CARNAL NATION

During the semi-finals of the Miss Asia pageant in Hong Kong, several participants were singled out to have their body parts, such as their breasts, scrutinised in minute detail. The segment which drew the most fire was the so-called “breast screen test.” Three of the most well-endowed contestants were asked to stand behind a board that was cut to show only the girls’ chests. With just their bosoms on display, the contestants were critiqued by one of the judges, Miss Chen Fei Jia, a model.

Contestant Miss Lin Zhi Jun, whose vital statistics were 351/2 by 26 by 361/2, was judged to have the most appealing figure, while Miss Wang Xi Yao’s breasts deserved praise for “increasing her heart rate.” The contestants were then asked to share the secret to having ample bosoms.

In the same show, another three contestants were asked to “twist and turn” to show off their waists. However, the TV cameras zoomed in only on the contestants’ lower bodies.

In another bizarre segment, three contestants were asked to battle it out in a scalp test during which their scalps were magnified up to 200 times under a microscope and a trichologist was asked to analyse their hair quality. Apparently contestant Miss Wang Zhi Fei had the worst hair quality with “lots of dandruff and an oily scalp,” whereas Miss Wang Chen showed “signs of hair loss.”

Television viewers have complained about the “lewd” and “crass” content, and some accused the pageant organisers of demeaning and insulting women to boost ratings.