| 
| 
| |
18/04/2018
414 | 
0
By Amy S. Rosenberg The Philadelphia Inquirer (TNS) Apr 17, 2018 Updated Apr 17, 2018]
ATLANTIC CITY — It was a cold winter for the iconic but wobbly Miss America pageant. Rocked by a scandal in which vulgar emails were traded by top male executives, then dropped by Dick Clark Productions, the Miss America organization regrouped with former pageant winner Gretchen Carlson named president of the board.
But no date for the pageant had been set, and its multi-million state subsidy, part of a three way contract that included Dick Clark Productions, was in question.
But Tuesday, the 97-year-old Boardwalk institution got a $4.3 million lifeline from a state agency, the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, that has been among its most loyal suitors.
“The CRDA is encouraged by the Miss America Organization’s description that the 2019 competition will be updated to include a focus on women’s empowerment and other related projects,” said Board chairman Robert Mulcahy.
Brent Adams, vice president of development for Miss America, attended the meeting and thanked the board but declined to comment further. Miss America officials said a further statement would be forthcoming.
The three-year multimillion boost has been increasingly unpopular with elected officials, seen as a relic of the historic but waning love of the pageant by its host city, with money better spent. When the scandal broke in December, some in town, including current Mayor Frank Gilliam, said the state should seize the opportunity to cut the cord.
But Tuesday, Gilliam was among the board members voting unanimously to approve the final year of the contract. He declined to comment further after the meeting, as did other board members.
William Cheatham, a resident of Atlantic City, told the board to support the current female leadership of the pageant, which includes Carlson and other former Miss Americas Kate Shindle, Heather French Henry and Laura Kaeppeler Fleiss.
“Give the ladies a chance,” Cheatham said.
“That’s what we’re trying to do,” responded Mulcahy.
“This pageant has been around a long time,” Cheatham said. “I’m sure some of you on this board would like to kick it out of existence altogether. The pageant belongs here in Atlantic City.”
He added that women used to run the pageant. “Some of you gentleman don’t know how to handle it when it comes to women’s programming,” he added.
“That’s an awfully broad brush,” replied Richard Tolson, a board member.
Dick Clark Productions was quick to drop Miss America after learning of the emails, but the CRDA held back any decision, and did not take action even after learning that Dick Clark was no longer part of the contract. Other contractual issues had plagued the three-way agreement, with Atlantic City never getting a coveted spot on New Year’s Rockin’ Eve as was promised.
And the state agency knew back in October that dick clark had severed its ties with the pageant. two months before the disclosure in the Huffington Post of vulgar emails that led to a shakeup of the Miss America Organization. But the CRDA took no action until Dec. 19, when a letter was sent to Michael Mahan, president of Dick Clark Productions, and Sam Haskell, then-CEO of Miss America, asking to discuss a possible breach in their three-way contract.
The Huffington Post story described emails sent by since-terminated CEO Haskell and a writer with the organization, and reported that Dick Clark Productions had terminated the relationship with the organization after being informed of the emails in August.
In its report, the Huffington Post reported emails ridiculing former Miss America winners, describing them with coarse language, and gossiping about their sex lives. Other than firing the writer who corresponded with Haskell, the organization took no action until the emails were made public and initially said it considered the matter resolved. Since then, with a huge outcry among Miss America winners and others, most of the board has been replaced.
Carlson has indicated that changes are in store, and has not ruled out eliminating the swimsuit portion of the competition, which began as a bathing beauty contest on the Boardwalk.
COMENTÁRIOS - Clique aqui para fazer o seu
