Sex Doesn’t Sell Viewers on Miss Universe Pageant

 

Organizers for this year’s Miss Universe pageant went to desperate extremes to generate interest in the broadcast.   Following in the tawdry footsteps of the Miss USA pageant – which earlier this year stirred up controversy by photographing contestants on an unmade bed in a Las Vegas hotel room wearing skimpy lingerie -- the Miss Universe team upped the ante by photographing contestants topless, with only paint covering their exposed bodies.  But the strategy may have backfired.

 

Though pageants have only ever been a celebration of superficial attributes, the strategies employed by the Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants this year point to an alarming “pornification” of mainstream culture.  Far from the wholesome “girl next door” image traditionally associated with these competitions, this year’s Miss USA contestants were made to look like call girls; Miss Universe contestants, like centerfolds.

 

For generations young girls have watched these pageants, aspiring to the poise, grace, and beauty exhibited by the contestants.  Today’s youth are getting an entirely different message:  that their only worth is in their sexuality, and that success is best achieved by stripping down.

 

Fortunately, it’s a message most TV viewers rejected.   The 60^th Annual Miss Universe pageant hit an all-time ratings low.  Ratings were down 10% from last year and only garnered 6.1 million viewers.