Good News! The Miss America beauty contest has announced that, “the event will no longer feature a swimsuit competition and that the organization would be revamping their evening gown section of the competition”. Wow! During the 1970’s, at the height of feminism, the Miss America contest was constantly under attack for it’s outdated approach to women, rating them based on how attractive their bodies were. Now, Regina Hopper, the new head of the Miss America organization, and a former Miss Arkansas wants to reform this America Institution. Hmmmm. Maybe too little too late?
The Miss America contest is an old institution, created in the 1930’s, for a very different world. It was, as it says, a beauty contest. Yes, the contest has tried to focus more attention on the other elements of the contest, like answering questions or showing that they have a talent (singing, dancing, playing an instrument, etc.). But even if they ditch the swimsuits and the gowns, it is still a beauty contest. The contestants are all young, thin, tall, and pretty. Is that going to end as well?
Will the new Miss America contest now focus on weight and facial features? Will the winner have the best hair or longest eyelashes? They say that they want to focus on giving away scholarships rather than on personal appearance. Can Miss America drop the beauty aspect of the contest? If so, it will be a very short show. And an impossibility in 2018. Why? Well, consider how the contest works.
Miss America has one contestant from each state and territory, usually 53. Each state, in turn, has a contest to determine who will represent them in the national contest. Every state has their own rules, and some state only allows winners of local contests to participate in the state competition while others are open and allow anyone to compete (that meets their criteria). But just about every contest has… a swimsuit and a gown section. It will be impossible for the contest to reform each and every one of the 53 state and (hundreds?) of local contests. And what if the individual states do not share the central organization’s views?
Maybe New York, California, and Massachusets and “liberal” states would go along. But in the south, where beauty contests are a part of the culture, it might be a bit harder to get an agreement. Take a look at the cable show “Toddlers and Tiaras”. This show is all about very small girls competing in beauty contests. Contests that include mini-skirts, swimsuits, gowns, and makeup that has been applied with a trowl. It would be creepy indeed if adult women in the Miss America contest are no longer judged by their bodies, but if first graders are in the South are still judged by how they fill out a bikini.
Look… as events go, Miss America is well-known, but it is not significant. Not anymore. The change in the events at the competition is not a sign of going with the times, it’s merely an indication that this particular event is well past it’s prime. And probably beyond redemption. But it is far from alone. Take the Circus in general, and Ringling Brothers, Barnum, and Bailey in particular. For years the circus has been under attack for how it handles large animals. Especially elephants.
The protests against circus elephants led to a lot of bad publicity and a decline in profitability. Ringling Brothers agreed to retire all elephants. When their accounting office reported on advanced ticket sales, they found that the minute the elephants went away so too did sales. Ringling declared bankruptcy and shut down, forever. Needless to day, this was not the outcome they expected when they bowed to the will of the people.
But here’s the rub. The people that were protesting against elephants in circuses were NOT the people who buy a lot of circus tickets. Ringling made the people that didn’t go to circuses happy while turning their back on people who wanted circuses in their full (elephantine) glory. The same happened at SeaWorld, where they stopped the exhibition of Killer Whales and large sea mammals. Since this announcement, their revenues are down 15%. The “managerie” concept, displaying animals for human amusement, is as outdated as the swimsuit contest. Zoos have completely remade themselves over the last century, and are thriving. Miss America? Not so much.
There you have it. A major American institution is trying to change with the times. But this is an institution (and managers) that will have a hard time thinking out of the box… since they largely created that box. Still, it could be worth one last look to see if this much-storied contest can meet it’s new stretch goals… without breaking!
That’s what I think. What do you think? Let us know!