On May 12th, Donald Trump, the owner of the Miss USA pageant announced that the current Miss California Carrie Prejean would not lose her crown after she was accused of breaching her contract by missing required events, supporting an anti-gay marriage organization, and posing for multiple semi-nude pictures without informing the pageant organizers.
The announcement, followed by the resignation of Miss California co-executive director Shanna Moakler, hopefully signals the end of a media firestorm that has done nothing to help the causes of anyone at all.
On April 19th, celebrity blogger Perez Hilton asked Carrie Prejean whether states should accept gay marriage legislation. She answered honestly, although incorrectly, that she only supported “opposite” marriage (aka marriage between a man and a woman). Alongside her belief was a disclaimer, that she didn’t mean to offend anyone with her remarks. In the end, though, Kristen Dalton, Miss North Carolina, took home the crown and will compete in the Miss Universe pageant later this year.
Since interest in beauty pageants has diminished greatly in the last 15 years or so, hearing Carrie Prejean’s name again was supposed to be unlikely. Then again, Perez Hilton was (inexplicably) on the judging panel. On his massively popular website, he raged against the California beauty, calling her a “dumb bitch” and calling her answer “one of the worst in pageant history”. The media caught wind of the attack and pounced on the story, declaring a Miss USA scandal.
From then on, Carrie Prejean went from state beauty queen to pop culture figure overnight; the morning after the pageant, she appeared on The Today Show to discuss her answer. She said that she knew the question would be asked and that she knew that by answering honestly, she would risk her chance at the crown. She answered the way she did because she refused to compromise her beliefs.
That is admirable. While I personally don’t agree with her position, it takes a lot of personal strength and conviction to speak honestly, knowing that you could be possibly digging your own grave. At that point, she became a martyr, sacrificing glory for dignity. The majority of people were on her side, defending her right to say what she thought, even those who disagreed. Shanna Moakler, a 1995 Miss USA winner, was one of those people, although she pointed out that Prejean lost because she appeared to lack compassion for all people, which is a pillar of the organization.
With everyone on Prejean’s side, the issue should’ve been over, right? Wrong.
Because Carrie Prejean made a big mistake, bigger than the one that lost her the crown. She capitalized on her newfound celebrity, but not to help meaningful charities or raise awareness for world issues. No, she instead politicized herself instead, appearing on multiple Fox News programs and joining the “fight” against gay marriage. She even went to Washington to support her cause. She joined forces with the National Organization for Marriage, which was against pageant protocol, and publicly slated them for trying to silence her, which they denied. Her activities appeared to affect her relations with the Miss California officials; not only did she not ask for permission to do her media blitz, but she also didn’t attend contractual appearances.
Then came the naked pictures.
There is no doubt in my mind that the nude pictures of Prejean wouldn’t have surfaced if this media volcano hadn’t erupted, but they did. After one photo leaked, Prejean claimed that she took only one and derided attempts to discredit her. Then, another leaked, and another, and another. The pictures were the straw that broke the camel’s back: Miss California officials and Donald Trump announced press conferences to discuss their options.
The issue with the nude pictures was the lack of disclosure about them. According to Moakler, pageant entrants are required to fully disclose their pasts, and Carrie Prejean did not, which means that she entered the pageant under false pretenses. That, on top of Prejean’s other activities, prompted the officials to unofficially replace her as the Miss California ambassador.
That decision was expected to be a precursor to Prejean’s crown removal, but Donald Trump announced Tuesday that Carrie Prejean would continue on as Miss California. In a show of amnesty similar to 2006 Miss USA Tara Connor, Trump defended her statements again, and called her nude pictures “lovely”. The decision sparked some liberal outrage and the resignation of Shanna Moakler, who stated that she “no longer believed” in the pageant.
So, what is left now? Carrie Prejean, originally a victim of attacks by a celebrity blogger, has now been rightfully painted as a self-serving, religiously politicized, lying opportunist. Perez Hilton will continue being an annoying, self-serving, somewhat cruel activist for celebrity humiliation.
But they shouldn’t matter.
What about the hot button issue of gay marriage? Well, New York is one step away from signing legislation to legalize same-sex unions. President Obama is allegedly planning to repeal the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, which will further strengthen gay rights. Opponents to gay marriage continue to outrageously argue that allowing it will lead to bestiality and incest.
So, in the end, nothing changed because of it. All we saw was a young and beautiful woman, victimized for speaking her mind, transform into the female version of Joe The Plumber. Other than that, the results have been pointless, just like the Miss USA contest itself.
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