Must have been a heady moment to be with Donald Trump and keep her Miss California crown. Carrie Prejean reminded people that she and the President hold the same position on same-sex marriage…(well probably not exactly the same if you consider his approach to Prop 8).
And a nice trifecta today: keep the crown, hang out with Trump and featured guest again on the Focus on the Family radio show. All in all a better day than some of the last few.
Category: Religion and sexuality
Miss California officials accuse conservative groups of exploiting Carrie Prejean
The Miss California pageant held a news conference today on the topic of Carrie Prejean. Many reported in advance that her Miss California crown would be removed during the press conference today. However, according to Keith Lewis and Shanna Moakler, Directors of the Miss California pageant, a decision about firing Prejean will come tomorrow from brand owner Donald Trump. I wonder if Trump’s press conference will come from the boardroom.
It certainly sounded like the two directors recommended her release although they refused to make it explicit. Essentially, they said Prejean had skipped scheduled Miss California events and that she was only available through her “handlers.” They stressed that if she was dismissed, it would not be because of her views on marriage but how she had related to the pageant since Miss USA.
The harshest criticism however came from Keith Lewis and was aimed at Maggie Gallagher and the National Organization for Marriage. Lewis claimed 42% of NOMs funds went to Gallagher and that NOM engaged in copyright infringement by using Miss California footage for a NOM ad campaign.
Lewis also addressed other unnamed Christian organizations saying, “Shame, shame, shame” for exploiting Miss Prejean and placing her in a situation where she had breached her contract. He accused these groups of encouraging her to speak on their behalf even though it meant she was at risk of losing her title.
Carrie Prejean's Miss Cali fate decided today; Dobson speculates she will lose crown
Lots of reporting out today on the subject; Prejean and her mother are featured today and tomorrow on Focus on the Family broadcasts.
During the opening of the broadcast, Dr. Dobson said Carrie would be stripped of her crown today. According to the Prejean camp, that is not known at this time. Prejean representative, Melany Ethridge emailed to say the pageant has not notified them of what will be announced.
Also, prior to the broadcast, Dobson mentioned the semi-nude picture of Prejean at age 17. That picture surfaced since the interviews were recorded. About that photo, he said,
We agree with you in the audience who oppose that kind of sensuality. Focus on the Family has been a strong supporter of modesty and righteousness in the culture for many years. And yet we have chosen to go ahead and air these two programs after Carrie explained that the pictures were taken when she was 17 years old; she’s now 21 and in fact will be 22 on Wednesday and she regrets doing it and said she would not do it again.
Prejean also said on Friday that she would not take some of the more recent work she has done as well.
Carrie Prejean has second thoughts about recent Blisss Magazine pic
On the heels of defending revealing photos as part of the job of a model, Carrie Prejean has had second thoughts about a recent photo published in Blisss Magazine (spelled Bl!sss on the mag website). Miss Prejean’s pic is a “Super Taste” centerfold of the month and is the lead photo on her Otto Models page. (warning: not workplace friendly)
The recent controversy surrounding Miss Prejean’s modeling work has focused on pictures of her taken when she was 17. She has expressed regret publicly about those photos.
Her publicist, Melany Ethridge, confirmed a comment she gave to celebrity Web site TMZ in which she said Prejean was just 17 when she posed for the photos, hoping they would land her a job model for the Victoria’s Secret lingerie line.
“In her naivete, an agent convinced her to pose for this photo to submit to a lingerie company, claiming they could make her the next Victoria’s Secret model,” Ethridge told TMZ. “She has since learned what a lie that was, and what a mistake it was to have the photo taken.”
However, she defended lingerie modeling as recently as Tuesday when she issued a statement saying:
I am a Christian, and I am a model. Models pose for pictures, including lingerie and swimwear photos.
More recently, she posed for the centerfold of Bl!sss, an action sports oriented magazine which features young women in various states of undress. She touts the Blisss modeling assignment on the Miss California website as part of her resume. However, through her publicist, I have learned that Prejean regrets the Blisss Magazine photo. Her publicist, Melany Ethridge, said that Miss Prejean has had second thoughts. Late yesterday, Ms. Ethridge told me that
…she would not do the Blisss mag photo shoot, if asked now.
Melany did not address my question about whether Miss Prejean would take such jobs in the future. However, this new statement may signal a broader evaluation of her work.
UPDATE: Earlier today, Melany Ethridge contacted me to say that the original statement above about the Bl!sss magazine photo was her belief about what Ms. Prejean would do. However, this afternoon, she now has confirmed with Prejean that “given who she is today,” she would not take the job.
UPDATE 2: Monday appears to be decision-day for Miss California.
Carrie Prejean defends photos
This morning Carrie Prejean issued a statement via her publicist about naughty photos of her circulating on the internet.
SAN DIEGO, May 5 /PRNewswire/ — “On April 19, I chose to answer a question during the 2009 Miss USA pageant in an honest and personal manner that expressed my views of the long-established definition of marriage as being between a man and a woman. That answer, and my commitment to stand by my beliefs, has since resulted in attacks on me and my integrity as a woman. We live in a great country; a nation that was built on freedom of speech and freedom of religion. Yet my comments defending traditional marriage have led to intimidation tactics that seek to undermine my reputation and somehow silence me and my beliefs, as if opinion is only a one-way street.
“I am a Christian, and I am a model. Models pose for pictures, including lingerie and swimwear photos. Recently, photos taken of me as a teenager have been released surreptitiously to a tabloid Web site that openly mocks me for my Christian faith. I am not perfect, and I will never claim to be. But these attacks on me and others who speak in defense of traditional marriage are intolerant and offensive. While we may not agree on every issue, we should show respect for others’ opinions and not try to silence them through vicious and mean-spirited attacks.
“With that in mind, I will continue to support and defend marriage as the honorable institution it is. I will continue to stand with the overwhelming majority of the American people and the voters of my home state of California. If this whole experience has taught me anything, it is our precious right to speak freely, and how we as Americans can never allow anyone or any group to intimidate or threaten us to keep silent.”
FOR INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Melany Ethridge 214.912.8934
[email protected]
Kristin Cole 615.289.6701
[email protected]
I don’t know who really wrote the statement but either she or her handlers should do a focus group or take a poll or something. I don’t think they understand the disconnect between Christian role model and model.
The AP “covers” this story. As with Vanessa Williams, they may provoke the loss of her title. And now she has been invited to the Values Voters Summit…
Here is a previous post on the matter and some commentary from Christianity Today. Katelyn Beaty sums it well:
In an interview with the SBC-affiliated San Diego Christian College, where she attends, Prejean talks about the wonderful things she is already doing for Christ: serving women in the adult entertainment industry, volunteering at the local International Ministry Center to help refugees learn English, and working with a mentoring program to foster-care children. She says, “I especially have a heart for helping young girls with low self-esteem.” At this point, I would encourage Prejean to skip the beauty pageants, which set up the very standards of beauty that lead many young girls to devalue themselves, and focus on the far more lasting work she is already doing in the kingdom.