Academy Awards Toughens Rules for Best Song

An Academy Award for best song may not be presented next year if there is no "music that is good enough," according to MSNBC. Next year's Oscars require that at least one song must score a minimum of 8.25 on a scale of 6-10. Voting members of the Academy's music branch determine the scores for the songs.

"We're trying to improve the quality," said Bruce Broughton, who leads the music branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. "There's been a lot of talk about the songs in films, the lack of memorability compared to songs in the past, the almost forgetability of some of them. . . . This is an attempt to really make the songs as good as possible."

The music branch, which consists of nearly 230 members, rates the songs after watching them in a marathon screening or on a DVD compilation, according to MSNBC. If no song scores at least an 8.25, then there will be no best song. Also, if only one song scores well, then that song and the second highest scoring song will be the nominees for that category. The number of nominees for best song can vary from two to five, depending on how many reach the minimum score.