Venezuelan Protesters Ask Oscar Winners to Speak Up

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A woman gets ready to confront riot police during an anti-government protest in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Feb. 28, 2014.

Image: Rodrigo Abd/Associated Press

By Brian Ries2014-03-02 23:37:10 UTC

Hollywood's brightest are descending on the Dolby Theatre this evening for the 86th annual Academy Awards, but some Venezuelans are hoping they haven't finished writing their acceptance speeches quite yet.

Rallying under the hashtag #OscarsForVenezuela, Venezuelan protesters and journalists are tweeting at leading Oscar nominees to ask they mention the country when accepting their awards.

"Oscars in #Venezuela are televised repression isn't. Celebrities can accomplish what our media can't #SOSVenezuela," tweeted the Venezuelan journalist Mariana Atencio.

"Hey @KevinSpacey The Oscars in Venezuela are televised, the repression is not. Speak up," tweeted another user.

Sensing that some criticism might be coming its way during the hours-long broadcast, the Venezuelan government sought to get out ahead of the story by warning that "right-wing extremists" were asking movie stars to denounce President Nicolas Maduro's government from the stage at the awards, Reuters reported Saturday afternoon. The message was delivered by means of the Twitter account of Delcy Rodríguez, Venezuala's Minister of Communication and Information, who tweeted, "Right-wing extremists are lobbying in Hollywood, looking for pronouncements against Venezuela at the Oscars!"

While it's too soon to say if the protesters' campaign had the intended effect, it may have resulted in the broadcast being pulled from Venezuelan airways.

On Sunday afternoon, just hours before the red carpet was set to begin in Hollywood, the Twitter account for Venezualan TV network tweeted that it wouldn't be carrying the award show: "We want to report that this year we do not have the broadcast rights of the Oscars," it announced.

If true, this would mark the first time in 39 years Venezuelans would not be able to watch the ceremony.

Topics: Film, Television, US & World, Venezuela, Venezuela protests, World