Changes will be coming to the Miss America pageant as Gretchen Carlson, the 1989 winner of Miss America, steps up to become the first former pageant member to serve as the chairwoman of the board of directors. Carlson and 49 other past Miss America winners signed a letter demanding the resignation of leaders involved in a scandal of leaked derogatory and sexist emails about former pageant winner Mallory Hagan about her sex life and weight. These emails were written and exchanged by previous CEO Sam Haskell and other top executives, which resulted in three resignations of these board members. Carlson stated on Twitter she was “honored to move this iconic program forward with so many amazing volunteers” when she was chosen to take over the Miss America Organization (MAO).

​

As a whole, people are interested to see the MAO’s new female leader in light of the #MeToo movement, a recent social media trend that has been used to raise awareness of the commonality of sexual misconduct against women. Carlson is a well-known voice against workplace sexual harassment as a former FOX News host. She spoke out about her experience with co-host Roger Ailes, accusing him of forcing her out after she had previously rejected his advances. Carlson filed a lawsuit that forced Ailes to retire in July 2016.

​

In the past, Miss America has received criticism for claiming to be looking for the “All-American girl,” who was usually a cis-gender white Christian female without disabilities. Hopefully, more changes will occur as the board will be joined by three other former pageant winners including: Laura Kaeppeler Fleiss (201), Heather French Henry (2000), and Kate Shindle (1998). According to Newsweek, Carlson made a statement that the new board plans to “continue an ongoing inclusive and transparent process to identify additional new board members and management.”

​

Carlson aims to modify the pageant to make it more empowering for women and confront the patriarchal traditions of the pageant’s past. However, in order to make the transition successful, she will need to change as little as possible. Questions have been raised as to whether or not she will be changing the swimsuit portion of the competition, which she has neither confirmed nor denied.

​

"It's a form of justice," said Carlson.