"High School Musical" star Vanessa Hudgens skyrockets to #2 on the Lycos 50 this week due to the fact that some nude photos of her surfaced on the Internet. Hudgens' publicist said, "This was a photo which was taken privately. It is a personal matter, and it is unfortunate that this has become public." Hudgens apologized to her fans, though it is doubtful her male fans were very much in need of an apology. From what I remember about being a teenager, most teen boys are not too crestfallen at the sight of naked women.

Some rumors are saying that Vanessa took the pictures to send to her boyfriend and costar Zac Efron. Disney is backing the actress, saying that this does not impact her role in the "High School Musical" franchise.

Vanessa Hudgens seems to have more career promise than this winter's candid nude photo star, Antonella Barba, but it remains to be seen whether this scandal will have a lasting effect on her career. I just can't help but wonder ... has Vanessa been living under a rock? Besides research and wasting time on MySpace or Facebook, the sole purpose of the Internet is to publicize nude photos of marginally famous starlets. Duh, Vanessa.