Cyrus’ moves trigger new tweets record
Miley Cyrus’ memorable moment at the MTV Video Music Awards may not have been good for her, but it was great for MTV and social media.
An estimated 10.1 million people watched the annual program Sunday night, up 66 percent over last year for a show that is fueled by the buzz from talked-about moments, the Nielsen company said.
And few were talked about more than the former child star, who twerked, gyrated, stripped and swayed during her moment in the spotlight. Twitter said a new record for tweets per minute – some 306,000 – was set during Cyrus’ performance.
In her eye-popping performance, Cyrus stripped down to a nude bikini and made suggestive moves with a foam hand.
With all the suggestive moves, MTV made one edit: censoring the lyric “Molly” in Cyrus’ “We Can’t Stop.” That’s considered a slang reference to the drug Ecstasy.
The watchdog group Parents Television Council, which lists Cyrus’ dad, Billy Ray Cyrus, on its advisory board, criticized MTV for serving up sex to young viewers.
“How is this image of former child star Miley Cyrus appropriate for 14-year-olds?” said Dan Isett, public policy director for the PTC.
Brooke Shields, who played Cyrus’ mom in a few episodes of “Hannah Montana” on the Disney Channel, took note of that on the “Today” show Monday: “I was Hannah Montana’s mom! Where did I go wrong?”
Damon, Panettiere get ecology honor
The Environmental Media Association is honoring Matt Damon and Hayden Panettiere for their dedication to ecological causes.
The organization announced Monday that the two actors will be honored at its 23rd annual Environmental Media Awards this fall.
Damon, 42, will receive the Ongoing Commitment Award for his work with Water.org, the organization he co-founded that aims to bring safe water and sanitation to people around the world.
Panettiere will accept the Futures Award, which recognizes younger entertainers for their potential to be environmental activists. The 24-year-old “Nashville” star is active with the Whaleman Foundation, an oceanic research and conservation group.
The birthday bunch
Musician Daryl Dragon (The Captain and Tennille) is 71. Singer-bassist Tim Bogert (Vanilla Fudge) is 69. Actor Paul Reubens (aka Pee-Wee Herman) is 61. Bassist Glen Matlock (The Sex Pistols) is 57. Country singer Colt Ford is 44. Actress Chandra Wilson (“Grey’s Anatomy”) is 44. Actress Sarah Chalke is 37. Actor Aaron Paul is 34. Actress Alexa Vega (“Spy Kids”) is 25.