Yeah, I suspect one reason the Oscars still have cachet is that it props up relevance of critics in an age when rotten tomatoes has commoditized them and social media WoM can do an end run around their opinions at the box office. Oscar candidacy is a rare thing they still shape.
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I have this theory that all global awards schemes are modernist, and awards are not really viable in a postmodern culture with no universal false consciousness. At best they can be exercises in solipsism. Started with the Olympics and that’s kinda down firvthe count now.
The basic discourse around hegemonic awards has historically been
“This award sucks”
“You’re just mad because you haven’t won any”
This plays very differently when 95% of people care as opposed to 5%. We’re in the transition zone for many awards.
It’s fascinating that there is so much discussion of meritocracy and it’s problems but relatively little discussion of awardocracy which is a very different thing. Credentials qualify you to be “seen” by systems but awards tag you as “worth caring about” in attention monopolies.