75th Annual Golden Globe Awards a Hit

The 75th annual Golden Globe® Awards opened in social media to an audience eager to evaluate the presentation from seats across the world. We tuned in two full hours prior to broadcast airtime as industry planners realized their efforts during opening events to the program.

Amid a bit of mic scuffling, the red carpet pre-show (aka Globes Red Carpet Live) offered us the opportunity to see our favorite nominated hopefuls, all dressed in black in a symbolic effort to put to rest the compounded negativity of gender profiling in business. Although their silence drew public criticism, the gentlemen who showed up Sunday evening were in good spirits by all appearances, dressed in black with the ladies and donning "Time's Up pins" in support.

I think tonight was deliberately for the women. A produced event, overtly avoiding image of needing the men to speak this night. They seemed there in good spirit. Overall, probably the best #GoldenGlobes yet for sparkle, class and focus

— Angela T. (@AngelaGT1) January 8, 2018

Hosted by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), the pre-show was just the beginning of offerings. During the awards show, Meher Tatna, president of the HFPA, announced two grants of $1 million each to the:

1. International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and
2. Committee To Protect Journalists (CPJ)

In our view, through this significant monetary donation and publicized political support, the HFPA proudly worked to boost public perception regarding the power of media to rectify both community and industry issues across the board.

More, we interpret these donations much as we do those to the legal fund associated with Time's Up . . . as a formal and well-publicized recognition and advisory that trust need be reinstilled in our systems and our media-- ever a challenging prospect, and particularly when our traditional inferred-trust media sources have adapted to new, questionable styles in a business effort to compete for attention.

Golden Globe Messaging 2018

Messaging at the 75th-Annual Golden Globes opened on the red carpet absent of concern for women's outfit designer name-drops, and with concern for the industry itself. The politics of relationships were more present in discussion among arriving Hollywood stars, yet dressed to the nines in an array of designs that will nonetheless continue to receive accolade via social media and word of mouth.

Seth Meyers delivered a particularly strong professional roast. After walking onto the stage at the beginning of the show, his first address set the tone: "Good evening, ladies and remaining gentlemen". Then it was one nudge after another, the comic stealing the show. It was a good audience. Only one in prime comedic form could have continued to turn names on the spit the way that Seth did, each time ensuring us via heat of flame that this must be the last turn. Tensions slowly mounted, but along the vein of his adept performance, the open audience let Seth play. It was a fine time.

Throughout the show, gone were the typical acceptance-speech jabs, replaced by political orations attended by listening women and men. Those with plain power to speak did take opportunity to be heard. The feeling was that nearly everyone appreciated it.

We're not sure who noticed, but the 75th-annual Golden Globes Awards extravaganza was a traditional hit-- a glittering affair of formal dress and attitude. Taking everything into account, it seems that the producers, directors and other industry pros who designed the evening went with the progressive bent needed to carry a public forward, into the next century in proper order, according to the tenets of a free and open society with an interest in the kinds of equality it promises.

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