In the wake of the 2023 Miss Universe pageant, Michelle Dee, the Miss Universe Philippines (MUP) representative, and Pia Wurtzbach, the 2015 Miss Universe, have come forward to address circulating rumors and controversies associated with the event.
The first rumor involved a graphic posted by Miss Universe El Salvador on Instagram, which incorrectly showed Michelle Dee among the Top 5 finalists, instead of Thailand’s Anntonia Porsild, who was the actual first runner-up. This post was quickly deleted but sparked speculations and allegations regarding the organizer and the candidates.
Michelle Dee, who concluded the pageant as a Top 10 finalist, took to her Instagram broadcast channel to share her perspective. She urged Filipinos to maintain respect and kindness towards both the delegates and their passionate supporters on social media. Emphasizing the imperfect nature of the world, Michelle advocated for seeing every occurrence as either a lesson or a blessing and acting with love, kindness, and respect.
Another rumor that emerged was an alleged scoresheet of the Miss Universe pageants, supposedly showing the scoring of the Top 10 candidates during the evening gown round. Pia Wurtzbach, who served as a Miss Universe judge in 2017, addressed this rumor through her Instagram broadcast, dismissing the scoresheet as fake. She noted that the nationalities of judges were not indicated in the past and recalled that during her tenure as a judge, scores were limited between 8 and 9.9 to avoid tipping the average too much. Pia also stressed that the Miss Universe Organization (MUO) values data privacy and would not risk its credibility by leaking such sensitive information.
The pageant concluded with Sheynnis Palacios of Nicaragua being crowned Miss Universe, succeeding R’Bonney Gabriel, the previous year’s winner.