Just when you thought things could not get much worse for the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which has been under fire for two months since the Los Angeles Times broke an explosive series of investigations about the organization which hands out the Golden Globe Awards—well, they did.
Earlier this week, the Times revealed that former HFPA president Philip Berk sent out an email to the membership and staff which could be construed as racist, something the organization has already been accused of since there are no Black members in its ranks of just 87 journalists.
Without giving more attention to the email itself, which forwarded a “news” story, it basically compared the Black Lives Matter movement to the Charles Manson family, whose leader infamously wanted to start a race war.
After a huge outcry, Berk, who three years ago was accused of sexually harassing actor Brendan Fraser by groping him, was kicked out of the org. He’d served, wait for it, eight terms as its president.
It was also revealed that the diversity consultant the HFPA had hired quit, as did a PR consultant who had recently been brought on board to clean things up, especially when it came to the endemic corruption within the group that was revealed in the Times exposé.
This, after the organization had pledged transparency in its plan to become more diverse and inclusive and generally polish up its act.
During its nearly 80-year history, the HFPA has never had a stellar reputation, but because of the ratings and financial success of the Golden Globes on NBC and the promotional opportunities it provides for studios and networks to campaign for other awards, heads turned the other way.
Not this time. And now there are rumblings the group’s PR firm and law firm may also head for the exits.
All this comes in the wake of an unprecedented letter signed by more than 100 public relations firms saying they would withhold their talent from HFPA unless the org reformed itself.
The blistering missive demanded the organization undertake “profound and lasting change to eradicate the long-standing exclusionary ethos and pervasive practice of discriminatory behavior, unprofessionalism, ethical impropriety and alleged financial corruption endemic to the HFPA.”
Also applying the pressure: the advocacy group Time’s Up and producer Shonda Rhimes and director Ava DuVernay, who revealed that coverage of their Black-centric projects was rejected by the HFPA. Even Shondaland’s Bridgerton was initially passed on, until it became an undeniably massive hit.
Basically, the two powerful and prolific creators said they experienced blatant racism by the HFPA.
The insular foreign press members are defined by their access to top-tier talent and hold an inordinate sway over the stars themselves, their reps, the studios, streamers and television networks.
The threat of a catastrophic loss of access forced the organization to release its own statement committing to add at least 13 Black members to its roster and embark on a number of initiatives including diversity training.
Among the Times’ shocking revelations were the fact the organization paid out $2 million during 2020 to its members for tasks such as serving on committees. Also revealed was that more than a few members were not really journalists, people with other professions apparently just along for the ride–a glamorous one filled with all-expense paid visits to film sets and one-on-one access to the biggest stars on the planet.
The series of exposés came in the wake of a lawsuit by a legit journalist who claims she was barred from joining the HFPA because other members may have been threatened by her credibility as a writer.
The Hollywood Foreign Press had promised to release a list of reforms by May 6. Time is running out for the organization to come to the table with anything substantive by that date, upon which time may be up.
