Award shows are the backbone of the Entertainment Industry. Each year these shows are aired live and broadcasted to the world. Fans across the globe watch in anticipation to see which of their favorite artists will win the awards, but who really decides the winners?
The main four awards given to artists are an Emmy, highest award in television, Grammy, the top award for music, Oscar, leading award in the film industry, and finally a Tony, the highest achievement for live theater. It is an extreme honor for the recipient to win one of these awards. Since each award show started they have accumulated a massive number of around 11,752 awards given out combined across all four shows.
The burning question many people wonder is who decides the winners of each award? We will start with an Emmy. The recipient of an Emmy award is determined by a group from the Television Academy. There are over 20,00 people that get broken down into 31 peer groups. From there, each person watches the works submitted for each Emmy category and decides who or what project deserves to win based on certain disclosed qualifications.
Joining the Television Academy is no easy feat. First, to apply you have to work in television, no common person is allowed to apply unless they work in some sort of television production. From there, you can qualify to be in a peer group. To do this you have to be a paying member of the Television Academy and submit work that is in the category of the group you wish to join.
Although applying to be an Emmy voter is a long process, it is made simpler for those who have been nominated or won an Emmy in the last four years. This admits you almost immediately into the peer group you wish to be in.
Everyone in the Television Academy works for months to decide who will receive the reputable Emmy Award on Sept. 15. Grammy voting is similar, but the voting group is much smaller.
Before a Grammy winner is decided the project goes through 350 people all apart of different categories. These people make sure each submission is put into the correct category and is worthy of nomination. Voters are only allowed to vote in their field of expertise so that it is completely fair.
After the regular voting process is completed, the ballots are sent to final voting. From here, members vote again in their specific fields for the final winners. After this process the winners are sent to the Academy’s law firm where they are kept until the day of the show.
Becoming a Grammy voter isn’t too challenging, if you work in the music industry. Those who wish to become a part of the Recording Academy must submit an application including two peer reviews from others in the industry. Then, the peer review panel will review applications and select new members. Members of the Recording Academy spend the fall reviewing music works to declare the winner of each category. These winners are then announced on Feb. 2.
As for Oscar voting, it’s pretty similar. Each category is voted on by members of that category, Actors vote for Actors, Directors vote for Directors, and that continues for each category. This is to ensure that each category is judged by someone who is an expert in that genre. Voting is done completely online through ballots.
When it comes to being a part of the Academy, you once again must be a member. The Academy has 19 categories in which a member is separated into. To become a part of Oscar voting, you not only have to be a member but also be sponsored by two Academy members that have already been inducted. This process only occurs once a year, making it difficult to become a voter. Oscar voters then work vigilantly to establish winners who are then announced on March 2.
Coming to a close we have the coveted Tony award. A group of roughly 831 members register to vote online for each category in the Tony awards. Each voter is required to attend each show nominated and present their winning choices through an online ballot. This voting process occurs weeks before the June 16 show date. The winners are sent to the Tony law firm where they are kept strictly private until the day of the show.
Award shows are no stranger to having their voters be a part of the industry’s membership. This is the same for the Tony’s. The members from several theater companies are all eligible to be voters. The Broadway League is the biggest group.
The Emmys, Grammys, Oscars, and Tonys are the biggest and best awards in entertainment. Each organization has its own unique way of voting winners. Becoming a voter means being a member of each respective organization, industry experience, and a passion for the arts. These awards are not only about the glittering trophies, but the dedication each artist puts in to entertain us as viewers.
