Summary HuffPost published leaked emails on Thursday that included a vulgarity to refer to past winners, former winners being routinely maligned. Photo: AFP/Getty
(Web Desk) – Following demands made by dozens of former beauty queens that the CEO of the Miss America pageant step down over leaked emails which mocked and fat-shamed contestants, the CEO Sam Haskell was suspended on Friday.
According to the AFP, the leaked emails by Haskell contained “misogynistic, fat- and slut-shaming language”.
HuffPost published leaked emails on Thursday that included vulgarity to refer to past winners, former winners being routinely maligned, and the shaming of one over her weight and sex life, with Haskell calling her “a piece of trash.”
The decision was announced in the face of mounting pressure in the media as the United States continues to grapple with a sexual harassment firestorm upending powerful men from Hollywood, to entertainment and politics.
The leaked emails included vulgarity to refer to past winners and maligning of former winners. Photo: MAO
“The Miss America Organization (MAO) Board of Directors today voted to suspend Executive Chairman and CEO Sam Haskell,” it said.
“The board will be conducting an in-depth investigation into alleged inappropriate communications and the nature in which they were obtained.”
On Friday award-show producers Dick Clark Productions announced that it had severed ties with Miss America after being informed of the emails several months ago.
“We were appalled by their unacceptable content and insisted, in the strongest possible terms, that the Miss America Organization board of directors conduct a comprehensive investigation and take appropriate action to address the situation,” it said in a statement sent to AFP. “Shortly thereafter, we resigned our board positions and notified MAO that we were terminating our relationship with them,” it added.
Dozens of former Miss Americas, including an 87-year-old crowned in 1948 and a former Fox News host, signed an open letter demanding the resignations of the organisation’s CEO, president and board chair.
“We stand firmly against harassment, bullying and shaming – especially of women – through the use of derogatory terms meant to belittle and demean,” HuffPost quoted the letter as saying.
Signatories included Gretchen Carlson, who settled a sexual harassment lawsuit in 2016 against then Fox News boss Roger Ailes for a reported $20 million, which precipitated his departure from the network.
"As a proud former Miss America former member of Board, I’m deeply saddened by disgusting statements about women attributed to leadership of MAO. No woman should be demeaned with such vulgar slurs. As I’ve learned, harassment and shaming of women is never acceptable” https://t.co/4lCYl77OUN
— Gretchen Carlson (GretchenCarlson) December 22, 2017
Tammy Haddad – a member of the Miss America board whose resignation was also demanded in the open letter Friday – has already stepped down, US media reported.
Meanwhile, in a statement to the BBC, the Miss America Organization said that Haskell, who earns $500,000 per year, was at the time "under unreasonable distress resulting from intense attacks on his family from disgruntled stakeholders".
"Although strictly intended for private communication, these illegally procured emails contain inappropriate language that is unbecoming at best and is not in any way, indicative of the character or integrity of MAO or its representatives," the statement continued.
They add that the board apologies for "any concerns or ill feelings this situation has caused".
