"This just in -- Miley Cyrus still cannot be tamed. And she's starting to freak us out a little.

Appearing in angelic pure white, Cyrus writhed around a tribe of the strangest bunch of face painted dancers since that aboriginal ice-dancing routine at the Olympics. There were bare feet. Torches. And lots of savage hair flipping. Her multiracial troupe tried to lock her up, to prod her with spears, even carry her off like a missionary on a spit. It was to no avail, of course, for she cannot be tamed.

It's a mashup world, and if Katy Perry can collaborate with Snoop, why shouldn't the most famous teen in the world borrow a bit from other cultures too? And Cyrus may not be delving too deeply into the semiotics of her recent performances herself. But coming so soon after her other recent miscalculations, her MuchMusic performances have a vibe of a desperate assumption that playing at being urban or tribal makes one dangerous."

Get the Story:
Broadsheet: Miley Cyrus' subtle race-baiting (Salon.com 6/21)