Show Fix the Golden Globes or or bounce them from the airwaves airwaves- Sharon Special to the Lc Los s Angeles Times Thanks to the writers strike NBC canceled this weekends weekend's Golden Globe Awards ceremony And as asfar asfar asfar far as Im I'm concerned its it's about time As everyone in Hollywood knows the glitzy annual ceremony watched by millions of people is a con on the viewing public The decision to cancel it t offers a golden opportunity to clean up the Golden Globes once and for all The Globes have long been the entertainment industry's dirty little secret At the heart of the con is the Hollywood Foreign Press Association the tiny cliquish group of foreign entertainment journalists and I use each of those terms liberally whose votes determine the winners winners The members of the association are not generally speaking film experts as are the people who judge the National Society of Film Critics awards nor are they members of the creative community as asare asare asare are those who give out the Oscars They're not even representatives of prominent foreign publications such as Le LeMonde LeMonde LeMonde Monde or the Guardian or Only a handful are full- full time journalists the rest are freelancers for mostly obscure publications and some are simply hanging on for the parties and access to movie stars To maintain their status in the organization they need only publish four articles a year Joining is nearly impossible qualified foreign journalists from major media outlets need not apply and anyway they usually dont The group takes five new members a year at most and any member can veto a candidate With attrition from deceased members and those who failed to meet the work minimum this year no more than 82 people will choose the winning movies and TV shows Compare that to to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences which has about members Now you might ask Wheres Where's my sense of humor After all TV viewers seem to enjoy the show which is more freewheeling than the Oscars And besides Hollywood has plenty of nebulous groups that hand out awards at this time of year More than one of them did anyone say National Board of Review would suffer under scrutiny But the Globes are the only ones on a broadcast network and theres there's the rub Promoted as a major event and watched last year by 20 million Americans there is every reason for the average viewer to presume that the awards are important prestigious and meaningful But they're not They're just a cash cow and a handy marketing tool The telecast snares an estimated 6 million a year for the association a chunk of which is donated to charity according to tax documents And last year it took in 27 million a in ad revenue for NBC according to Media Intelligence which collect collects s advertising data So why is there no debate over the Golden Globes Because they serve everyone's agenda The studios get their films promoted the TV networks hype their shows the stars get face time and rub elbows with friends during the dinner and NBC and the association rake in millions Everyone wins wms All that has been enough gh to persuade the industry to ignore the ongoing tragicomic shenanigans that expose the groups group's lack of professionalism at cocktail parties in 2002 one member slapped another as Martin stood nearby poison pen letters about colleagues my files burst with them embarrassing conduct with movie stars former President Phil Berk had to apologize to Brendan Fraser for grabbing his buttocks and political infighting worthy of the Politburo The fact is the financial weight of the awards show creates intolerable pressure for members There is constant worry that some misstep will put their prize in jeopardy the money that pays for trips to film festivals for members and the status that this year got gotthem gotthem gotthem them invited to drinks with George Clooney and tea with Keira Knightley I know many of the members they are nice people They try their best Many of them just scrape by But they are no cross- cross section of entertainment journalists from around the world r 11 The Golden Globes have I faced criticism for a long time In 1981 the producer Meshulam flew members of the association to Las Vegas for a few of fun few days just just a weeks before they voted his wife Pia Zadora the new female star of the year In the criticism faded and NBC began airing the show in 1996 A barrage of critical articles in the late led NBC to put pressure on the group to reform It made members sign waivers that they had not received gifts or perks from the studios And in 1999 NBC said it would require the organization to expand its voter base But that hasn't happened Instead NBC has changed its promotional language for forthe forthe forthe the show emphasizing the event as a party as in Lighten up Its It's only the Golden Globes Lighten up Inside the group these issues can be deadly serious In 2004 member Nick Douglas x was suspended for having sold to a tabloid a photo of Tom Selleck taken at atan atan atan an association affair and for taking home some beer he had picked up at a studio buffet in breach of rules Denied access to media junkets and celebrity interviews he was unable to work went home to Ireland in disgrace and in December 2005 took his own life What's wrong with the Hollywood Foreign Press Association cant can't be fixed by making members sign waivers or by banning parties during balloting Ii E J |