Former President Donald Trump on Tuesday ridiculed the low-rated Oscars presentation as “politically correct and boring,” suggesting the show go back to having a host and changing its name back to the Academy Awards.
In a statement from his office, Trump came out swinging about the awards show, which drew an audience of 9.85 million, with just a 1.9 rating among the key 18-49 demographic — an all-time low.
“What used to be called The Academy Awards, and now is called the ‘Oscars’ — a far less important and elegant name — had the lowest Television Ratings in recorded history, even much lower than last year, which set another record low,” the statement read.
“If they keep with the current ridiculous formula, it will only get worse—if that’s possible,” he continued.
“Go back 15 years, look at the formula they then used, change the name back to THE ACADEMY AWARDS, don’t be so politically correct and boring, and do it right. ALSO, BRING BACK A GREAT HOST. These television people spend all their time thinking about how to promote the Democrat Party, which is destroying our Country, and cancel Conservatives and Republicans. That formula certainly hasn’t worked very well for The Academy!”
ABC and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences frequently use the term “Oscars” to describe the ceremony, but AMPAS still refers to the awards as the Academy Awards, Deadline.com noted.
Trump has criticized the telecast during his tenure at the White House as well, bashing Oscar voters last year for handing over the best picture prize to the South Korean film “Parasite.”
“What the hell was that all about? We’ve got enough problems with South Korea with trade,” he said at a rally in Colorado Springs, Colo.
“On top of that, they give them best movie of the year. Was it good? I don’t know.”
Though critics have pointed out low viewership can be traced to political statements during the telecast on gun violence and policing — something Regina King acknowledged at the outset could be a turnoff — Deadline reported moviegoing itself fell during the COVID-19 pandemic, with many viewers unfamiliar with the nominees’ names.
Trump has also criticized the Oscars in tweets in 2018, when he groused the show was the “Lowest rated Oscars in HISTORY,” and 2019, when he said the awards were “on hard times” because audiences “got tired of people getting up and making fools of themselves … and disrespecting the people in this room and the people that won the election in 2016,” The Hill noted.
Though the awards show viewership across the board has cratered over the years, Trump has claimed left-leaning performers getting political onstage at awards shows and being critical of him as the reason viewers were tuning out.
Source: Newmax
