Joan Rivers was noticeably absent from the In Memoriam Powerpoint reel at Sunday’s Academy Awards, as was fellow comedian and Broadway actress Elaine Stritch. Rivers seemed like a particularly egregious snub, because she originated and popularized red carpet fashion commentary, and was a staple on the Oscars carpet for nearly two decades.

There have been many theories as to why Rivers wasn’t included while so many other lesser-known people working behind the scenes were. I tend to think that Joan’s “bitchy outsider” status followed her in death and that she was somewhat deliberately, pointedly ignored. Time Magazine says it’s political, of course, but they claim it’s not just about Joan not being a member of the Academy or daring to criticize people in power. Time points us to the NY Times article from a few years ago that describes how hard it is to advocate that a deceased family member or friend be honored at the Oscars. It involves actual campaigning, and there’s no way to know who decides or what the process is for deciding, because it’s all clouded in secrecy. They make it sound like a secret society. Here’s Time explaining this:

An Academy spokesperson told The Hollywood Reporter that yes, Rivers was one of the many people who must be left out in any given year, but that she was included in a remembrance gallery on the Oscars website. However, Rivers (like Elaine Stritch, another comedian who was missed by many viewers) is also absent from the official Academy list of members who died in 2014. Though Rivers, who was better known for her TV work than for film roles, had plenty of big-screen credits, from Space Balls to The Smurfs, Academy membership is not automatic, so it’s entirely possible that she was not part of the group; there is no official, public list of members.

Still, an in-depth 2013 investigation by the New York Times into what goes into the making of the Oscars memorial reel — which has been a feature of the telecast since 1994 — revealed that inclusion or exclusion from the montage is not so simple as “members in, non-members out.”

For one thing, non-members are eligible for inclusion, though positive involvement with the organization always helps. (Some conspiracy theorists guessed that Rivers’ acid tongue on the red carpet might have tipped the scales against her.) For another, it’s clear that, though the committee that makes the calls is anonymous, even death isn’t the end of the Hollywood publicity race. Attempting to get a client onto that list can be the last act of PR goodwill for many a publicist.

In fact, that publicity race suggests one possible reason for the exclusion of a major name like Rivers or Stritch. The family and friends of a lesser-known Academy member may push hard to get their loved one on the memorial list, but those who speak for the most famous of the dead are less likely to think a campaign is necessary. It’s only on Oscars night that they learn the extra push might have helped.

[From Time]

This is yet another example of how insular and out of touch the Academy Awards are. The broadcast runs an hour and half to two hours too long, the jokes are tired and stale, and it’s a very white, old, privileged, insider club. If they don’t care about the ratings for the Oscars they can continue to produce this tired sh*t in which the politics overshadow the show, the nominees and the films. They’ve shown for years that they’re unwilling to change much other than switch out the hosts every year, to mixed success. (Billy Crystal hosted as recently as 2012 for God’s sake.) Less and less people are watching every year and this year had the lowest ratings in six years. That’s not due to Neil Patrick Harris by any stretch, it’s just the nature of the Oscars. They can’t even spare 3 seconds to honor the death of a comedian who brought them years of free publicity. If this wasn’t my job I would have watched the show the next day and fast forwarded through 3/4 of it. I absolutely love movies and celebrities, but even I find the Oscars tedious.

Joan’s daughter, Melissa, is reportedly hurt by the omission of her mom, but she issued a nice statement anyway. She wrote “It would have been nice, especially considering the impact she had on the awards season, but Cooperand I have been overwhelmed with support and love over my mom’s passing and we choose to focus on that.” Melissa also made a video tribute to her mom, which aired on E! before their red carpet coverage. You can see it here, it’s touching.

RIP Joan, we all remember you. Those stuffy a*holes tried to snub you, but we noticed. We won’t forget you.

The Academy didn’t include Joan Rivers its ‘Memoriam’ montage — but we made a card for her: http://t.co/kYqXgnhooX pic.twitter.com/PW7Swd6VdN

— Mashable (@mashable) February 23, 2015

#JoanRivers responds to In Memoriam snub #Oscars2015 pic.twitter.com/c1bhgwaNCO

— Chris Azzopardi (@chrisazzopardi) February 23, 2015

No Joan Rivers in the montage??? She basically created the red carpet which makes all of these bitches millions. For shame!!!

— billy eichner (@billyeichner) February 23, 2015

Photo credit: WENN.com and Mashable