite. If you don’t agree with me, just keep one thing in mind: do you really want your younger sister becoming Miley Cyrus? I didn’t think so.

This article was published in The Shield on April 23, 2010.