Has PNB become a monarchy? "It's better than anarchy," said Gerdeen Dyer, a founding editor of the organization. "Certainly we will maintain our professional journalistic standards, but Queen Leslie will be more than a figurehead. The pageant business is built around the trappings of royalty, and she is the ideal queen, a woman of great beauty, warmth and dignity. She sees power as a means of helping people, not exploiting them."

The writers at pageant.com are known for pointed satire as well as incisive news, but Dyer made clear that this new development is no gag. "There are some jokes in the pageant business," he said, "mostly among PNB's critics. But our Queen Leslie is no joke."

Details of the secret contest that selected Queen Leslie will apparently remain secret. Dyer gave few details, except that there were seven contestants from around the world. Each was required to perform certain pageant-related tasks, and to reveal her involvement to no one.

None of the contestants ever knew who the others were. During the two years of competitive activity, they communicated with PNB using code names. Dyer said that Queen Leslie had the opportunity to learn the other women's real names after she was crowned, but she chose to respect their privacy instead.