“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results”. – Albert Einstein
Clearly, The Miss American Pageant is guilty of doing the same thing repeatedly to a degree broaching the ridiculous. How many years has this little event targeted the same audience using the same approach? To what end? Realizing lower ratings and now jeopardizing the pageant’s existence all together.
No, I’m not expert on beauty pageants. However, as a businessman I know that if my company is losing market-share that I have to go to the source to find out what we’re doing wrong. That source is ALWAYS the customer. I’ve learned that almost any issue causing losses can be solved with a little research. Therefore, when asked if the pageant can be saved, I answer with a resounding YES.
Let’s look at why is the Miss American Pageant is failing.
We don’t know anything about the young women competing.
Give us their history; let us fall in love with them. Many of these girls have interesting stories, some come from deprived backgrounds, some have overcome handicaps–give us full disclosure, we want to know why winning is so important to them.
Give us time to talk about the pageant.
Rather than one big night, why not spread the pageant over a television season? Give us time to talk about it around the water cooler at work. Let us use the pageant as dinner conversation. You are depriving us of one of our most cherished rights as Americans by having the pageant as a one shot deal–gossip.
Let us see the talent portion of the pageant.
American Idol has proven that we love to see young talent. Let us see the bad along with the good.
Let us have a voice.
With current internet/phone technology, it is possible to allow Americans to vote for Miss American. We love to participate.
In short, the Miss American pageant is a reality show. Play the drama just as the successful reality shows do today and you’ll have a hit on your hands that will have advertising execs clamoring to buy ad-space and network execs bidding to get the show on their affiliates.
It’s as easy as that!