Miss VT hits the big screen

Author: Features Editors

Middlebury's own Rachel Ann Cole '08 was featured prominently in the inaugural episode of The Learning Channel's "Miss America: Reality Check" last Sunday. Crowned Miss Vermont this fall, Cole, along with the 51 other Miss America contenders, is being put to the test on national television each Friday at 10 p.m. Eastern time on TLC between now and the national compeition to be held on Jan. 26 in Las Vegas.

Last week's premiere proved a bizarrely enticing addition to the average Midd-kid's reality T.V. diet, though the show's host lacked the pizzazz Tyra Banks or Heidi Klum bring to the screen in our favorite reality additions. (Make it work, designers.) In an oddly earnest twist, contestents were forced to sit down and talk about some very real issues. The women discussed premarital sex, gay marriage and abortions, among other topics. While the majority of the contestents reflected conservative beliefs, Cole expressed refreshingly honest and well-thought-out responses, ones that stood out against the general tone of the discussions.

At the conclusion of the show, the judges selected six of the 52 women, highlighting who they deemed to be the "top three" and the "bottom three." Cole was one of the initial six selected, and it was not until being critiqued and complimented by the judges that she found herself labeled as one of the "bottom three." She was critcized for her lack of desire in the compeition, and later revealed in an exclusive interview that at times she questioned herself, and whether or not she fit in with the other women who were constantly applying make-up and were less academically oriented. The judges, however, also highlighted many of Cole's characteristics as refreshing and new - and emphasized, to the delight of Middlebury students cheering on their peer, that they saw something in her they did not see in any of the other candidates.

While seeing one of their own on TV was the main attraction for most of us, there was more to the show than just seeing Cole. TLC called in the actors from the show "What Not to Wear" to review the women's fashion. In an odd mash-up of reality genres, and channeling "Survivor" challenges, and at one point the show had them all competing in an obstacle course. All in all, though "Reality Check" belongs firmly in that category of "reality television you'll never admit to watching, let alone enjoying," the show makes for a perfect Winter Term indulgence.

Cole is hoping to be the first Miss Vermont to be voted into the Top 15 at the National Competition. The contestant with the most votes during the TLC special will receive an automatic bid into the top 15. You can vote at www.tlc.com/missamerica in her support.