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Miley Cyrus’ embarrassing photo shoot

Plus: John Mayer and Jen Aniston; White House Correspondents’ dinner

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  Racy Miley Cyrus photos create uproar
April 28: Recent photos in Vanity Fair magazine of Disney "tween" star Miley Cyrus have shocked her viewers — and their parents — resulting in an apology from the "Hannah Montana" star. NBC's Rehema Ellis reports.

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April 29: The Miley Cyrus photo scandal continues! Many celebrities are chiming in on the issue from Hilary Duff to Rosie O'Donnell.

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By Courtney Hazlett
The Scoop
MSNBC
updated 9:08 a.m. ET April 28, 2008

Courtney Hazlett
The Scoop
It didn’t take long for Miley Cyrus fans (and their parents) to become outraged over racy photos of the 15-year-old that appear in the June issue of Vanity Fair.

In the images, Cyrus appears topless save for a bedsheet. Not so much the image Disney is striving for, one would imagine.

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As it turns out, Cyrus didn’t imagine the photos looking so provocative either. The images were snapped by the legendary Annie Leibowitz, and according to a magazine source, “Cyrus felt that she was in eminently good hands.”

Regardless of what she thought, the outcome is clear. “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. I never intended for any of this to happen and I apologize to my fans who I care so deeply about," Cyrus said in a statement. Leibowitz has chimed in, too, saying that it was never her intent to portray Cyrus in any negative light. “I’m sorry that my portrait of Miley has been misinterpreted,” Leibovitz said in a statement released by Vanity Fair. “Miley and I looked at fashion photographs together and we discussed the picture in that context before we shot it. The photograph is a simple, classic portrait, shot with very little makeup, and I think it is very beautiful.”

Is John Mayer Jen Aniston's unlikely love?
Jennifer Aniston and John Mayer? Don’t rule it out.

The unlikely couple was spotted together on April 25 in Miami, where they shared lunch at Michael's Genuine Food & Drink in the Miami Design District, and then had a long dinner together at Casa Tua in South Beach.

Aniston, who at 39 is nine years older than Mayer, has been in Miami shooting “Marley & Me” with Owen Wilson. A source close to Aniston says not to read too deeply into anything at the moment, but don’t count out a relationship, either.

“Jen is definitely ready to be in a solid relationship. And she’s not interested in a traditional Hollywood guy, that is for sure. This might seem like a strange match on the surface, but it could actually work,” said the source.

Celeb spotting at the White House Correspondents’ dinner
Last weekend’s annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner attracted an impressive number of celebrities. Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner were among the most A-list of the pack — even the more reserved dinnergoers stepped out of their comfort zones to request a photo with the couple.

Martha Stewart spent time chatting with Henry Kissinger before making her way to her seat near fellow People magazine guests, the Jonas Brothers. (Long before sitting to dinner, fans of the Jonas Brothers gave the group a Beatles-esque welcome upon their arrival at the Hilton Washington. The screams could be heard from a block away.)

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Image: Actors Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie
  The week in celebrity sightings
Jolie and Pitt back in the USA, Miley jumps for joy at Sweet 16th, the Boss backs Obama and more.

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Aaron Eckhart
hung out at Newsweek’s pre-party, where he was overheard asking members of the press if they a) had a microphone, and b) knew what the point of the dinner was. Bradley Cooper was also at the Newsweek party. His next film is “He’s Just Not That Into You,” and Cooper said that he’s “happy that it’s not going to be a summer movie any more, that it was pushed to October for a release.”

Rosario Dawson, who has been working hard with Voto Latino, attended the dinner, as did Tracey Ullman, who was probably the only attendee sporting handcuff-shaped earrings.

And lo and behold, Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt were in attendance too. They had been invited by msnbc.com, but backed out when their lengthy demands couldn’t be met under the auspices of a “scheduling conflict.” The conflict apparently disappeared though. Fortune magazine shelled out and brought the couple east to the dinner. They did have an awkward run-in during the Capitol File after party at the Newseum, though.

About 45 minutes before their arrival, arch enemy Lauren Conrad entered the party and was in the VIP area when Montag and Pratt arrived. The scene was awkward at best, and Pratt was overheard saying that he was glad to be there after “being stuck at a three-hour dinner.” (Note to Pratt: It is poor form to describe a dinner presided over by the president and vice president as one at which you were stuck.)

Ashlee Simpson was also on hand for the night (and not drinking). Her fiancé, Pete Wentz, spun tunes (and shouted very unfatherly aphorisms between sets) at the Capitol File party. Tim Daly from “Private Practice” and Morgan Fairchild were also there.

Weekend box office
Another week, another win for Scoop. Tina Fey’s comedy, “Baby Mama,” made $18.3 last weekend, and in second place was “Harold and Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay.”

The second film in the Harold and Kumar franchise made $14.6 million, and Kumar, aka Kal Penn, is taking the second-place status in stride. “I’m hearing a ton of stories about kids who can’t get in because of the R rating buying tickets to ‘Baby Mama,’ then sneaking into the ‘Harold and Kumar’ theater,” Penn said from inside Newsweek’s party at the White House Correspondents’ dinner. “Couldn’t they have bought tickets to a movie that wasn’t opening against us instead?” Penn joked.

The weekend’s other new release, “Deception,” came in 10th.

Courtney Hazlett delivers the Scoop Monday through Friday on msnbc.com.

© 2008 MSNBC Interactive