An organisation backed by Miley Cyrus's dad has criticised a raunchy MTV Video Music Awards performance by ... Miley Cyrus. The Parents Television Council have accused MTV of "falsely manipulating the content rating" for their program, encouraging children to watch "adults-only material" such as Cyrus's twerking routine with Robyn Thick.

As the New York Times points out, conservative outrage is nothing new for MTV's skin-studded red-letter night. It's not even the first time that a former child star writhed in flesh-tone underthings. But Cyrus isn't just the previously family-friendly Hannah Montana: she is also the daughter of country singer Billy Ray Cyrus, who sits on the Parents Television Council's advisory board.

Although the Parents Television Council's press release did not mention Billy Ray, it did single out Miley's tongue-waggling performance: "MTV continues to sexually exploit young women by promoting acts that incorporate 'twerking' in a nude-coloured bikini," it wrote. "How is this image of former child star Miley Cyrus appropriate for 14-year-olds?" However the council also underlined that sexually provocative pop stars aren't the object of its indignation – MTV's parental ratings are.