A beauty pageant is a competition in which the contestants are judged and ranked based on various physical and mental attributes. Per its name, beauty pageants traditionally focus on judging the contestants' See more

Major international contests for women include the yearly Miss World competition (founded by Eric Morley in 1951), Miss Universe (founded … See more

Diversity of contestants and winners have both increased since the inception of beauty pageants. In 1945, Bess Myerson, an American … See more

There have been numerous scandals in the beauty pageant industry and they continue to emerge as beauty pageants become more known to the public. In December 2017, HuffPost published emails written by then-Miss America CEO Sam Haskell that … See more

Early history
European festivals dating back to the Middle Ages provide the most direct lineage for beauty pageants. For example, English See more

Dethronements and resignations are rare for the Big Four pageant winners, but when it does occur, it creates media attention. See more

Critics of beauty pageants argue that such contests reinforce the idea that girls and women should be valued primarily for their physical appearance, … See more