Warning: The following post contains discussions of suicidal ideation.
Two years after a dramatic resignation and one year after a ceremony that broadcast TV viewers didn’t get to see, the Miss Teen USA beauty pageant seems poised for a comeback.
After a change in ownership, both Miss Teen USA and its corporate sibling Miss USA will air on The CW this month, scheduled for 8/7c on Wednesday, August 26, and Thursday, August 27, respectively.
“These two competitions deliver the spectacle, heart, and aspiration that resonates with viewers across the country, and we are honored to broadcast both, especially as Miss USA marks its historic 75th anniversary,” Heather Olander, The CW’s head of entertainment programming, said in a press release.
“The CW reaches audiences in every corner of the country, and there is no better stage on which to showcase these 102 extraordinary women as they compete for two of the most iconic titles in the world,” added Thom Brodeur, chairman, president & CEO of the Miss USA Organization.
However, some of those extraordinary Miss Teen USA contestants have had extraordinarily rough experiences, and often not of their own doing. Here’s a timeline of what we would call the biggest scandals from the pageant’s history.
2013: Miss Teen USA Cassidy Wolf reveals she was a victim of sextortion scheme
Days after winning the Miss Teen USA 2013 crown, Cassidy Wolf went public with a cybercrime horror story, saying that someone had contacted her four months prior to say they were in possession of nude photos taken on her computer’s hacked webcam, as Today reported at the time.
A former classmate of Wolf’s was sentenced to 18 months in prison after pleading guilty to three counts of extortion and one count of unauthorized access of a computer, per E! News.
“It’s weird for me to be able to put a face to the person who did this to me, and to know that it was somebody I went to high school with,” Wolf said on Today following the man’s confession. “I just think it’s sad that he chose to do this and has now kind of put himself in this big dilemma.”
2015: Miss Teen USA 2007 contestant Caite Upton says online bullying nearly drove her to suicide
Former Miss South Carolina Teen USA Caite Upton went viral in 2007 for a rambling response to a geography question at that year’s Miss Teen USA pageant. And in 2015, she revealed to New York Magazine that she faced cruelty from strangers after that gaffe. “Somebody once put a letter in my parents’ mailbox [reading], GO DIE CAITE UPTON, GO DIE FOR YOUR STUPIDITY,” she said. “That’s the kind of stuff people would say to me for two years.”
The former queen also said she had “very dark moments” during that time and even contemplated suicide. “It was awful, and it was every single day for a good two years.”
Upton faced mockery again in 2024 when JD Vance, then Donald Trump’s running mate in the 2024 presidential election, shared the clip on X in a dig at presidential opponent Kamala Harris.
“Regardless of political beliefs, one thing I do know is that social media and online bullying needs to stop,” Upton wrote on X at the time, per The New York Times.
2016: Miss Teen USA 2016 Karlie Hay’s unacceptable language resurfaces
Karlie Hay was just hours into her 2016 Miss Teen USA tenure when she acknowledged shameful language she’d used in the past.
“Several years ago, I had many personal struggles and found myself in a place that is not representative of who I am as a person,” she wrote on social media, per ABC News. “I admit that I have used language publicly in the past which I am not proud of and that there is no excuse for.”
On Twitter, users said Hay had tweeted threats and posts that included the N-word, ABC News reported. In a statement, the Miss Universe Organization said Hay had used language that is “unacceptable at any age” and that “in no way reflects the values” of the organization.
2016: Former contestants allege Donald Trump walked into their dressing room
Five women who competed in the 1997 Miss Teen USA told BuzzFeed News in 2016 that Donald Trump, then the pageant’s owner, walked into the dressing room while contestants, some of whom were only 15 years old, were changing.
“I remember putting on my dress really quick because I was like, ‘Oh my god, there’s a man in here,’ former Miss Vermont Teen USA Mariah Billado told the outlet. In her recollection, Trump said something like, “Don’t worry, ladies, I’ve seen it all before.”
Eleven of the 1997 contestants BuzzFeed News contacted said they didn’t remember seeing Trump in the dressing room, and some expressed disbelief that he could have been there.
2024: Miss Teen USA 2023 UmaSofia Srivastava resigns
It was a stunning one-two punch in 2024 when Miss Teen USA 2023 UmaSofia Srivastava gave up her crown just two days after Miss USA 2023 Noelia Voight did.
In a follow-up interview on Good Morning America, Srivastava’s mother said her teen had been bullied by pageant management and had her personal social media surveilled and controlled.
“I want to be clear … It’s about how they were ill-treated, abused, bullied, and cornered,” Barbara Srivastava said.
In a statement, pageant organizers responded to the Srivastava and Voight families’ allegations, saying, “We are committed to fostering a healthy, communicative and supportive environment for all contestants, state titleholders, national titleholders and staff.”
Miss Teen USA 2026 Pageant, Wednesday, August 26, 8/7c, The CW
If you or someone you know needs help with mental health, contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, contact the National Alliance on Mental Illness at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264). If you or a loved one are in immediate danger, call 911.