Morning Jolt: The Revealing Identity-Politics Warfare over the Oscars

TODAY'S JOLT IS SPONSORED BY

WITH JIM GERAGHTY

January 25 2024

The Revealing Identity-Politics Warfare over the Oscars

On the menu today: We turn from the tumult of politics and the 2024 presidential campaign to a realm of simmering outrage, unscrupulous ethics, big money, sharp elbows, secret deals, knee-jerk accusations, and social-media rage: who gets nominated for what Academy Award, and how the decisions of a tiny pool of voters in the film industry allegedly reflect deep-rooted problems all across American society.

Yes, We Ken

I think it was Mickey Kaus, a long, long time ago, who said that you should not look to Hollywood, particularly movies, for works of art or stories that "capture the zeitgeist" — the general intellectual, moral, and cultural climate of an era.

If I remember correctly, Kaus argued that the process of filmmaking is too slow, and the pace of change in our culture is too fast, for a creative mind to put together a film that captures the moment when it appears before audiences.

Films are often written, pitched, approved, produced, and edited over a ...

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