January 11, 2019

Here’s Some Math to Explain the Woes of the Oscars Telecast

Alissa Wilkinson asks today why no one wants to host the Oscars these days. I’m here to help. Everyone loves Venn diagrams, so here’s the answer in the form of a Venn diagram:

It’s an impossible job. Half the country wants PG-13, the other half wants R. Half the country wants it to be all about diversity and inclusiveness, the other half just wants to see movie stars. Half the country wants Bob Hope, the other half wants Lenny Bruce.

You’re going to get hammered no matter what you do. It won’t help your career, it doesn’t pay much money, and it’s a pain in the ass to do it. The real question isn’t why no one wants to do it, it’s why it took so long for comedians to finally give up on the whole thing.

WE CAME UP SHORT.

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WE CAME UP SHORT.

We just wrapped up a shorter-than-normal, urgent-as-ever fundraising drive and we came up about $45,000 short of our $300,000 goal.

That means we're going to have upwards of $350,000, maybe more, to raise in online donations between now and June 30, when our fiscal year ends and we have to get to break-even. And even though there's zero cushion to miss the mark, we won't be all that in your face about our fundraising again until June.

So we urgently need this specific ask, what you're reading right now, to start bringing in more donations than it ever has. The reality, for these next few months and next few years, is that we have to start finding ways to grow our online supporter base in a big way—and we're optimistic we can keep making real headway by being real with you about this.

Because the bottom line: Corporations and powerful people with deep pockets will never sustain the type of journalism Mother Jones exists to do. The only investors who won’t let independent, investigative journalism down are the people who actually care about its future—you.

And we hope you might consider pitching in before moving on to whatever it is you're about to do next. We really need to see if we'll be able to raise more with this real estate on a daily basis than we have been, so we're hoping to see a promising start.

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