Gone With The Golden Globes

The Golden Globe Awards, or the Golden Globes, is a distinguished award ceremony scheduled every January that recognizes excellence in both American and international film and television (TV). This ceremony is also known for being the unofficial predecessor to the Academy Awards, which is another acclaimed awards ceremony that highlights the film industry and takes place every March. However, the Golden Globes’ reputation was struck down in 2021 after accusations against the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), the organization that runs the Golden Globes, were brought to light. The accusations, which range from a lack of diversity among their voting panel to outright bribery, resulted in heightened scrutiny by the media and a massive boycott led by the foundation Time’s Up, an organization that focuses on keeping workplaces safe. The boycott later caused the National Broadcasting Company (NBC), the HFPA’s preferred network, to refuse to air the Golden Globes in 2022. Instead, the winners were announced through Twitter and on the HFPA’s official website. This meant that there were no celebrities in attendance, a major factor in the success of the Golden Globes. In addition, significant companies like Amazon and Netflix have ceased to partner with the HFPA until significant changes are made to fix a lack of diversity within the company (The Wrap).

In February of 2021, accusations were made after a Los Angeles (LA) Times investigation uncovered a lack of diversity among the Golden Globes’ voting panel, being that the 87-member voting group did not include any Black members. Without proper diversity, Black people’s lives and experiences cannot be accounted for; therefore, the Golden Globes failed to provide fair and equal opportunity to films featuring or created by people of color. To provide scale to the issue, within the past two decades, there were two years without any Black TV winners at the Golden Globes (2002 and 2014), and the last time a winning television series came from a Black creator was in 2017, when Donald and Stephen Glover’s “Atlanta” won the Musical or Comedy Series statue (Variety). To add more fuel to the fire, viewers were also enraged when the renowned and Black-created TV series “I May Destroy You” received no recognition, while Netflix’s show “Emily in Paris” received two Golden Globe nominations. Due to the poor writing and stereotypical characters in “Emily in Paris,” which depicted Parisians as fantastical and wealthy, many thought that this nomination was undeserved. After watching some of “Emily in Paris” and hearing of how films with Black creators were snubbed, freshman Marisa Tan believes that the shows made by Black creators should have earned more praise and nominations.

“I watched the first episode of ‘Emily in Paris’ and it was stereotypical to the French people, [as they] depicted many of their [Parisian] characters as unfriendly and sometimes inconsiderate,” Tan said. “[The Black-created films] were critically acclaimed, and since people really supported them, they should have received more recognition.” 

The Golden Globes’ nominations of “Emily in Paris” also received backlash when an inspection from the LA Times uncovered that over 30 members of the HFPA were given an all-expenses paid trip to France sponsored by Paramount Pictures, the company that created “Emily in Paris”. The group was treated to a two-night stay in the five-star Peninsula Paris hotel, and according to one member who went on the vacation, they were treated like “kings and queens” (LA Times). Because of the correlation between the vacation and the nominations, people began to suspect the Golden Globes of corruption and bribery within the nomination process. Sophomore Brady Kim was shocked by this incident, and his trust in the Golden Globes’ voting process has weakened as a result.

“[This incident] compromises my faith that the [Golden Globes] will make unbiased decisions,” Kim said. “It seems quite obvious to me that the [awards show] has been taking bribes, and I do not know if I can trust them anymore.”

In response to this controversy, the HFPA has decided to implement meaningful changes to the organization to ensure diversity and a fair voting process. In an outline to achieve a 50% increase in diversity by 2023, the HFPA added 21 new members from several ethnic backgrounds, including Black, Asian, Latinx and Middle Eastern people to its voting panel (Variety). Moreover, to provide further insight on racial equity, a diversity consultant, Dr. Shaun Harper, was hired to protect against any exclusionary practices and lead HFPA members in unconscious bias training. In a July 2021 report, the HFPA also stated that their members would not be able to accept gifts from studios, publicists, actors, directors or others associated with motion pictures and television programs. The outside counsel, Ropes & Gray, was hired as well to review the group’s policies, strategies, governance and develop a confidential reporting system for violations of ethical standards and code of conduct (IndieWire). Junior Lynn Tanisaka believes that these changes are positive and could possibly restore the Golden Globes’ tarnished reputation.

“I think that [the Golden Globes’ character] is redeemable,” Tanisaka said. “It is great that [the HFPA] is finally making a change to make [their voting processes] more unbiased. [Additionally,] by including more cultures and races, more opportunities will be given [out].”

Despite these revolutionary changes, it is uncertain whether the awards show will jump back with a positive return after the cancellation of its airing in 2022 due to its many controversies. However, the cancellation does not mean that the Golden Globes will be removed completely; in 2018, NBC signed an eight-year deal with the HFPA to telecast the Globes at $60 million a year. Moreover, NBC said in an official statement that they are “hopeful to be in a position to air the show in January 2023.” Also, celebrities like Jamie Lee Curtis and Arnold Schwarzenegger have already associated themselves with the HFPA despite its problematic past. In a January video posted by the Golden Globes’ YouTube channel, Curtis praised the HFPA’s donations to a teen literacy organization. In another January video message sent out by the Golden Globes, Schwarzenegger also praised the “incredible philanthropic programs supported by the HPFA for the past 27 years.” Perhaps these celebrities’ interactions will lead others to step out and defend the Golden Globes; still, this does not mean all is well. In fact, when the controversy hit its peak in 2021, the Golden Globes telecast on NBC struggled to find 6.9 million viewers, which was down more than 18 million from the year before (New York Post). Additionally, the boycott is still ongoing, even after one year since the controversy, and it shows no signs of stopping, as Time’s Up is still speaking out against the HFPA.

The Golden Globes’ history of a lack of diversity, corruption and bribery is undeniably unacceptable, especially for such a large organization. However, that does not discredit all the necessary changes that the Golden Globes has been making to better their reputation and improve. The effects have certainly made a large impact for the future of operating ethical awards ceremonies.