No-shows mean show must go online

Nominated for least surprising news bulletin of the moment: The downsized Webby Awards ceremony planned for June 5 has been cancelled, to be replaced by an online ceremony of sorts. More surprising was the reason given for cancellation of the event: People were afraid to travel to San Francisco because of SARS and the war in Iraq. At least that's the implication of a series of articles running in News.com, the San Jose Mercury News and the hometown San Francisco Chronicle.

Yes, all the stories did mention the sad state of the economy as a deciding factor for so many stay-at-home nominees. But still, considerable play was given to the fear-of-travel angle. News.com's Stevin Musil went furthest, explaining painstakingly that "Global travel has fallen sharply on fears of terrorism and the severe acute respiratory syndrome, which has killed more than 300 people worldwide." So people traveling to San Francisco from New York had to make a stopover in Hong Kong?

Give the Chronicle's Verne Kopytoff some credit though. He took the trouble to actually call up half a dozen nominees to see if they were planning to come. Lo and behold, five of six were planning to send representatives, but what if none of the winners had shown up? A few no-shows might work, but empty seats with "reserved" signs would be the ultimate ignominy for the ailing show.

Maya Draisin, executive director for the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences (the group behind the Webbys), downplayed the SARS effect when I spoke to her recently. "We found that a significant number couldn't make it to the show for a variety of reasons -- security, SARS, different travel concerns, economics... for some cost was an issue. SARS was an issue for only the smallest number. Traveling today is perceived to have many more risks than in the past -- disease or contact with disease, more security and potential quarantines. These are uncertain times."

Despite so many stories saying the Webbys were, in effect, dead, Draisin remains upbeat. "We're working on a solution that is a combination of online/offline experiences that will still take place on June 5. We're extremely excited about it. Our goal is to bring the awards to the winners."

Put away that tux

My memories of the Webbys in San Francisco include the smallish but fun affair for the first ceremony/party at the Bimbo's club in '97, with Mayor Willie Brown giving a surreal speech that overran the combined five-word acceptance speeches of the winners by a mile. As the dot-bomb bust took hold in '01, the show ironically made a huge splash at the cavernous War Memorial Opera House, with modern dance numbers and a Hollywood host in Alan Cumming. Other than the long lost party animals of the dot-com era, will anyone be crying in their beer about the loss of the '03 party at waterfront circus theater Teatro ZinZanni?

Craig Newmark, founder of popular community site (and past Webby winner) Craigslist.org, wasn't exactly fighting back tears, but was upset by the news. "I'll miss the party, since they tend to be very well done," he told me. "The glamour of the web is largely gone now, and it's now about social interaction and getting serious about business. I think the Awards will come back strong in the years to come."

While the press was largely yawning over the news, the blogosphere had a more lighthearted take on the cancellation -- especially with the Academy not even including a weblog category for awards. Detroit Free Press columnist Mike Wendland played the news relatively straight in his column yesterday; but on his blog, he had more fun with it. "Darn... I had a trip to San Francisco lined up," he joked. "But, claiming the economy and worries over SARS, terrorism and what to wear were stressing out the nomineees, organizers of the 7th Annual Webby Awards have cancelled the gala awards event."

One of the founding fathers of blogging, Dave Winer, hardly suppressed his disdain for the awards. "I never thought very much about the Webbys and don't really believe in the idea of the shows," he told me. "I've never been to any and don't feel like I missed anything. It was an obvious attempt to make the Web like TV, with geeks dressing up like Hollywood stars. I've never been nominated or invited to attend the show. Probably no great loss then, and now that they appear to be gone, probably no great loss there either."

While the show's organizers are still psyched about the virtual possibilities of a virtual show, the online world can only give a half-hearted sigh, unsure if something important has passed away or just become a shadow of its former self.