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Wall Street analysts have been summoned and no less than The New York Times has weighed in on the subject: Has Miley Cyrus trashed her lucrative Disney career over an artful semi-nude photo appearing in an upcoming Vanity Fair issue?

The question touched off a frenzy over the weekend, as promo spots for the issue began running on Entertainment Tonight, and then went viral on the Internet. Before long, sites like Egotastic, which focuses on nude or semi-nude celebrities, were publishing an even racier full-topless photo that was allegedly of the star. The photo was posted on several FaceBook Miley Cyrus fan pages, and the poster claimed it was Cyrus at a party where drugs and alcohol were used. Egotastic later issued an apology and said the photo, although stunningly similar, was not Cyrus.

Cyrus is reportedly now “embarrassed,” and has apologized to fans over the Vanity Fair photo, which shows the 15-year-old Disney star, tastefully posed and covered by a sheet. But she is clearly topless and the pose is sexually provocative. But the photo is no more provocative than 13-year-old Brooke Sheild’s scenes in the 1970s movie, “Pretty Baby.” So not much new there. The difference is that Miley is “Hanna Montana,” star of the wildly successful Disney kid’s show and franchise that is watched by three million tweens.

In the Vanity Fair article, Miley is quoted saying this about the topless photo taken by Annie Liebovitz:

“Annie took, like, a beautiful shot, and I thought it was really cool. That’s what she wanted me to do, and you can’t say no to Annie. I think it’s really artsy. It wasn’t in a skanky way.

However, in her statement about the published photo today Miley expressed some regret:

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.

Vanity Fair spokeswoman Beth Kseniak, responded rather sharply: “Miley’s parents and/or minders were on the set all day. Since the photo was taken digitally, they saw it on the shoot and everyone thought it was a beautiful and natural portrait of Miley.

The Disney folks were harshest of all, accusing the magazine of underhanded behavior. A Disney spokeswoman, Patti McTeague, faulted Vanity Fair for the photo. “Unfortunately, as the article suggests, a situation was created to deliberately manipulate a 15-year-old in order to sell magazines,” she said. Vanity Fair released this video, showing the shoot. There seemed to be little or no tension or expressions of concern from the Cyrus camp, including her parents.

That was only the beginning of the controversy. According to the Times some parents went ballistic when “Entertainment Tonight” began showing commercials promoting the scoop. The photos quickly went viral on the Internet, and ignited a wildfire of blog comments.

“Bonfire anyone?” wrote Lin Burress on her marriage and parenting blog. “Parents should be extremely concerned,” Burress told the Times in an interview. “Very young girls look up to Miley Cyrus as a role model.”

The Times went so far as to seek out Wall Street analysts to weigh in on the impact of the photo on the Hanna empire, from makeup and shoes to clothes and her soon-to-be published book. The bottom line: No real damage expected. Retail sales for the franchise are expected to total about $1 billion in 2008. A motion picture is in the works for 2009 and Cyrus signed a seven-figure book deal with the Disney Book Group last week.

But it seems like Miley, and presumably her parents, her father is country singer Billy Ray Cyrus, are looking beyond Disney to Miley’s eventual emergence as an adult film actress. Public nudity is a well worn path for child actresses to assert their maturity. Last week, the Times noted, the public relations problem du jour was a green bra; showing Cyrus flashing her underwear.

Last week, Gary Marsh, the president of entertainment for Disney Channel Worldwide, told Portfolio magazine that Cyrus’s behavior is a business decision for her. “Parents have invested in her godliness. If she violates that trust, she won’t get it back.” Marsh hit the nail on the head. Miley’s youth won’t last forever, and neither will her Disney franchise. Child stars grow up and when they do, big conglomerates like Disney kick them to the curb and move on to someone else: No sympathy, no regrets. It definitely is a business decision, and it looks like Cyrus made the right one. Goodbye Disney; Hello World.