Swiss TV axes beauty pageant as viewers turned off

In this picture taken Sept. 24, 2011 Miss Switzerland 2011 Alina Buchschacher smiles after being elected during the Miss Schweiz 2011 contest in Lugano, Switzerland. Swiss national television says it will stop showing the country's "Miss Switzerland" beauty pageant because viewers are increasingly zapping away. The long-running show is a fixture of Swiss popular culture and winners are guaranteed lucrative advertising deals and society engagements for a year. Swiss television said Friday Sept. 30, 2011 that its 25.7 percent audience share for the final was below what it would expect for a Saturday evening broadcast. (AP Photo/Keystone, Karl Mathis,File) GERMANY OUT AUSTRIA OUT

By The Associated Press

Sept. 30, 2011 7:25 AM PT

GENEVA —

Swiss national television says it will stop showing the country’s “Miss Switzerland” beauty pageant because viewership has decreased.

The long-running show is a fixture of Swiss popular culture and winners are guaranteed lucrative advertising deals and society engagements for a year.

Swiss television said Friday that its 25.7 percent audience share for the final was below what it would expect for a Saturday evening broadcast.

The network, which is funded through a compulsory household charge, axed broadcasts of the “Mister Switzerland” show in May, citing similar reasons.

Spokeswoman Manuela Kaech said the format “doesn’t fit our entertainment profile anymore.”

(This version CORRECTS APNewsNow. Corrects spelling mistake in final paragraph, adds photo. This story is part of AP’s general news and entertainment services.)