Miss America drops swimsuit competition, won't judge on looks

The Miss America Organization is dropping the swimsuit competition of its annual competition, saying it will no longer judge contestants on their appearance.

The competition began nearly 100 years ago in Atlantic City, N.J., as a bathing beauty contest designed to keep tourists coming to the seaside resort in the weekend after Labour Day.

Butit has received its share of criticism forthe swimsuit part of the competition,and, to a lesser extent, the evening gown portion, both seen as outdated by some.

Last December, in an email scandal,former Miss America officials denigrated the intelligence, appearance and sex lives of former title winners, leading to a shake-up at the top, and the group's top three leadership positions are now held by women.

"We are no longer a pageant. We're a competition," Gretchen Carlson, a former Miss America who heads the organization's board of trustees, said while making the announcement Tuesday onGood Morning America.

"We're not going to judge you on your appearance because we are interested in what makes you you."

Carlson, whose sexual harassment lawsuit against Fox News chairman Roger Ailes led to his departure, said the board has heard from potential contestants saying, "We don't want to be out there in high heels and swimsuits."

"Guess what?" she said. "You don't have to anymore."

'I put up with it'

Leanza Cornett, Miss America 1993, supports the change. She saidthe swimsuit competition was something she felt she had to endure.

"I hated it," she told The Associated Press on Tuesday.

"I always felt awkward and uncomfortable. But I did recognize the significance of that part of the competition. Part of the tradition of why we were here in Atlantic City was that it started as a bathing beauty competition. So I put up with it.

"In the climate of #MeToo, I think it's a really wise decision," she said.

"We're living in a different era now, and when we move forward for the empowerment of women, we will be taken much more seriously, and I think that's huge."

We want want to be open, transparent, inclusive to women who may not have felt comfortable participating in our program before.- Gretchen Carlson, Miss America, board of trustees

Asked if she is worried ratings for the nationally televised broadcast might suffer because of the elimination of swimsuits, Carlson said she is not. She said the swimsuit portion is not the highest-rated section of the broadcast and viewers seem to be more interested in the talent competition.

She also said the group will make changes to the eveningwear portion,adding it will not judge women on their chosen attire.

"It's what comes out of their mouths that we are interested in," she said.

"We want want to be open, transparent, inclusive to women who may not have felt comfortable participating in our program before."

The changes will start with this year's broadcast on Sept. 9.

Carlson said the Miss America Organization will emphasize its role as a scholarship provider.