The English Language and the Miss Universe

[Miss Mae]

Sir, do you think that the Miss Universe organization should only allow countries that can communicate in English to participate in the said international pageant? The contestant from Columbia, who was eventually crowned Miss Universe 2015, had been able to speak in English when she introduced herself in a VTR (this was after she was selected to be among the Top 15); while the contestant from Ukraine, who was eventually crowned 3rd runner-up, had also been able to do so when the question for the Final Five was queried.

[Joe Carillo]

It’s definitely a big plus for a Miss Universe hopeful to be able to communicate fluently in English, but I think barring non-English-communicating women from non-English-speaking countries from the competition will be a big strategic mistake. It will seriously narrow down the multinational and multicultural diversity of beauties that gives the Miss Universe pageant its strong global appeal and enduring worldwide viewership. To me personally, the charm of the Miss Universe pageant comes not only from the beauty and talent of the participants but also from the Babel of languages and cultural predispositions that come into play during the pageant. Indeed, I think one sure way to bring the Miss Universe contest to an inglorious finis is to homogenize its participants to only English-speaking women from English-speaking countries.

[Miss Mae]

Uh, I think I have asked wrongly. I'm sorry.

My question should have been: "Sir, do you think that the Philippines--or the other non-native English-speaking countries--continue to speak in English during the Q&A portion of the Miss Universe pageant?" Miss Columbia and Miss Ukraine still won in the said contest even though both of them have necessitated an interpreter.

[Joe Carillo]

No matter what language is used by the Miss Universe hopefuls, it's really the depth of the message and how fluently it is communicated that count in such on-the-spot interviews. It's really a form of chauvinism or national conceit to think that English or any other preferred language should be uniformly used or made a standard in the competition.

[Miss Mae]

Are you saying Sir that, in this case, a Miss Universe hopeful will be well-advised to communicate in the language she knows by heart?

I thought there had been an irregularity when Miss Columbia and Miss Ukraine used both English and their native language in the interviews. I also just think that the next representatives of the Philippines in the said pageant should express herself in Filipino since, as you said, "it's really the depth of the message and how fluently it is communicated that count."

[Joe Carillo]

Yes, absolutely, every Miss Universe hopeful should communicate in the language she can express herself best. It wasn't irregular at all for Miss Columbia and Miss Ukraine to answer in English and then segue to their respective native languages; why should they consciously and deliberately withhold the fact--and the asset--that they are at least bilingual? As for a Filipina participating in that contest, I don't see the wisdom of speaking in Filipino in the interviews particularly if she isn't fluent in Filipino in the first place. If she isn't fluent in English either to the point of just bungling it, for clarity's sake she should just speak in her own regional language instead--Ilokano, Pangalatok, Pampango, Bikol, Cebuano, Waray, Tausog, or whatnot. She would just add another wrinkle to the Babel of languages in that international beauty contest, but that's precisely the heavy, embarrassing price of not having enough mastery of both Filipino and English but having the vaulting ambition to show her wares and communicate her thoughts to a global audience.

[Miss Mae]

But the official language of that pageant is English...

[Joe Carillo]

You better verify your assertion that English is the official language of the Miss Universe competitions; it may be apocryphal. My understanding is that local contests for selecting a national entry to the Miss Universe competitions simply state that the official language of the competition is English, not that an aspirant be able to speak in English. And as far as I can gather, the Miss Universe contest itself doesn't make that categorical language requirement, much less that a Miss Universe finalist speak in English or in her own national language in the question-and-answer portion. So, unless the Miss Universe organization itself has made a categorical declaration somewhere sometime that a Miss Universe hopeful must be able to speak English, I think we can safely assume that it's a free-for-all--she can speak any language she's comfortable with during her participation in the contest. I'll bet you a U.S. dollar on that.

[Miss Mae]

Uh, I don't have a U.S. dollar.

Anyway, I just have to believe you. You're right when you said that (1) it is an asset being able to speak more than one language, (2) not all Bb. Pilipinas-Universe are fluent in either English or Filipino, and (3) I have no other resource to back my claim except this article from Wikipedia (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miss_Universe).