Golden Globes for sale / complexity and ambiguity in the status of the cinematic institution
The Golden Globes have announced that they intend to sell the collection to an individual so that they can alleviate the problems of lack of diversity.
Theater News Base: The Hollywood Foreign Media Association (HFPA), which hosts the Golden Globe Awards, announced Friday that it is one step closer to abandoning its nonprofit status.
The agency said it was in talks to sell the Golden Globes to Todd Booley for Aldridge Industries. If that happens then the Golden Globes will be the business that Boolean will lead.
Details of Al-Dardij’s offer have not yet been released, and the association says at least one other institution has expressed interest in buying. This refers to Cheryl Boone Isaacs, the former president of the Academy Awards, who offered to partner through her company Pacific Coast Entertainment.
One of the reasons Boller’s offer is troubling is that he could make even greater profits from the $ 60 million annual contract by broadcasting the Golden Globes through the Nubian network. The broadcast of the event was canceled last year due to strong criticism of the lack of diversity and the way members of the association were elected. At present, the profits of the distribution rights contract are distributed equally between the association and Boli’s company.
Helen Hoon, president of the Hollywood Foreign Media Association, said in a statement that the potential sale of the Golden Globes is for positive change and to address a variety of deficiencies, the management of the association and its conduct.
However, some lawyers who specialize in nonprofits say that if the deal goes through, it will actually reduce the association’s transparency. For example, it now, as a non-profit organization, has to publish its annual financial statements, which include all profits and payments, as well as charitable activities. If another for-profit business is not bound by these transparency rules.
There is also the moral issue of such a deal, as one of the main elements of Bowler’s proposal is that a number of Golden Globe voters also share in the prize money. On the other hand, he wants to hire 200 new voters who are not full members and do not receive benefits.
This is happening while a member of the association complained about it last week. This member, named Hesam Asi, is one of the speakers of the BBC Arabic network and a member of the association since 2010. He complained that he had been sexually harassed and called a “terrorist”.