With the non-event called the Golden Globes behind us, the entertainment industry now looks to how the writers strike will affect the Academy Awards.  The Golden Globes aired as a one hour press conference announcing the winners, costing NBC an estimated $10-$15 million.  The Academy Awards, however, are an industry unto themselves. 

The Oscars are the second biggest event each year after the Super Bowl, bringing in $210 million in advertising last year and reaching 40.2 million viewers.  Adage estimates another $100 million is generated in publicity and revenue for fashion designers who parade their clothes on the red carpet.  Magazines, news shows, parties, and advertising markets will loose hundreds of millions of dollars if the Academy Awards do not take place.

The writers, of course, make very little money from the Academy Awards directly - they just have to write some jokes (they don’t even have to be funny).  And mostly, the WGA needs to let the actors into the event; most actors refuse to cross picket lines. Of course, awards will be given out no matter what, but all the publicity, advertising, and fanfare will be lost because of what now degraded into petty posturing.  But causing the cancellation of the Academy Awards will likely hurt the writers more than they expect.

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The Golden Globes has become the first awards show casualty due to the writers strike.  Presenters won’t have profound scripts to read and actors refuse to cross the picket lines.  So instead of a lavishly televised party with lots of self-congratulations, montages, honorary awards, and unbearable acceptance speeches, we get a press conference announcing the winners.

Best idea ever.

Every year fans and pundits complain about the self-aggrandizing speeches and the almost four hour runtime when the entire thing could so easily be crammed into a 20 minute announcement (including technical awards).  For the first time, the writers strike is giving us something we want.

The downside?  Uh…um…we don’t get to see the pretty dresses?  Jon Stewart was supposed to host the Academy Awards again.  It’ll be a little disappointing to miss that.  Can they release his what-would-have-been opening monologue on YouTube after the strike ends (since they’ll have internet residuals then)?

 Adweek estimates the award show’s cancellation will cost NBC, the network to air the Globes, $10-$15 million in ad revenue.  ABC is scheduled to air the Academy Awards on February 24th, one of the biggest ratings nights of the year.

But yeah, not too many negatives for the common man and woman.  It’s not like the entertainment industry would go a year without giving out awards.  That would be mean.