Former Miss America: Board's Offer 'Insulting'

A former Miss America whose appearance and sex life was ridiculed in emails sent by officials of the Miss America Organization says the group's request to enlist former pageant winners in the search for new leaders is "laughable" and insulting. Mallory Hagan told the AP that the offer made Wednesday night by the remaining members of the group's board is insulting to anyone who ever competed or volunteered in the pageant. She and other former Miss Americas are renewing their call for the entire board to step down. The CEO, president, and board chairman resigned Saturday. "The statement from the remaining Miss America Board of Directors is an insult to every Miss America and volunteer's intelligence," she said.

"Implying that the complicit members of the current board will now choose the new leadership for the forward movement of the Miss America Organization is laughable," said Hagan. The board said Wednesday it wants former Miss Americas and state titleholders to help in the search for new leadership, asking the groups to nominate four people to serve on a search committee that also will include two board members and a person the board members appoint. The board was hoping for nominations for the search committee by Jan. 3, but it was not immediately clear what would happen if the former winners do not participate. (More Miss America stories.)