New Tumblr uses power of Miley twerking to report real news

The young star took over the news cycle for two days, but a blog has found a way to take the news back

Published August 27, 2013 9:30PM (EDT)

Criticism of Miley Cyrus twerking at the VMAs has officially come full circle, with the media having finally folded in on itself. News outlets (including this one) have spent the past 48 hours gawking at Cyrus, with, at best, critics unpacking the transgressive racial and sexual politics of Cyrus' performance and, at worst, slut-shaming her. Indeed, whether fueled by outrage, mock outrage, or outrage at the mock outrage, Miley Cyrus dominated the news cycle, distracting America from serious developments happening with the NSA, Chelsea Manning and Syria.

Realizing the true potential of a rich white woman with her butt bouncing in the air, New York-based freelance writer and videographer Anthony DiMieri started a new Tumblr to wield the power of Miley's butt to draw attention to a more noble cause: news that's not Miley's butt. The Tumblr, "Miley Twerking On Things We Should Talk About," surmises: "If she's twerking on it, maybe we'll pay attention."

And DiMieri, leveling with less critical consumers of mass media, gets it right. Here are a few stories the Tumblr that Cyrus's twerking sheds light on:

The sentencing of Chelsea Manning:

Jeremy Scahill's documentary, "Dirty Wars":

The Bangladesh factory collapse and the workers who survived:


By Prachi Gupta

Prachi Gupta is an Assistant News Editor for Salon, focusing on pop culture. Follow her on Twitter at @prachigu or email her at pgupta@salon.com.

MORE FROM Prachi Gupta


Related Topics ------------------------------------------

Chelsea Manning Miley Cyrus Syria Tumblr Twerking