The sudden dismissals of Miss USA and Miss Teen USA have unleashed a new wave of scrutiny on the pageants’ owner, the Miss Universe Organization, as it continues to navigate what some close to the pageants see as an uncertain future.
Beauty contests, with a history in the USA that dates back to the 19th centuryin the last decades struggled to maintain relevance as cultural norms changed. The Miss America pageant, the Miss Universe Organization’s main rival, also had to figure out how to combat falling television ratings and its own leadership scandal.
Years of turmoil and leadership changes at the Miss Universe Organization, which is based in the US and Thailand, preceded the current controversy. In 2023, after Miss Universe owner JKN Global Group introduced for bankruptcy, its longtime president resigned. Your replacement then resigned in February. In 2020, the Miss Universe Organization handed over the reins of the Miss USA pageant to a former titleholder, Crystle Stewart. After allegations of favoritism rocked the 2022 competition, stylist Laylah Rose replaced Stewart.
And before that, in 2015, NBCUniversal ended its relationship with the pageants after then-Miss Universe owner and presidential candidate Donald Trump accused Mexico of sending criminals and rapists across the border. NBCUniversal is the parent company of NBC News.
Now, UmaSofia Srivastava’s resignation as Miss Teen USA, coming just two days after Noelia Voigt’s resignation as Miss USA, has brought new attention to Rose, another blow to an organization that has struggled.
“I feel like they were once on shaky ground,” said Dani Walker, a former Miss Montana who competed in Miss USA. “We’re in this era full of influencers and reality TV stars and we have Hollywood, we literally have the biggest stars in the world. These are the reasons pageantry in America struggles to stay relevant.”
Walker, who narrated his pageant journey for the first time on Youtube and has since gone on to cover news and provide commentary on the pageant industry for more than 130,000 subscribers, it has also documented recent fallout within the organization. She said U.S. pageantry has also undergone a major cultural shift in the past decade, with the competition evolving from judging primarily physical beauty to the inclusion of public speaking skills and a focus on diversity and advocacy. She highlighted the recent success of many former Miss USA contestants, who have gone on to careers in entertainment and business.
One of the factors underlying the turmoil appears to be financial. Claudia Michelle, former social media manager for Miss USA, shared in her resignation statement that she had not received a salary for two months. In an interview with NBC News, Michelle said that a Miss USA employee told her that when she was hired in January, “this organization has no money” and could not pay her.
“I wasn’t really an employee. There was no contract signed, there was no integration, there was no salary and benefits,” said Michelle. “It’s a testament to how much I love this brand, I was willing to accept it for free.”
“This is the leading pageant organization in our country,” Michelle added. “They are receiving a low number of girls and many of them have already left the competition because of this news.”
Other layoffs also point to challenges within the organization.
NBC News obtained a copy of Voigt’s resignation letter, in which she highlighted cultural challenges facing the organization. In the letter, Voigt also accused Rose, CEO and president of Miss USA, of unprofessional and toxic conduct that she said included failing to fulfill contractual duties, intimidating Voigt and lying about Voigt to others within Miss USA. Rose, who took over Miss USA in 2022, did not respond to a request for comment.
“I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that pageants have struggled to stay relevant,” Voigt wrote in his resignation letter. “People are coming up to me and other people who know me saying they are nervous about competing in the US system because they see the mess that is going on, they see the devaluation of the brand, and they would rather invest their time and money in more stable organizations with stronger partnerships.”
Shanna Moakler, Miss USA 1995 and former reality TV star who now serves as state director for the Miss USA organization, posted on Instagram in support of Voigt and about the organization’s turmoil.
“I cannot speak for all State Directors, but I feel confident to speak for the majority; we are not sitting in silence; we are working our hardest behind the scenes to ensure the future of an organization we love deeply,” Moakler wrote.
In light of the current controversies, Walker encouraged her followers in the pageant community not to compete in Miss USA. It was “heartwarming” advice to give, inspired in part by what Walker said are increasingly restrictive non-disclosure agreements that Miss USA titleholders must sign. When Voigt resigned, the first letter of every sentence in her public statement read “I am silenced.”
“I care about the young women I work with and I wanted to warn them and warn them about what they are getting into,” Walker said. “I don’t feel like the Laylah Rose era in its current state is sustainable.”
This story originally appeared on NBCNews.com read the full story
