A Tale of Two Pageants and the importance of transparency
A Tale of Two Pageants and the importance of transparency
An article written by GB correspondent in the Middle East, Nick C.
Miss International has recently concluded with an unexpected victory for Miss Germany. While unnoticed by many pundits, Miss Germany stole the hearts of Miss International judges and snatched the new Long Beach Pearl crown. However, there´s something I have to admit: I did not watch the live-streaming - not because I needed to avoid the $10 streaming fee, but simply because I was not interested. As I get older, I find pageants dull and irrelevant, like many others. There´s a special reason for this. Regardless of the production quality, I see no point in watching some business deal decided behind closed doors being announced publicly for over 3 hours. Trust me: this is not about Miss International only, but rather about the vast majority of beauty pageants.
Are pageants indeed irrelevant in modern times? They certainly provide a platform for young women to voice their opinions, quoting Lara Dutta, Miss Universe 2000, from India, here. They also launch careers like Ali Landry, Halle Berry, Priyanka Chopra, Gal Gadot, Olivia Culpo in the entertainment business alone, without mentioning the successful politicians, lawyers, architects, engineers, social activists, airplane pilots, you name it, who through pageants gained the necessary self-confidence and drive to reach out for their dreams and conquer their career goals. And that´s wonderful!
So, why do even the most significant pageants struggle to find sponsors and broadcasters? To me, the answer is clear: their lack of transparency.
Trust is essential to legal contracts, and beauty pageants must convince sponsors and the general audience that the competition is (or will be) fair and just. I'd like to explain: nowadays, there is no clear criterion by which the contestants are judged. There are no individual voting records to keep judges accountable. All we see, pageant after pageant, are some "random lucky girls" winning a crown, God knows under what circumstances. Even when they are fair, there´s no proof of it. The truth is that in today´s world, it´s not enough “to be fair”. You prove it.
This is not only about Miss International. It´s about most beauty pageants out there…
The question is: how can we change such a scenario by making pageants more trustworthy, fair, and relevant? I can think of a billion ways, but I will highlight a couple next:
If a judging panel is used, releasing individual voting records after the pageant is imperative, holding the judges accountable. Doing so will make "collusion" among the judges less likely. Why, for instance, the Miss Universe organization have not released detailed voting records of the Miss USA 2022 competition, despite severe allegations by several contestants? Why didn´t the Miss Venezuela Organization do the same after the accusations of fraud they got from the judges themselves?
One can also think about a dermoscopic jury, a small group representing the wider population. Doing so will make it more likely that we will have a "consensus" winner, someone relatable to different segments of society.
Why not include the public by letting them vote? To prevent voting fraud, one can restrict the number of votes to 1 or 2 per credit card (unless you have hundreds of credit cards, you will not be able to influence the voting significantly). In the end and to make it fair, use a ranking per country when it comes to counting the ballots. Doing so will also help raise funds and decrease financial dependence on sponsors.
Miss France: transparency when it comes to the election of the French beauty queen, results in a massive television audience, considerable press attention and excellent sponsors, the author of this article believes.
Of course, a combination of all of the above is also possible. And a few days after I wrote what you read so far, there was Miss France. Despite the same-every-year spectacle, millions again tuned in to watch the crowning of the new queen of the Hexagon.
The pre-pageant favorites included misses from Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Lorraine. Still, the moment the show started, it became apparent both the online fans and the live audience were firmly behind Miss Guadaloupe. The distinguished panel of judges included Kendji Girac, who has 3 number 1 albums in France, champion judoka Clarisse Agbegnenou, medical doctor and Miss France 2013 (first runner-up to Miss World) Marine Lorphelin, and the president of the jury, actor and director Francis Huster, all well-known and respected names in France.
Already after the top 15 speeches, it became clear that it was a two-horse race between Misses Guadaloupe and Nord-Pas-de-Calais (who closely resembled one of her predecessors, Miss Universe 2016, Iris Mittineaire).
The top 5 finalists were chosen by a combination of jury and public voting (as I suggested for international pageants). And so was the winner, who pleased the Frenchmen and will ensure they keep watching this wonderful show next year. This is called transparency. This is why Miss France is the strongest national pageant not only in Europe, where in most countries interest in pageants is dead but in the whole world. It has magnificent sponsors and is among the most-watched television shows in France every year.
The contrast between Miss International and the other international Grand Slam pageants and Miss France could not have been more striking: while some hid under a cloak of secrecy, the other relied on transparency. Not surprisingly, the transparent pageant also had immensely superior production quality. If you have doubts about the way forward, a tale of two pageants gives some crucial clues.
The bottom line is: in times when pageants have been gradually losing interest among the masses (except for Southeast Asian countries, where for the most part they remain a popular affair), why not start to apply TRANSPARENCY to them? This message, of course, goes not only to Miss International but to all Grand Slam pageants (Miss Grand International, Miss Supranational, Miss Universe, Miss World) and others. Trust me: this is a small change that can make a HUGE difference in the future of pageantry.
Transparency in pageants will always be applauded by the contestants, the fans, the general public, and the sponsors alike. That´s the way to go. Who will make the first move?
GB note: We totally agree with the author.