On Wednesday’s episode of her Intercourse, Lies and Spray Tans podcast, the skilled dancer slammed the present’s judging panel — which incorporates Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli, and Derek Hough — for not being “specialists” in ballroom dancing, saying they have to be extra educated within the style as a way to be extra “strict” of their critiques.

Whereas answering fan questions on the episode, Burke — who appeared on 26 seasons of DWTS earlier than retiring in 2022 — responded to a fan who requested if she believes the ABC sequence “ought to return to being stricter because it pertains to true ballroom dancing.” She stated she does, earlier than explaining why.

“You must know what you are speaking about, proper?” she stated. “They’ve to have the ability to again up no matter they are saying. … In the event you’re simply saying issues as a result of you recognize it is the suitable terminology, and you may’t clarify your self as to why it needs to be a sure manner, then it is sort of exhausting — except they get judges which have extra ballroom expertise than among the present ones which are seated there as of final season.”

“You’ll be able to’t actually be extra strict in a style that you simply’re not an knowledgeable in is my level,” Burke continued. “And perhaps that’s the reason the present is not as strictly ballroom because it was since you obtained the vast majority of your judging panel [who are] not specialists within the area of interest of ballroom dancing.”

“I believe that, similar to the professional dancers must proceed to teach themselves on their craft, I additionally really feel just like the judges ought to do the identical,” she added.

The 2-time DWTS champion went on to emphasize that she believes the judges ought to take the adjudicator’s examination as a way to additional educate themselves and develop into an knowledgeable in dance.

In response to the Nationwide Dance Council of America (NDCA), the aim of the examination — which incorporates written and principle evaluation parts — “is solely to guarantee that all the Adjudicators of the NDCA, whereas having totally different ranges of careers and experience, ought to all have a standard bottom line of data in all types and a transparent data of what tasks they’ve as an adjudicator.”

“Derek ought to take his adjudicator’s examination. Carrie Ann ought to do it, so ought to Bruno,” Burke stated. “I believe that is essential, and why would not you wanna do this? In spite of everything these years, in the event you weren’t as conversant in the style, why do not you become familiar with it?”

“Or perhaps they’ve, I do not know. I am not them,” she added.

Whereas Inaba shouldn’t be skilled in ballroom dancing, Hough is knowledgeable Latin and ballroom dancer. Earlier than changing into a choose on DWTS in 2020, Hough competed as a professional on the sequence, and received the present a whopping six occasions together with his movie star companions. Bruno, in the meantime, comes from a dancing and choreography background.