Oscar statue on the red carpet at the Oscars on Sunday, March 27, 2022, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. Next year's Academy Awards will take place March 13, 2023, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences announced Friday, May 13. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File)
NEW YORK (AP) --
Next year's Academy Awards will take place March 12, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences announced Friday.
The date for the 95th Academy Awards moves the show up slightly from this year, when they where held unusually late on March 27, partly due to the February Olympics. But it will also leave in place a stretched-out awards season that some have argued saps the Oscars of drama.
The 94th Academy Awards didn't lack for that, albeit not in the way the film academy intended. On a night that saw Apple TV+'s "CODA" become the first film with a largely deaf cast and the first film from a streaming service to win best picture, the infamous slap by Will Smith of presenter Chris Rock overshadowed the awards.
Smith has since resigned from the academy, which banned the actor 10 years from attending the Oscars.
Pepsi soft drinks in plastic bottles are on sale at a grocery store in New York on Weds., Nov. 15, 2023. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey, File)
PepsiCo confirmed Friday that it's ending some of its diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, even as rival Coca-Cola voiced support for its own inclusion efforts.
In a memo sent to employees, PepsiCo CEO Ramon Laguarta said the company will no longer set goals for minority representation in its managerial roles or supplier base. The company will also align its sponsorships to events and groups that promote business growth, he said.
Laguarta wrote that inclusion remains important to PepsiCo, whose brands include Gatorade, Lay's potato chips, Doritos, Mountain Dew as well as Pepsi. The Purchase, New York-based company's chief diversity officer will transition to a broader role focused on employee engagement, leadership development and ensuring an inclusive culture, he said.
Since President Donald Trump returned to the White House last month, U.S. government agencies, companies and schools have rushed to reevaluate policies and programs they adopted with the goal of reducing discrimination against members of minority groups, women and LGBTQ+ people.
Trump ended DEI programs within the federal government and has warned schools to end DEI programs or risk losing federal money.
PepsiCo's rollback came as Coca-Cola reaffirmed support for its DEI efforts.
In its annual report, Atlanta-based Coke warned that its business could be negatively affected if it is unable to attract employees that reflect its broad range of customers.
"Failure to maintain a corporate culture that fosters innovation, collaboration and inclusion … could disrupt our operations and adversely affect our business and our future success," the company said.
Coca-Cola has set a goal of having women in 50% of its senior leadership roles by... Read More
