Miss International 2007 Analysis

	What the Future Holds for Miss International Miss International was once a glorious beauty pageant with a huge following. It enjoyed prestige and timeless beauties once graced it. Now, faced with various threats, the pageant is on the brink decay. Is it really or is it something that some quarters would like us to believe? The 1960 edition: the first ever winners
		Where it all began Miss International traces its origins in Long Beach, California which incidentally is also the home of Miss Universe. The first ever winner of the pageant is Stella Marquez Zawadsky of Colombia who is now the pageant director of Bb. Pilipinas. The pageant debuted just as the swinging 60’s is on its initial swing. The pageant thrived in Long Beach for seven years and later moved to Japan as a part of an exposition. It once again returned to United States but since 1972, it has permanently called Japan as its home.

		The peak of success There is no doubt that Miss International is a prestigious pageant with a clear platform. During its heyday, the pageant is a favorite among the Japanese and used to draw very large crowd. Top class women once graced the pageant and still attract top caliber women. For example, Dayanara Torres before she went on to capture the Miss Universe crown was once a finalist at the pageant. The pageant was hosted by top Japanese presenters and was graced by great personas in Japanese society. TV ratings were encouraging and sponsorships were providing adequate revenue. Miss International also proved to be a distinct pageant with a different trend. Although it recognized Venezuela as a superpower, Miss International is yet to crown an Indian woman despite the winning streaks of the latter at Miss World. The Philippines is also a superpower in the pageant winning 4 crowns even though that this Asian country is waning at Miss Universe. Poland, which is also barely heard at the other Big Three is a force to reckon with at Miss International with 3 crowns to boast.
Miss international 1992 finalist: Miss Universe 1993 winner
		The decline Last year, only 53 women representing their respective countries participated in the pageant. This is the lowest turn-out for a major pageant. In comparison, Miss Universe attracted 86 delegates, Miss World welcomed 104 delegates and Miss Earth got 82 participants. I vs U The trend is that the Japanese attention shifted from Miss Japan International to Miss Japan-Universe pageant. More so that now Japan holds the Miss Universe title thanks to Riyo Mori. The decline of Miss International is linked to the decline of its national counterpart which is Miss Japan International. The latter is no longer the premier beauty pageant spectacle in Japan thanks to the intensive overhauling of Miss Universe-Japan that produces strings of successes. There are also contrasting priorities. Miss Japan International pageant attracts more demure Japanese women. Miss Japan-Universe on the other hand is looking for a bon vivant woman. In short, one is traditional and the other is modern and it seems that Miss Japan-Universe proved that it is more attune with the times. Less interest on Miss Japan International meant less interest on Miss International. It is no coincidence that the pageant is experimenting on China. Last year, both Tokyo and Beijing played as hosts. China is a more welcoming place and could attract new fans. So successful the experiment that this year, come October 29, Beijing will solely host the event. PR Trouble Last year’s Miss International was also barely covered by the media. Even Missosology.Org failed to extensively cover the event in contrast with what happened in the 2005 edition. It seems that in Beijing, organizers failed to provide a safe and efficient way to handle journalists covering the event. Even before that, the pageant is not friendly to foreign media. The language used in the pageant for example is Japanese signifying the fact that it is concentrating more on the domestic market – a market where it is now losing ground. The pageant therefore could not be beamed live across the world. The MTQI issue Of course, the supposed quiet decline of Miss International is something that other upstart and wannabe beauty pageants would like to cheer about. Globalbeauties.com for example is using its popularity in busily promoting the Miss Tourism Queen International (MTQI) despite the fact that it only covered the pageant last year. The website is also suggesting that MTQI will be included as one of the top pageants. It was learned however by Missosology that Globalbeauties.com founder Henrique Fontes sat as one of the judges at MTQI while he is also the national director of the pageant in Brazil. The issue is an emphatic fact that upstart and never-heard pageants are willing to flex their muscles just to gain to prestige. Such move can indeed endanger Miss International. Miss International of course is way beyond MTQI when it comes to prestige. Miss International for example can bank to its rich history. The public perception is also a good measure. For example, the 2005 victory of Precious Lara Quigaman at Miss International 2005 received wide public and media attention in the Philippines while Justin Gabionza’s MTQI victory went unnoticed.

		This year and beyond Is Miss International struggling to stay alive? Maybe. The number of participating countries is a good measure. However, the 2007 edition is quite promising. Priscila Perales of Mexico and Alice Panikian of Canada, both top ten finishers at Miss Universe 2006 will be gracing the pageant. There are several countries that will eventually send their first ever Miss International contestant. Even Indonesia is coming back after decades of absence. As mentioned, Beijing will be the sole host of the pageant, which means that the organizers realized that it needs to expose itself more to an audience outside Japan. Miss International no doubt is still a beauty pageant with prestige but like any organization, it is can experience its low point too. If anything, the pageant is not as bad as what others would like us to think.
Waving goodbye at the 2006 edition

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