Greetings and God bless. Welcome to another episode of Pass the Mike. I'm your host

Tyler Burns and I wanted to come to you before we kick off this episode to give some framing

for today's conversation. Now I have to admit to you guys and some of you already know this but I am a fan of award shows

While live tweeting our reactions to these decisions has enhanced the award show experience. I have to tell you even before social media was a thing,

I just love sitting down and watching people receive recognition,

whether it was film, music, sports, it didn't matter.

And I don't know why.

Maybe it's because these events so often

take on this sporting element of rooting for your favorites.

Or maybe it's that I appreciate people receiving well-deserved acknowledgement for their labor and their creativity.

But whatever it is, any awards show that comes on is something I usually sit down and watch.

I don't know what it is. But there's a double-edged sword to these

award shows. While they can give much deserved acknowledgement to creatives who have earned these honors,

they can also stir up inevitable controversy.

Last week at the Academy Awards, the most prestigious award show in the film industry,

they gave out their highest award, picture to the movie Green Book.

And the Oscar goes to Greenbook.

Greenbook is a film that documents the African-American classical and jazz pianist Don Shirley, played

by Meher Shalah Ali, an Italian American bouncer Tony Valolonga played by Vigo Mortenson, who served as Shirley's

driver and bodyguard.

Now according to the film, the two men developed an unlikely friendship through this dangerous

journey to concert stops in the racist American

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