Carrie's Crocodile Tears
Has Miss California, Carrie Prejean, overstayed her welcome on the media bandwagon? The supposed victimization of Prejean who ostensibly lost the Miss USA crown because one of the judges, gossip blogger Perez Hilton, did not like her answer to his question about same-sex marriage, was a flimsy enough story in itself. But then Miss USA proprietor Donald Trump, he of the Flowbee’d hair and disingenuous scowl, summoned the media for a press conference. And for at least 30 minutes on Tuesday afternoon cable news was wall-to-wall Carrie as Trump held forth on Prejean’s fate and Prejean wagged a finger at the haters.
It seems Trump had enough time to study the racy pictures of a teenage Prejean that were leaked on the Internet and decided that he would not strip her of her Miss California crown. When asked if Prejean would contest the outcome of the pageant, Trump said: “I don’t think she’s going to fight that decision. She’s very content.”
Of course she is.
Does anyone know who actually won the Miss USA pageant?
The photos served to extend Prejean’s time in the spotlight of a lowest-common-denominator media - and gave Trump an excuse to further insert himself into the story, positioning himself as the arbiter of appropriate comportment for women who pay an entry fee to be judge based on how they look in a bikini.
The pictures weren’t all that shocking. The pages of Maxim magazine are bawdier by half. But it has been suggested by Prejean and others that there is a vast conspiracy afoot, perpetrated by the gay marriage lobby to discredit Prejean. This seems a bit far-fetched given her chosen career as a model and beauty queen, a field where “unauthorized” photos are about as common as collagen and silicone.
Furthermore, when Trump was asked if he would have Hilton back as a judge, he said, “I would love to have him back.” His answer gives this whole episode the whiff of something cooked up to bring much-needed publicity to the moribund cheesecake parade.
Same-sex marriage proponents would just like the entire episode to die and have been particularly chagrined that Hilton’s nasty tirade against Prejean gave the story legs.
Obviously the pictures embarrassed Prejean. And she has a right to be distressed by the noxious comments from Hilton and others. But her speech at the press conference was rather hyperbolic, her tone so aggrieved, that it bordered on camp.
“All I want to do is tell my story,” she said, “which no one can take away from me.”
Choking back tears she declared, “this should not happen in America.”
She thanked her family and those who sent letters of support. She noted that President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton agree with her position on marriage. And then she invoked Gen. George Patton and the Battle of the Bulge! She said her grandfather fought in World War II, and those who would seek to silence her undermine “the constitutional rights that my grandfather fought for.”
God bless America.
Susan Rene" commented:
Are you a REAL MEDIA PERSON? You obviously must not be because you would have known and printed the correct title. It is the MISS USA Pageant that Carrie Prejean competed in. NOT Miss Universe! You are obviously not educated because you would not have missed something so simple, yet so important!
Get it right if you expect your readers to take you seriously!!!
NeoNasty commented:
In response to The Phantom's comment - I have, on numerous occasions, been in the presence of Ms. Marisa Guthrie, and can attest that she happens to be an extraordinary beauty in her own right. I think you are completely off the mark with that comment.
The Voice of Reason commented:
I think Ms. Guthrie is onto something here. For celebrities, there is no such thing as bad publicity, and I suspect this was a stunt orchestrated by Trump, Hilton and Prejean. At this level of beauty contests, I suspect Prejean at the least had professional pageant coaching, and the question and her answer had to have been anticipated and rehearsed. (I'd love to hear the opinion of a body language expert on whether her comments were spontaneous or planned.) Those of us capable of looking beyond superficial appearance, and not being blinded by a pretty face, are not jealous, merely concerned with reality and substance.
The Shade commented:
I'm with the Phantom!!! Very astute observation sir. I think there is ALOT of jealousy in this matter,starting with P. Hilton's inability to wear a swimsuit like Carrie Prejean.
The Phantom commented:
Marisa, you really shouldn't be so obvious in your jealousy over another woman who looks so much better than you. Try to be less angry at a woman who is beautiful when you aren't. You'll sleep much better at night.