the buzz log

Is this Mileygate? All day, articles, searches, and outrage related to "Hannah Montana" star Miley Cyrus have bombarded the Buzz. What about? Not a wardrobe malfunction or a cheap paparazzi shot, but a studio portrait of the Disney mega-star by celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz.

To quickly recap the rumpus: The 15-year-old TV phenom posed for the A-list shutterbug for a feature in June's Vanity Fair. Now, the images are out—and Miley doesn't like what she sees. According to the actress, the pictures were supposed to be "artistic." Instead, she just feels "embarassed" by them. In particular, the teen performer objects to one photo in which she's shown looking over her shoulder, provocatively revealing a bare back.

So far, most of the articles to hit the Buzz have tracked Cyrus' response to the image and Leibovitz's apologetic reply. Already, though, some blogs have dug deeper. Huffington Post not only picked up an engaging item about Vanity Fair's "history" of "embarrassing" stars, but it also turned to celebrity-on-celebrity coverage, publishing Jamie Lee Curtis's take on the back brouhaha.

New York Magazine's site took it one step further, compiling blog-on-blog coverage of the event. (Is this really an "event"?) Meanwhile, People.com resorted to polling the public: "Will the photos help or hurt Miley?" the site queried. In Search, demand for "miley cyrus photo scandal" skyrocketed. Don't take it too hard, Miley. Behind every successful celebrity lurks at least one "photo scandal" search spike.