By Anand Venigalla
Staff Writer
The 2017 Academy Awards, which aired Feb. 26 on ABC, had 32.9 million viewers. Hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, the Oscars awarded actors, actresses, writers, producers and directors for their extraordinary work creating films for audiences of all ages. However; having only 32.9 million viewers signifies a continuing decline in viewership. The decline in Oscar viewership is also visible among the students who had not watched the Oscars and were unable to comment. But for those who did watch the broadcast, they had comments on this year’s show.
For some, the increase of Oscar nominees for black actors and African-American cinema was noteworthy. Gabriella Salvaggi, a sophomore education major, said, “because they got a lot of heat last year for seeming racist, they almost tried to overcompensate, even though many of the actors and movies were more than deserving of the nominations.”
For others, a significant event was the mix-up on the Best Picture honor that was erroneously awarded first “La La Land,” instead of the actual winner, “Moonlight.” “It was interesting,” Rokib Morad, a junior math major, said. “When they were going to announce Best Picture. It was a bit of a shock that they made a mistake like Miss America and Steve Harvey.”
And still others, like Tyler McGarvey, a senior biology major, found Jimmy Kimmel to be a commendable host. “I thought that Jimmy Kimmel was a very funny host,” he said. Note-able also to McGarvey was that “‘La La Land’ got so many nominations.”
The sparsity of comments from LIU Post students supports evidence of the lack of a wider audience among younger viewers and Americans in general. In addition, the absence of familiarity with many of the nominated films seems to be part of why the Oscars aren’t seen as imperative to view. While Jimmy Kimmel and
the Best Picture mix-up are unforgettable, it seems that many young students have started to lose interest in the Oscars.
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