For more than four decades, the Alliance of Women in Media has hosted the Gracie Awards. Named after comedian Gracie Allen (a.k.a. hilarious wife of George Burns), the awards honour programming by, for, and about women.
For the first time, the 2020 edition of the awards was held virtually, with host Susan Kelechi Watson presiding over the festivities from her home, while presenters, award recipients, and performers likewise appeared from their homes.
Among the highlights was Katy Perry receiving the Gracies Impact Award, honouring the positive influence that her music has had on society.
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“This is an incredible honour to have this award about women and helping support women, which is something I am so incredibly passionate about. I love to provide opportunities in my life, professional and personal, for women to do incredible jobs and work alongside with,” Perry said during her acceptance speech, noting that “one of the most important things is to have representation.”
Perry also performed her new single “What Makes a Woman”; given that Perry gave birth to her first child just two weeks ago, the performance was pre-recorded specially for the event. According to the award show’s publicist, Perry’s performance was the only one to be pre-recorded before the birth, “since her due date was so close to our awards date.”
Other highlights included country star Mickey Guyton performed her hit song “Heaven Down Here,” and for the first time ever performed “Without a Net”, an original song she had recorded to appear in the upcoming documentary “Stuntwomen: The Untold Hollywood Story”; daytime talk show host Tamron Hall accepted her award for Best Talk Show and dedicated it to Breonna Taylor; and Gayle King received the Best Special or Variety Program for her memorable interview with R. Kelly, with King insisting she’d “love to sit down with him for another interview again.”
In addition, Dr. Sanjay Gupta delivered a special award tribute to front-line journalists bringing COVID-19 and Black Lives Matter coverage to viewers, paying tribute to Norah O’Donnell, Debora Patta, and Martha Teichner from CBS; Kristen Dahlgren, Dasha Burns, Savannah Guthrie and Blayne Alexander from NBC; CNN’s Brooke Baldwin; Los Angeles Times’ Molly Hennessy-Fiske; and Paola Ramos and Isobel Yeung of Vice News.
Also recognized by the Gracies was “Silent All These Years,” an episode of “Grey’s Anatomy” that dealt with sexual assault and rape. According to statistics from the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAIIN), there was a 43-per-cent uptick in call volume to its National Sexual Assault Hotline after the episode aired.
Natasha Lyonne also appeared to accept the award for Best Producer – Entertainment for Netflix series “Russian Doll,” on behalf of herself and producers Leslye Headland and Amy Poehler, whom she lauded as “such a leader in this field, who has singlehandedly changed the world and the scope of what we can do, how we hold the space for each other… it is such an honour to walk beside you.”
Naomi Watts won for Best Actress in a Supporting Role – Drama for her portrayal as Gretchen Carlson in Showtime’s “The Loudest Voice”, dedicating her award to Carlson for her “incredible bravery and courage,” noting it was “an honour” to tell her story.
“We are honoured to celebrate these incredible voices, recognize these poignant stories and bring the Gracie Awards to audiences around the world with our first-ever virtual awards show,” said Becky Brooks, executive director of the Alliance for Women in Media Foundation. “We applaud the brave storytellers who have reported from the front lines, challenged conventional thinking, and produced content that has created real change —we need this storytelling now more than ever.”
The show can be watched in its entirety here; the complete list of winners can be found right here.
