Perez Hilton, and Miss California Carrie Prejean herself, have said that her answer to his question cost her the crown. Though Carrie has said that she wouldn't change a thing and she would choose her faith over a title any day, I think she can rest assured that her response actually did not lead to a loss. In fact I think it moved her up in the standings to second place.
Let's look at the numbers. After the swimsuit and evening gown competitions, the standings were:
Miss North Carolina 18.668
Miss Arizona 18.381
Miss California 18.308
Miss Kentucky 18.010
Miss Utah 17.700
Now, it's my understanding that the way that the final decision is made is that the judges assign a rank for the five finalists. The girl with the top ranking takes the crown.
The final question can make a real difference, as it did one year, back when the final three contestants were all asked the same question. (Abandoned because...? they got tired of the repetition? they didn't want to pay for the sound-proof booth anymore? who knows...) It was after Miss Universe had caused a stir for gaining weight. The Miss USA finalists were asked if she should have lost the weight.
The young woman who was far in the lead answered first and said she should have lost the weight. A non-answer from the second contestant was followed by a knock-out punch by Miss Hawaii who immediately started shaking her head and said that the woman was chosen for who she was and that was what was important. The audience roared. The first contestant went from top position to third, and Miss Hawaii was crowned the winner.
But for the most part, there is little change in the final results without a real stand-out answer like that, or a real clunker of a response. I think the judges look at their old scores and pretty much hold those positions.
Let's see what each of the other contestants were asked this year:
Miss NC was asked about bailout money. She said that she didn't think companies should be getting so much... and not much else. Not really anything worth noting, and therefore no change in the judges opinion of her.
Miss AZ was asked about universal health care. What's interesting here, is that her answer was like what Hilton suggested for Miss CA. A non-answer where she didn't offend anyone. But I think the judges felt that Miss AZ should have said that yes, health care should be a right, and so her response hurt her.
Miss KY took a chance in saying that she would have spoken up about the Chris Brown-Rihanna situation. I think this hurt her, as she went against what celebrities believe -- you don't criticize or judge another celebrity.
Miss UT said Hillary Clinton did the right thing in recommending millions for elections in Afghanistan. Like Miss NC, it was an innocuous answer that didn't hurt her.
Miss NC was so far ahead, I really don't think that she could have been caught by anyone, barring a lights-out let's-all-go-home answer. Miss AZ had a small lead over Miss CA, yet Carrie and her convictions leapt past Miss AZ and her politically-correct, offend-no-one answer. Similarly, Miss UT (innocuous answer) passed Miss KY (unfavorable answer).
Hmmm. So Hilton thinks MIss CA's answer cost her the crown. I've heard one other judge who declared that she is in support of gay marriage and agreed. But the judges scores are secret, so we'll never know for sure -- but the proof is in the numbers: Miss CA moved up in the standings. Maybe Mr. Hilton is a bit wrong in assessing what those in Hollywood think about certain hot topics.
Bottom line -- I don't think a PC, non-offensive answer would have given Miss CA the crown. But she would have compromised her integrity. I think Carrie Prejean made the right choice and will be remembered -- and make more of an impact in the world -- than this year's winner, or any other prior Miss USA.
She stayed true to her faith and her principles. That's a winner in my book.
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