An unsettling image

Tuesday, April 29, 2008 | 2:04 a.m.

Parents who see the photo of Miley Cyrus in the upcoming issue of Vanity Fair might find themselves asking: That’s ‘Hannah Montana’?

The 15-year-old Cyrus, who portrays Montana on a Disney TV show, is a wildly popular G-rated idol of the 6-to-14 set.

But one of the photographs accompanying a Vanity Fair magazine article about her depicts an entirely different Cyrus one who is wearing glamorous makeup and is partially wrapped in what appears to be a satin bed sheet while looking coyly over her shoulder with her bare back to the camera.

The photograph, taken by renowned celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz, is the kind of edgy, controversial image one expects to see from Leibovitz.

But it shows more of Cyrus than Disney officials and the parents of some fans may want to see. Even Cyrus, who initially called the photos “artsy,” came out with a statement Sunday in which she apologized to her fans and said the article and pictures made her “feel so embarrassed.”

Vanity Fair officials told the Associated Press that “Miley’s parents and/or minders were on the set all day” and that all “thought it was a beautiful and natural portrait.”

Cyrus said she thought it was “really cool” when Leibovitz first took the shot, adding that “you can’t say no to Annie.”

At 15, Cyrus shouldn’t be expected to be the one to say no. That should have been done by her parents and the other adults whose job it is to protect her.

It is a most unfortunate situation not only for the millions of little girls who consider Cyrus their role model, but also for the famous 15-year-old, who felt obliged to apologize for poor judgment that was not hers in the first place.