Do it right this time, Miss USA

Miss USA Tara Conner had it right the first time. During the pageant in April, then representing her home state of Kentucky, Conner was asked if pop superstars were positive role models for young people. "I think they're a little bit too risque," she said. "I think they need to tone it down."

Et tu, Miss Conner.

Conner's own bad behavior in recent weeks left her perilously close to losing her Miss USA crown. But in a surprising move, Donald Trump, owner of the Miss Universe Organization, on Tuesday said he would give Conner a second chance. Conner said she will enter rehabilitation.

Trump said that Conner, who grew up in a small town, "got caught up in the whirlwind of New York." As such, Trump is giving Conner the benefit of the doubt, which was kind, if not a smooth public relations move. Trump comes off as the kindly pageant owner regardless how Conner fares in rehabilitating herself.

The culture of pageants aside (another editorial for another day), Conner's conduct bespeaks a generation where bad behavior is rewarded with media exposure. In a perfect world, someone like U2's Bono would be the toast of the town for his humanitarian work in Africa and his efforts to cancel the debt of Third World countries. Or someone like Muhammad Yunus, who just won the Nobel Peace Prize for establishing a microcredit bank that lends money to impoverished people in Bangladesh, would be a household name.

Instead, raunch culture captures headlines and fills time on cable news. Budding starlets and heiresses make the news for driving drunk, acting out in public or abusing the hired help. Veteran entertainers capture headlines for impaired driving or even racial slurs. The worse one's behavior, the more media exposure they receive.

Is the culture completely to blame? Of course not. Plenty of young women have served as Miss America and Miss USA without drawing attention to themselves for the wrong reasons. Although Conner was only 20 years old when she assumed the Miss USA title, she has a duty to the pageant to comport herself in a dignified manner.

We hope she will make the most of her do-over. While Trump's over-the-top personality can certainly rub people the wrong way, credit him for impressing upon Conner that there is nothing redeeming about bad behavior in public and offering her a chance to better herself. Think of the many child stars and young entertainers whose lives have been ruined by the excesses of the world. If only someone had intervened on their behalf.