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What If They Held A Miss America Pageant And Nobody Watched?

DToTheJ

DToTheJ

It only occurred to me moments ago that this year's pageant was once again held on a major broadcast network - ABC - three days ago.

Mind you, with its struggling ratings in years past, this would generate at least some chatter on this forum, no?

Last year, I believe, it was on TLC - Rush Limbaugh was one of the judges.

Then there was that year it was on CMT. Yuck.

So apparently, the pageant is back on TV. (Appropriately buried on a Saturday night when most people aren't watching, of course.)
 
DToTheJ said:
It only occurred to me moments ago that this year's pageant was once again held on a major broadcast network - ABC - three days ago.

Mind you, with its struggling ratings in years past, this would generate at least some chatter on this forum, no?

Last year, I believe, it was on TLC - Rush Limbaugh was one of the judges.

Then there was that year it was on CMT. Yuck.

So apparently, the pageant is back on TV. (Appropriately buried on a Saturday night when most people aren't watching, of course.)
Click to expand...

I believe this tv "tradition" has lost most of its relevance. The fact that it moved to cable in recent years didn't help. Now they are trying to catch-up by moving it back to the big network level, but it may just be too late.
 
When did it move to January? ??? Remember when it used to be on in September (usually the Saturday after Labor Day) and it would air live in all time zones? That meant that it would be midnight (eastern time) by the time it was over, just so that they could show it live in prime time on the west coast, too.

And what's this deal with a 17-year-old winning it? Is she still in high school?

Apathy has done what the feminist movement (and all the various controversies over the years) could not: it has effectively killed the Miss America pageant. Of course, it could be said that it died along with Bert Parks.
 
I stumbled across it the other night and just shook my head at how poorly done the show is now. The people producing this pageant don't understand why this used to be a HUGE TV event in the past. I don't care to hear the contestants opinions about world affairs. It's a BEAUTY pageant, don't screw that up by forcing them to wear the same swimsuits, etc.
 
firepoint525 said:
And what's this deal with a 17-year-old winning it? Is she still in high school?
Click to expand...

I'm not sure what the significance of this is but Miss America is now jail bait in several states.
 
The problem was the incredibly botched scheduling. Nobody in the Miss America organization knew that the NFL divisional playoffs were taking place on the 15th? It seemed impossible and I'm sure ABC wouldn't care about moving it to another Saturday. I completely forgot it was on until checking channels during halftime while watching the Packer game.

Not that it mattered; they managed to turn it into a two-hour shillfest for DSW Shoe Warehouse. There was a commercial break that was just three minutes of shoe porn to the tune of Bert Parks :-\. I'm not kidding; they were showing this long commercial involving a new line of "Miss America Shoes" at DSW which consisted fully of shoe close-ups.

And of course, the hosts; I loathe Chris Harrison, and I can't stand Brooke Burke. All you need to watch is the last ten minutes, really, and that's easily YouTubeable after the fact.
 
Maybe they were counter-programming the NFL Playoffs to get the chick demographic and whoever else didn't want to watch the NFL games?
 
quadraphonic said:
Maybe they were counter-programming the NFL Playoffs to get the chick demographic and whoever else didn't want to watch the NFL games?
Click to expand...

Most guys who like to watch over-sized guys banging into each other and giving each other concussions, also like to watch chicks parading around in bathing suits.
 
I had no idea it was on. Frankly I only knew it was on last year due to the hours of free publicity
that Limbaugh was giving them on radio. Sounds like a case of poor promotion and/or no budget to
do so. Have never known beautiful, scantily clad young women to be a ratings loser anyplace.
 
The knock on Miss America that I've always heard is that those "swimsuits" look like something from the 1950s. Can't verify that because I haven't watched in several years, but it does seem like the Miss USA swimwear is a bit sexier, and no one ever seems to complain about that.

As for it being on Saturday night, hasn't Miss America always been on Saturday nights? If anything, it would seem more likely that folks would be home to watch it on Saturday nights in the winter months, especially if the weather happens to be especially cold where you live, or you are snowed in.
 
tested said:
I stumbled across it the other night and just shook my head at how poorly done the show is now. The people producing this pageant don't understand why this used to be a HUGE TV event in the past. I don't care to hear the contestants opinions about world affairs. It's a BEAUTY pageant, don't screw that up by forcing them to wear the same swimsuits, etc.
Click to expand...

