(Newser)
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Who votes for Oscars? The list is kept secret, but an LA Times investigation shows 94% of them are white and 77% are male. Blacks and Latinos each make up only 2%. "We need to do a better job" of diversifying, says a governor at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. But he insists the problem starts in the film business itself: "If the industry as a whole is not doing a great job in opening up its ranks, it's very hard for us to diversify our membership."
Another shocker: the academy's median age is 62, and only 14% of 5,765 voting members are younger than 50. Critics say that explains why The Social Network didn't win last year (too Internet-ey), why Shame is ignored this year (too sexy), and why Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close is up for a Best Picture (its middle-aged theme: fathers and sons). But academy President Tom Sherak seems to blame the excluded for not joining: "If you are sitting waiting for us to find your name in our make-believe book and we are going to call you, we are not going to do that," he says. "Come to us, we'll get you in."
