LABJ FORUM – And the Winner Is… Who Cares?
Late January began a season of self-congratulatory celebrations beamed to millions around the world. It’s awards time again, and from the critics to the press to unions and industry insiders, all sorts of entertainment accolades will be handed out in the coming weeks. It could get a bit overwhelming, so the Business Journal asks:
Are you tired of all of the entertainment industry awards and the media’s coverage of them?
Gregory A. Silberman
Vice President, Development Partners in Care Foundation
Without it, we’d miss a lot of the benefit to the economy. Living in L.A., you have to expect that. The media coverage has been good. I was watching the E! Entertainment coverage of the Golden Globes, and I thought it was much better than the networks’ coverage. It was much more artistic, flashing back and forth between Joan Rivers and her daughter, the camera movement. It was more entertaining.
Monica Choi Arredondo
Associate, Reed Smith LLP
Not really, you don’t have to watch them. I watch the Oscars, the Emmys, the Golden Globes and the MTV Music Awards and Video Awards. I’m interested in the fashion for the Golden Globes, so I go on the Internet. Hollywood is right here and the entertainment industry is big here.
Marty Kaplan
Associate Dean, Annenberg School for Communication
University of Southern California
No. It’s the only way I can figure out what movies I didn’t see and television shows I missed. I love lists. They get right to the good parts without all that boring narrative filler. The good thing about the media coverage of these awards is it shrinks the news hole available for crime and celebrity trials.
Leah Antonio-Ketcham
Senior Counsel, Loeb & Loeb LLP
No. They can be a good thing, especially if you represent talent in the entertainment business. The media coverage of it is really a matter of time management. You only have so much time to watch or read about it and the ancillary commentary.
Chris Nichols
Assistant Editor, Los Angeles Magazine
I used to work in the stock photo biz and we would loathe the approach of spring because of the intensity of the awards season. I think that as long as it’s kept in its February cage, it will be fine. But I have friends at talent agencies who are crying right now because they haven’t left work for a month. Movies are the common language, so the coverage makes sense. We might not share a common place or a family in this country but we all share a common interest in movies.
Rob Otey
Director of Development
Hudlin Entertainment
Oh yeah, absolutely. In a town that is so self-congratulatory, it manages to reach a new low each year. All these awards are driven by clever marketing campaigns. Still, it’s something the public’s interested in and newspapers are responding to that. So I don’t blame the media for covering it.
