For more than seven decades, Miss USA has selected a woman to vie for the Miss Universe crown. Beyond the glitz and glamour associated with the global crown, former contestants and whistleblowers have detailed an uglier reality in recent years, alleging corruption and controversy.
Rodrigo Goytortua, the former CEO of Miss Universe Mexico, details how the scandal-laden pageant has adversely impacted his personal life in the new documentary, "Crown of Deceit: Inside the Miss Universe Scandal," premiering Nov. 12 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on TLC.
"They have contacted the mother of my kids to make this extortion to me," Goytortua says in the three-part special, which USA TODAY can exclusively debut the trailer for. "That's why I want to speak. Miss Universe is a global company that is related with corruption."
Allegations of misconduct, abuse of power, favoritism and competition-rigging within the organization are explored at length in the doc. Former contestants like Taylor Hale, Noelia Voigt and Brittany Mason, along with whistleblowers and industry experts, also detail alleged patterns of intimidation, secret NDAs and leadership blunders.
"It's just been scandal after scandal," one woman says in the trailer.
One particular scandal explored is the drama involving Miss Universe co-owner Jakkaphong "Anne" Jakrajutatip. In 2024, Goytortua came forward with footage from a November 2023 meeting, in which Jakrajutatip, a trans woman, stated diverse pageant competitors, including "trans...
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