Former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson is stepping down from her role as board chairwoman of the Miss America Organization after facing pressure from state pageant organizers.
“With a promising network partnership, the time is ideal to give new leadership the opportunity to move forward with what has been accomplished,” Carlson said.
An obscure exit
Two Miss America board members quit last year and two others were forced out over disagreements with the pageant’s top executives. For her part, Carlson was facing heat from pageant affiliates after deciding in June to eliminate the event’s swimsuit competition and replace it with an opportunity for contestants to talk about themselves and their goals.
“When I was asked to take this volunteer position over a year ago, I dedicated myself to helping the organization build on its history while working to secure its future, and am extremely proud of the work we have collectively done,” Carlson said. “Miss America will always be a part of who I am and I will enthusiastically watch as the organization continues to grow and succeed.”
Carlson was first brought on to manage the Miss America Organization with an all-female board after an email scandal involving former CEO Sam Haskell and other board members. The Huffington Post published internal emails in last 2017 establishing “a pervasive culture of abuse” among Miss America leaders, who referred to former pageant contestants in crude and misogynistic terms.
A year prior, Carlson, a former Fox & Friends co-host, had sued Fox News CEO Roger Ailes for sexual harassment, eventually taking home a $20 million settlement. Ailes was fired over the controversy, prompting other women from the conservative network to come forward with harassment claims of their own.
Don’t let the door hit you
Some former board members and state pageant affiliates are happy to see Carlson go. Former Miss North Carolina Jennifer Vaden Barth, who left the board in July “under murky circumstances,” started a GoFundMe account last year “to help restore public trust and respect in the governance of the Miss America Organization.”
“For months, thousands of volunteers, sponsors, contestants, parents, and support[ers] have voiced their opposition to the current leadership of the Miss America Organization. We do not protest because of change, we protest because there is a blatant lack of transparency, integrity, and good governance in those managing the organization,” Vaden Barth wrote. She has raised over $43,000 toward her cause.
Under Carlson’s administration, TV ratings for the century-old pageant have declined, prompting calls for fresh leadership. Following the shake-up at the board last year, 22 state pageants drafted a petition calling on the remaining board members to resign — including Carlson and Miss America CEO Regina Hopper.
“It’s more contentious than ever. Tennessee is planning on not sending anyone from their state next year,” a so-called “pageant insider” told Page Six in October.
Base of power
Despite the persistent calls for her resignation, Carlson held onto the leadership reins for so long due to her popularity among former pageant models. Following calls for her resignation last year, 30 former Miss Americas signed their own letter supporting the former Fox News anchor.
“We are grateful for the talents, expertise and time Gretchen gave to move this organization to relevancy, diversity and inclusion for a new generation of young women,” said Hopper, who remains the organization’s chief executive. “We are thrilled she will continue to move this transition forward as an adviser to the board as we work toward a successful Miss America 2020 on NBC, and the 100th anniversary of this American icon in 2021.”
Former South Dakota Secretary of State Shantel Krebs will take over Carlson’s vacated position. She pledged to “empower the coming generations of women to seek out how they can have a positive impact on our society by stepping up to the plate.”
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