A member of the Critics Choice Association has resigned after more than a decade with the group, citing what he sees as a “transactional” process behind the CCA’s upcoming inaugural celebration of LGBTQ+ film and television.
John Griffiths, long-time television critic for Us every week and has more recently written for the TV Academy program Emmy magazine and AARP magazine, sent a notice of resignation to the organization behind the Critics Choice Awards on Sunday. The score, which was obtained by The Hollywood Reporterdraws attention to the group’s apparent policy of expecting honorees to pay for a table at the ceremony.
“Despite my commitment to advancing queer and transcentric representation, I am deeply discouraged by the process of selecting this event’s honorees,” Griffiths wrote. “Simply put, I believe many people expect that the members of the Critics Choice Association will be the ones to select the winners for this celebration; instead, the attribution process appears to be transactional.
Its note continues: “Even though the LGBTQ celebration has a good cross-section of honorees, an event that advocates diversity on screen and television should uphold principles of equity and inclusion at all levels. »
Griffiths tells The Hollywood Reporter that he was initially excited when CCA head Joey Berlin approached him to help with the group’s efforts to salute the LGBTQ+ entertainment community, much like the organization has previously done with its celebrations of Black, Latino, and AAPI film and television. This year’s celebration of LGBTQ+ film and television will take place June 7 at the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles with host Sherry Cola.
In his resignation letter, Griffiths wrote that he finalized his decision to step down after hearing the event’s producer state during a Zoom meeting last week that, after previous discussion, there would be no space in the budget to allocate profits to an LGBTQ organization. charity.
The Hollywood Reporter contacted a Berlin representative for comment. Griffiths acknowledged that he was not aware of how the event’s winners were selected, but that the CCA as a whole did not vote for them.
“Maybe I’m naive, but if something carries the ‘Critics’ Choice’ banner, it should be the Critics’ Choice,” he says. THR with a little laugh. “A lot of [observers] I think that’s what’s happening here – that it’s the critics who are voting, at least one way or another.” He adds: “That’s not the case. I was becoming more and more discouraged by the fact that it seemed like the rewards were being bought.
In response to his resignation note, Griffiths said that Berlin sent an email thanking him for raising his concerns, with Berlin expressing that he hoped to resolve these issues so that Griffiths would remain part of the CCA. Griffiths says he responded that he was determined to resign but suggested that…
