For the first time since 1997, Miss USA has been crowned Miss Universe.

Olivia Culpo, the 20-year-old from Rhode Island, told Savannah Guthrie on Thursday’s episode of Today that she “couldn’t be happier” about her win despite having not slept since being crowned.

“It does feel really good and I think in the midst of everything that’s going on in the country it’s a good thing, just to hopefully uplift the spirit in such a tragic time,” said the 20-year-old. “It’s an honor.”

Culpo beat out 88 competitors from six continents in the pageant held at the Planet Hollywood Casino in Las Vegas, Nev.

When asked about whether she was scared about the little stumble she experienced during the competition as her her velvet dress got stuck on her shoe, she said, “It was terrifying, but I knew that was going to happen. That dress and that floor with the shoes — it was inevitable. It was so slippery. I’m so happy I didn’t fall on my face. That little slip was fine.”

As for the cause she will be championing during her reign, she has chosen HIV and AIDS.

“Miss Universe travels internationally, so I am going to be working with HIV and Aids raising awareness and prevention,” she explained. “With Miss USA, I was focusing on breast and ovarian cancer but it was more just nationally so now I’m going to have the chance to travel a lot more and help with HIV and AIDS.”

What do you think about Miss USA taking the crown? Let us know below!

CBS has given full season orders to freshman dramas Vegas and Elementary. In a statement, network president Nina Tassler said, “Vegas and Elementary have opened strong, delivering big audiences and winning performances in important time periods.” The two shows are the  No.1 and No. 2 new series of the season both averaging more than 14 million viewers. Vegas airs Tuesdays at 10 PM and Elementary airs Thursdays at 10 PM. [CBS]

Ask Obama Live: An MTV Interview With the President will air live on all MTV networks this Friday at 5 PM EST. Barack Obama will sit down with MTV News Correspondent Sway at the White House as he asks your questions regarding young voter concerns including jobs, student loan debt and immigration issues. Andrew Jenks will be on-the-ground at a nearby college with a group of young voters and hold a before and after discussion which will air on MTV.com. The audience can submit questions for the President on MTV’s Facebook page. The network has also issued an invitation to Governor Mitt Romney for a live 30-minute special prior to Election Day. [MTV]

Glamour magazine’s Fashion Editor Louise Roe is joining NBC’s Fashion Star as host for Season 2. The journalist and sometimes host will be officially replacing Elle Macpherson in the role. In addition, fashion retailer Express is also teaming up with the series as a buyer in addition to current buyers Macy’s and Saks Fifth Avenue. Roe previously hosted The CW’s makeover show Plain Jane. The second season of Fashion Star will air in Spring of 2013.[NBC]

Tuesday’s Season 2 premiere of ABC’s Don’t Trust the B**** in Apt. 23 will feature a guest appearance by Zack Morris himself, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, but that won’t be the only ABC comedy the actor is appearing on. Gosselaar will also pop up on Happy Endings as Max’s (Adam Pally) “new mysterious roommate,” Chase on Episode 10. The new seasons of Apt. 23 and Happy Endings premiere Tuesday at 8:30 PM and 9 PM, respectively, on ABC. Gosselar’s TNT show Franklin and Bash was recently renewed for Season 3. [EW]

The third and final presidential debate had approximately 30 million viewers on the major networks of ABC, CBS and NBC Monday night. Meanwhile, ABC’s Dancing With the Stars beat out NBC’s The Voice with 13.2 versus 11.95 million viewers. FOX also achieved its best ratings of the NLCS MLB playoffs with the Giants and Cardinals facing off in Game 7. [Zap2it]

The Miss Universe competition will air live on NBC on Dec. 19 from 8 – 10 PM. The 61st annual airing of the pageant will be broadcast live from Las Vegas and will be hosted by E!’s Giuliana Rancic and Bravo’s Andy Cohen. A Spanish-language simulcast will air on Telemundo. [Deadline]

Chuck‘s Adam Baldwin will replace Lost vet Titus Welliver on TNT drama pilot The Last Ship, after Welliver was forced to drop the show due to a family health issue. The Last Ship will be executive produced by Michael Bay and is also set to star Eric Dane. Baldwin will play second in command to the Captain (Dane), Mike Slattery. [Deadline]

Actress Jane Fonda is set to star on a new ABC Comedy, currently titled Now What?, which is set to premiere in 2013. The show is from Pushing Daises writer Abby Gewanter and will be directed by Scott Ellis. The comedy will focus on a young girl who declares her hatred for her mother (Fonda) in a blog post. Wanting to work out their differences, the mother then moves in with her daughter and the hijinks ensure from there. The Oscar-winning actress most recently appeared on HBO’s The Newsroom and can be seen playing Nancy Reagan in Lee Daniels’ The Butler. [Variety]

Miss Mexico Jimena Navarrete is the new Miss Universe, taking down the prized tiara-and-sash combo at the time-honored pageant in Las Vegas, Nevada Monday night. The 22-year-old from Guadalajara stunned in a flowing crimson one-shoulder “evening gown” – and she wasn’t too shabby in the bikini arena either, edging out some of the most diesel bodies in, well, the universe (ahem, Miss Finland.) Co-host Bret Michaels was a lucky man!

Click here for more photos of Jimena’s “Did I really win?!” moment and other eye candy from the Miss Universe pageant. Are you bowing down to the new Miss Universe? Weigh in via the comments.

The 2010 Miss Universe Pageant takes place on August 23, and as a special service to our readers, Celebuzz presents a field guide to this year’s contestants, as they appeared in Las Vegas on Wednesday.

As the world prepares to bid a fond farewell to Miss Universe 2009 Stefania Fernandez, click through the photo gallery and acquaint yourself with this year’s contenders. And don’t be afraid to use our ZOOM photo feature … this is pretty much what it was invented for.

Who will you be rooting for at this year’s pageant? Let us know in the comments section.

And make sure to hit up Celebuzz’s Celeb Bikini Safari for even more pictorial examples of two-piece splendor.