Songwriter Bruce Broughton is not taking the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences’ decision to take back his Oscar nomination for “Alone Yet Not Alone” lightly. In an interview after AMPAS’ decision, Broughton defended his actions, saying he did nothing wrong when he emailed voters directly, asking them to consider the title song of a rarely seen Christian movie.
The Academy made the surprising decision Tuesday night. When the nomination for Alone Yet Not Alone’s song was announced, many in Hollywood were shocked because it beat out songs by Lana Del Rey, Coldplay, Taylor Swift and other stars. Almost instantly, eyebrows were raised all over town.
The Academy said Broughton violated campaigning rules by sending an email to voters to bring attention to the film, which only ran for one week in Encino to qualify. The email, which CBS News obtained, read, “I'm dropping you a line to boldly direct your attention to entry #57...This is merely a request for your consideration.”
“I didn't ask anybody to vote for it,” Broughton said. “I didn't do any promotion about the film. I didn't do anything that I understood the rules to exclude.”
Academy rules do allow for “for your consideration” campaigning and advertising, but Broughton is still a member of the music branch’s executive committee. He was also a governor until 2012.
When asked if he felt people would be pressured to voting for him since he’s a member of the Academy, Broughton disagreed. “No! No!" he told CBS News. "I don't have any position at the Academy. I haven't been an Academy governor for almost two years."
Broughton added that he will not be going to the Oscars on March 2. “Why would I do that? It's like going to have dinner with your ex-girlfriend's family,” he said.
Here’s the song Broughton almost earned an Oscar nomination for:
image: ABC