This gets somewhat close to the heart of the problem. People say that beauty pageants are no longer culturally relevant. Well, I think that this is true because (thank you political correctness) they are no longer beauty pageants! Just happened to walk into the room where Mrs. BRNout was catching the end of the pageant, so I checked it out. Of the top 5, there really wasn't one stunningly beautiful woman in the group. Brooke Burke was honestly the hottest hotty on that stage. The winner looks like a stuck-up little 17 year-old brat. And last year's winner looked like she'd been severely beaten with an ugly stick! My God, I could find a better looking woman at my neighborhood Walgreens. How the Hell did she win?

The wife agreed on both counts and told me that they did a retrospective of Miss America winners from 1950 (or so) to the present day. Her comment was that there were so many gorgeous Miss Americas up to about 1994, then it went waaaaay downhill. Around the time that it became a 'scholarship' pageant and failed to be an actual beauty contest. Interesting feedback from the ladies.
 
We live in a reality TV world, where viewers are used to making decisions about who wins or loses. I didn't watch this particular show (along with many others obviously) but if the winner was chosen by anyone other than the viewing public, it's no wonder nobody watched.
 
If you want hot, go to the Miss USA/Miss Universe pageants.

The shift to "scholarship competition" happened a long time ago. Miss Universe got started because one of the main Miss America sponsors was a swimsuit company and the pageant organizers wouldn't allow two piece swimsuits or anything that looked remotely like what the company was selling. So the swimsuit people pulled out and started another pageant. And this was the early 50s. After the pageant became college girls - sorority girls - and then they really had to have a talent and be able to do something well (no more demonstrations of how to pack a suitcase). Then they started to favor girls in grad school or who intended to go to grad school and pursue a career. Smart, talented AND beautiful is pretty rare - you have to be on the far end of three bell-shaped curves. Besides, girls that smart and talented have better things to do than beauty pageants, no matter how good looking they are.

At some point, somebody wrote: Miss America is the girl next door. Miss Universe is the girl you wish was next door. And obviously the Miss America girl next door is not the same as the girl next door in Playboy.

They tried to get serious and then they got dull. The swimsuit competition because the "fitness" competition. Hypocrisy doesn't play well on TV. The Olympics is a fitness competition. You can take pills, starve yourself or barf after meals and look good in a swimsuit (lots of women have) and be really unhealthy.
 
Judging from the ratings, Miss USA and Miss Universe have,
in recent years, become the pageants to watch. In
fact, several years ago the Miss North Carolina Pageant ceased
being televised due to low ratings.

Why do I get the feeling that, somewhere, Bert Parks is smiling
more than usual?
 
Bert Parks was the best. Whoever decided to dump him probably ruined the Miss America pageant. (It would have been ruined eventually, but Parks departure hastened the process.)

For those who like classic films and have an interest in this subject, may I recommend "Smile", a Bruce Dern movie from circa 1974. Very under-rated, but a spot-on look at beauty pageants with some nice on-location shooting from Santa Rosa, California. Must-see 1970's movie, with a sneak peek of upcoming star Melanie Griffith.
 
MattParker said:
quadraphonic said:
Maybe they were counter-programming the NFL Playoffs to get the chick demographic and whoever else didn't want to watch the NFL games?
Click to expand...

Most guys who like to watch over-sized guys banging into each other and giving each other concussions, also like to watch chicks parading around in bathing suits.
Click to expand...
But not at the same time.
And not if nobody knows one of the shows is even on.
 
firepoint525 said:
As for it being on Saturday night, hasn't Miss America always been on Saturday nights?
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Traditionally, yes (and with a start time of 10 PM ET and a scheduled ending of 12 Midnight ET). But if I'm not mistaken, last year's pageant which featured Rush as a judge was held on a Sunday night.
 
Beauty pageants, like most award shows, are long and boring.

The "wholesome" image the Miss America pageant tries to display has been hit with numerous salvos over the years starting with Vanessa Williams posing naked with another woman in a series of photographs released after Williams was crowned. Then over the years there have been a few other contestants accused of breaking the rules.

I would bet the farm that if someone did an in-depth investigation into the backgrounds of all Miss America applicants they would find something in their closets. After all these contestants are human; not some Stepford Wife.
 
MattParker said:
The shift to "scholarship competition" happened a long time ago.
Click to expand...

Which frankly is the biggest problem I have with the whole thing. If a bunch of women want to compete
over someone's opinion on who is more beautiful, I have no issue with that. But offering a scholarship as
the prize in my mind sends entirely the wrong message.

There are thousands upon thousands of bright young women who are thoroughly deserving of a
scholarship, but who will never win a beauty contest. Awarding one to somebody on grounds of
physical beauty sends completely the wrong message in my view. Cash, cars, vacations, whatever....
all fine for beauty contest prizes. But please, no more scholarships.
 
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