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American Morning
Former Miss America Attributes Pageant Problems To Communication
Aired February 14, 2002 - 09:24 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Shakespeare wrote, "Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown," and, perhaps that could apply to the current Miss America.
21-year-old Katie Harman was crowned in September. And now, just five months into her reign, Harman's parents are complaining about their daughter's treatment by the pageant organization. In a letter to the board of directors of the Miss America Pageant, they said -- quote -- "Katie is your Miss America, and I can't tell you how many times she's been in trouble for things that are not her fault."
Now, though, Katie Harman is denying reports that she's unhappy. She issued statement, through her pageant, the Miss America Pageant, saying that the crown fits just fine, thank you.
Joining us from Los Angeles to sort his out is a former Miss America, Kate Shindle, who wore the crown in 1998. We're delighted, Kate, to have you with us on "AMERICAN MORNING."
KATE SHINDLE, FORMER MISS AMERICA, 1998: Thank you. Thank you. It's way too early to be functioning, so be nice to me or I'll beat you with my crown.
(LAUGHTER)
CAFFERTY: Well, it's three hours later here, and I'm not functioning either, so it will be -- it will be a good match.
SHINDLE: Okay.
CAFFERTY: What's going on, to the best of your knowledge, here? What's the beef?
SHINDLE: Well, you know, I think that what's happened, and it's been consistent over the last several years, is that there's been a breakdown of communication between the pageant office and Miss America and her family. And for -- for some reason it's been difficult to different degrees for each of them.
But, you know, the thing to remember is that everyone wants to be on the same page, and everyone wants the organization to do as well as possible for things to function right, for the year to run smoothly...
CAFFERTY: Sure.
SHINDLE: ...and for Katie to keep her focus where it needs to be.
CAFFERTY: Is this -- is being Miss America a good gig?
SHINDLE: Yeah! It's a great job. It's a great job. I mean, certainly, there are -- there are difficulties like there would be with any, you know, job as a spokesperson in a major corporation. And they're complicated by the fact that you're on the road about 20,000 miles a month. So, you have to deal with the additional pressure of having to -- having to resolve communications, conflicts...
CAFFERTY: Sure.
SHINDLE: ...that way.
CAFFERTY: But, I mean everybody knows up front that there's an extensive travel schedule. That you're expected to make a lot of appearances on behalf of the Miss America Organization, for which, you can accumulate a pretty fair piece of change in terms of fees. I was reading where the current Miss America stands to make about a quarter of a million dollars in appearance fees, in addition to the gifts and the scholarship money that she won at the time she won the title. So, I mean, it's not about compensation this -- this traveling...
SHINDLE: No.
CAFFERTY: ...and whatever...
SHINDLE: No.
CAFFERTY: ...hardships are attached, right?
SHINDLE: No. I mean, that's true. And I can't speak to how much Katie is or is not going to make, because I frankly just don't know. But the thing that I think is important to realize, in that context, is that nobody becomes Miss America just to get rich. And there are some things which are very important. Katie wants to help breast cancer patients and speak about the Miss America Organization and be a advocate on their behalf.
And when these kinds of conflicts occur, it makes it very difficult for her focus to stay where it needs to be. I mean, just as an example, the last I hear, they were canceling some of her appearances and trying get her to sign a statement that none of it was true. So, they've put her in the position that she has to choose between the organization and the job she loves and, you know, her family, who's very concerned about her. And it's a difficult choice. And I'm sure they want this to go away. And she wants to keep her focus where it should be.
CAFFERTY: Now there's -- apparently there's a little subplot to all of this. The director of the Miss America Pageant, Robert Renneisen says that there are four states that would like to have him removed as the director of the pageant: Oregon, Illinois, South Carolina and California. Miss Harman's from Oregon. You're from Illinois.
What about this movement to have the director of the pageant removed, and is that complaint related somehow to this thing you and I are talking about here?
SHINDLE: Well, not in my mind, it's not. Frankly, I don't have a personal problem with Mr. Renneisen, and I'm certainly not trying to get anybody kicked out of their job. This is a situation which has come up because Katie's parents wrote a letter to the board saying that they where concerned about their daughter.
CAFFERTY: Right.
SHINDLE: Mr. Renneisen distributed the letter the other day at a press conference and started saying that none of it was true. And the reason that I spoke up after four years of not saying anything about the consistent problems within the organization, is because I don't think that the blame for this deserves to be laid at the feet of Katie and her family and the volunteers who run this program.
If there's something else that's going on, then, unfortunately, he's in the position to have to deal with both issues at the same time. But, he's the CEO, and that's why he gets paid, you know? So.
CAFFERTY: You know what? Given the early hour, you did great.
(LAUGHTER)
SHINDLE: Well, thank you.
CAFFERTY: Thank you. It was nice to have you on the program. I appreciate your insight. Thanks for being with us.
SHINDLE: Thanks for having me.
CAFFERTY: All right. Kate Shindle, Miss America 1998, joining us this morning from California.
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