Miley Cyrus is taking issue with a photo of herself that’s going around, and it’s not another amateur, truth-or-dare Internet snapshot — it’s the handiwork of Annie Leibovitz. “I took part in a photo shoot that was supposed to be ‘artistic’ and now, seeing the photographs and reading the story, I feel so embarrassed,” Cyrus said Sunday in a statement through her publicist. “I never intended for any of this to happen and I apologize to my fans who I care so deeply about.”The photos, appearing in the upcoming issue of Vanity Fair, were taken by Leibovitz, a renowned celebrity photographer whose edgy, silver-toned portraits have included subjects such as Angelina Jolie, Scarlett Johansson and a naked, pregnant Demi Moore.The Cyrus pictures accompany an interview with the 15-year-old pop star and her father, singer Billy Ray Cyrus. They include shots of the teen wrapped in what appears to be a satin bedsheet, looking over her shoulder with her back exposed.The Disney Channel, which airs Cyrus’ TV show “Hannah Montana,” was also critical of Vanity Fair.“Unfortunately, as the article suggests, a situation was created to deliberately manipulate a 15-year-old in order to sell magazines,” a network statement said.A phone message left for a Vanity Fair representative was not immediately returned on Sunday night. But in a statement to the TV show “Entertainment Tonight,” Vanity Fair defended its position.“Miley’s parents and/or minders were on the set all day,” the magazine said. “Since the photo was taken digitally, they saw it on the shoot and everyone thought it was a beautiful and natural portrait of Miley.”“I think it’s really artsy,” Cyrus had told the magazine at the time. A handful of borderline racy snapshots of a girl who appeared to be Cyrus have appeared on the Internet in recent months, including images of a girl posing in her underwear and bikini last week. She has apologised for two sets of photos in which she flashes her bra, lies across a boy’s lap, and appears semi-nude.The first series of photos, which circulated on the Internet last week, showed Cyrus draped over the lap of her then-boyfriend, her producer’s son, while another showed her revealing part of her green bra.Cyrus is one of the biggest — and most G-rated — acts in the country and is often considered a role model for young girls.
