I... don't even know where to begin. This NYTimes blogger writes of a LATimes investigation of the Academy demographics.
"...the Academy’s 5,765 voting members are more reflective of a Republican presidential roster than the moviegoing public: nearly 94 percent white and 77 percent male...Of the academy’s 43-member board of governors, six are women; public relations executive Cheryl Boone Isaacs is the sole person of color."
What's especially interesting is how the Academy responded to the critique. The president, Tom Sherak, stated that the Academy leadership wants to diversify, but needs people to come to them rather than waiting for the Academy to contact them. As he said, “If you are sitting waiting for us to find your name in our make-believe book and we are going to call you, we are not going to do that. Come to us, we’ll get you in.”
On the other hand, some point to the inequality of the entire industry. “If the industry as a whole is not doing a great job in opening up its ranks, it’s very hard for us to diversify our membership,” Phil Alden Robinson, a writer, director and veteran Academy governor, told the paper.
I was angered by Sherak's statement as he basically blamed the victims for their own underrepresentation. We really want to be more diverse, but it's their fault they don't contact us! This question of the chicken or the egg as the source of the problem also echoes in Alden's statement. It's the industry's fault that the Academy in turn is not diverse! Does it take the whole industry to change for the Academy to change also? Why can't the Academy change as an example of what the industry should be? As I read the article, I was more discouraged than anything. Is there any hope of changing the industry to better represent all of us?
Our discussion from the censorship lecture popped up in my mind, specifically Justina's comments about content creators. If the content creators are all white males, everything they create is based upon their experience as the ones with privilege. Professor Johnson mentioned how Spike Lee often talks about his own career as one out of necessity to bring light to voices oft ignored. If the industry made films/shows reflecting diverse voices, he says he wouldn't need to make the kind of films he creates.
What's the takeaway then? Is it possible for us as the audience to influence industry change? Perhaps awareness is what we need and what the original LATimes article aims to spread. Maybe as we work to become part of this industry and become content creators, we can work to enact change as well.
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