Limbaugh to Judge 2010 Miss America; Will the Perez Hilton Standard Be in Play?

In case you missed it, conservative talker Rush Limbaugh will be expanding his resume - long-time political commentator, potential NFL owner and now Miss America pageant judge.

On the Oct. 8 broadcast of Fox News "On the Record," host Greta Van Sustren revealed that Limbaugh would be one of the national judges for the 2010 Miss America Pageant, scheduled to be held in Las Vegas on Jan. 30, 2010.

"Rush Limbaugh, he's the King of talk radio," Van Sustren said. "He's trying to buy the St. Louis Rams. Well chalk up one more thing - Miss America judge. You heard that right - Rush Limbaugh has been named one of the national judges for the 2010 Miss America pageant. Limbaugh will be one of seven judges for the competition. Now that pageant is in Las Vegas now. It's coming this January at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino."

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Van Sustren, a Miss America judge veteran and a part-owner in a NFL, pointed out her similarities to Limbaugh with the news involving the talk show host.

"Two odd coincidences - I was a judge at the 2003 Miss America Pageant, that was one odd coincidence," Van Sustren said. "And I am part-owner - one share of the Green Bay Packers. Of course, my share only cost $200, so Rush is clearly a bigger shot than I am."

But there's also a relevant media angle involved. Earlier this year, blogger Perez Hilton was a judge at the Miss USA Pageant. Hilton, whose real name is Mario Armando Lavandeira, asked a contestant, Miss California Carrie Prejean, what her stance on gay marriage was. Prejean answered, not trading her convictions for a pageant title and wound-up being the runner-up in the contest as a result.

Besides the likely criticism about Limbaugh being a judge, having conservative views that offend liberal sensibilities, will the media hold Limbaugh to the same standard that Hilton was held to with his antics? Or, in other words, would Limbaugh be given a pass like Hilton by the media should he ask a loaded-conservative question and be allowed to penalize a contestant if the answer doesn't conform to his views - just as Hilton did to Prejean in April?