“You’re not airing them because of the ratings”: NBC slammed for canceling Golden Globes citing “lack of diversity”

The Golden Globes controversy continues to tumble down hard on the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) as NBC announced its decision to refuse to air the 2022 iteration.

The move comes after the entertainment conglomerate sighted controversies surrounding the lack of diversity and queries regarding ethics.

It was alleged that journalists/critics were influenced with financial benefits during the promotions of “Emily in Paris” by Paramount Network. A statement from NBC regarding their resolve read:

“We continue to believe that the HFPA is committed to meaningful reform. However, change of this magnitude takes time and work, and we feel strongly that the HFPA needs time to do it right. As such, NBC will not air the 2022 Golden Globes. Assuming the organization executes on its plan, we are hopeful we will be in a position to air the show in January 2023.”

NBC’s conclusion in denying the airing of Golden Globes 2022 has currently left the awards association without a broadcast partner. But the larger question remains whether real changes will be enacted in the organization to squash the negativity.

NBC is facing backlash after fans claimed they backed out due to Golden Globes’ ratings fall.

Unfortunately, the organization has also fallen prey to the sleeve of criticism on social media. Viewers claimed that the media network backed out only due to the Golden Globes’s plummeting all-time low ratings.

The 2021 telecast of the function was the first ceremony to tank with a massive ratings drop, ever since its airing headed over to NBC in 1996. The show marked close to a 62 percent decline compared to the January 2020 awards ceremony.

Many fans on Twitter pointed to awards show viewer statistics that estimated the Golden Globes numbers below the Grammys and Academy Awards.

Going by reactions, fans aren’t looking to back down from voicing their criticism. Readers can find the tweets below.

Come on @nbc You’re not airing the @goldenglobes in ‘22 because of a lack of diversity? 🧢 You’re not airing them because of the of ratings. The Hollywood Foreign Press didn’t change this year, they’ve been anti. They just went from profitable to problematic for you.

— Jamil Buie (@JamilBuie) May 11, 2021

NBC claims it won’t air Golden Globes because the Hollywood Foreign Press Association is not sufficiently committed to diversity. Nothing to do with it’s ratings plummeting to all time low. 🤣pic.twitter.com/sVEnpztHtF

— Rita Panahi (@RitaPanahi) May 10, 2021

BREAKING: NBC announces that it will not air the Golden Globes because they fear low ratings like the Oscars, demonstrating that no one cares. https://t.co/bQ8QNsYYNa

— Rodney L. Tahe (@rltahe) May 10, 2021

NBC won't air the Golden Globes in 2022 and I'm sure they will say it's because of PC issues when the truth of the matter is the ratings were so low you needed to rent a snake to read them!

— Joyce Day (@Daytobehappy) May 10, 2021

@nbc doubt that anyone will miss watching the Golden Globes. U can say it’s because of hfpa, but it’s really about low ratings. No one watches!

— Darlene L Burner (@burner_darlene) May 10, 2021

The likely truth of the matter is NBC is not going to air the Golden Globes due to waning interest and low ratings. The controversies with the HFPA while real are likely a smokescreen for the decision. No publicly traded company with shareholders has that big a conscience. 💰 https://t.co/ao8qFsh1IM

— Harris D. Auerbach (@AuerHeat) May 10, 2021

Translation: NBC will not air the Golden Globes because they know no one will watch it! The oscars were the writing on the wall! Ppl are sick and tired of preachy, hypocrite, woke Hollywoodians! https://t.co/K4XzWPQh5s

— Deskprotestor (@Deskprotestor) May 11, 2021

the real reason why nbc decided not to air the golden globes... https://t.co/wboNY71hd3 pic.twitter.com/mkUR9Qu89y

— Kyle Kashuv (@KyleKashuv) May 10, 2021

Some individuals and personalities from the industry supported NBC's decision in taking a stance for POC artists.

THE GOLDEN GLOBES HAVE BEEN CANCELLED

— Jack Posobiec (@JackPosobiec) May 10, 2021

NBC just cancelled the Golden Globes for 2022. They "woke" themselves out of existence. 🤣

— Susan St. James (@SusanStJames3_) May 10, 2021

Everything matters. Even this. The ripple effects echo through our industry, especially for Black artists and artists of color. Kudos to all the activists, artists, publicists and executives who took a stand to make this so. https://t.co/ng1uUiOqS4

— Ava DuVernay (@ava) May 10, 2021

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Netflix, WarnerMedia and Amazon Studios also cut ties with Golden Globes

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association logo (Image via Golden Globes, Twitter)

NBC isn’t alone in cutting ties with HFPA since Netflix was the first network to part ways after a series of allegations against the association. Initially, the HFPA president, Ali Sar, attempted to have an “open dialogue” and implore the streaming service to reconsider their decision.

However, on May 10th, 2021, WarnerMedia and Amazon Studios also joined in to refuse to participate in any events related to HFPA until the organization exhibits real reforms and lasting change.

NBC initially endorsed the changes proposed by the association. However, the current concerns seem to be regarding the “18-months” timeline to enact the sweeping reforms proposed by HFPA’s board. The global boycott will continue until the association enacts its new reforms, as Netflix, WarnerMedia, and Amazon Studios have also stuck by the same position.

In the complete statement provided by HFPA, the board assured to add at least 20 new members by August 2021 and increase membership by 50% by the set timeline. The move is in response to a report from the LA Times on the lack of African American members in the organization.

It remains unclear if the Golden Globes board will fasten its reformation to avoid further backlash from the entertainment biz.