Publicists accuse the Golden Globes of selling nominations
Brad Sturdivant
January 14th, 2011
Posted by: Brad Sturdivant
In a story that should come as no surprise to anyone, former Golden Globe publicists Michael Russell and Stephen Locascio are accusing the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) of, well, the lawsuit says it best:
Russell and Locascio were aware that many HFPA members abuse their position and engage in unethical and potentially unlawful deals and arrangements which amount to a ‘payola’ scheme that could be illegal and cost the group its tax-exempt non-profit status.
They claim that they were fired after Russell sent a nasty-gram to HFPA President Phillip Berk, pointing out the shenanigans of HFPA members that included selling nominations and even victories. Of course, the HFPA is saying this is just a case where two disgruntled, former employees are grasping at straws to try and embarrass the HFPA.
Personally, I think everyone in the world knows that the HFPA is one of the shadiest organizations in Hollywood…and that’s saying a lot. Each year, the nominees get more and more embarrassing, culminating in this year’s nomination of Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie in THE TOURIST. It was so bad that even the stars themselves laughed at the news of their own nominations. The problem, of course, is going to be proving these allegations. Unless Russell and Locascio have some serious documents to back up their claims, I don’t see them winning this battle.
The HFPA stands to lose millions if their TV deal with NBC falls through. I wasn’t aware of this, but according to CNN, the HFPA suffered a similar scandal in the early 90’s when they lost their deal with CBS for members taking bribes. It looks like the Globes might end up on CW if they keep this up.
Source: CNN
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