Hugo Scandal Developments Include WSFS Reorganization
The latest announcement of resignations and changes in response to the fallout from the 2023 Hugo Awards gets way into the management weeds:
The World Science Fiction Society (www.wsfs.org, WSFS) is an unincorporated non-profit association whose activities include the annual awarding of the Hugo Awards via the selected World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon) each year. WSFS, through its Mark Protection Committee (MPC), manages Worldcon Intellectual Property (WIP), a non-profit corporation that holds intellectual property on behalf of WSFS, which previously issued a Press Release on January 30 addressing some of these issues.
WSFS members are the members of the current Worldcon, if one is currently happening, or else of the next Worldcon. The current WSFS membership consists of the membership of Glasgow 2024, this year’s Worldcon (Glasgow, Scotland, August 8-12).
Membership in a convention granting membership in the organization that runs it is not unique to Worldcon. What is unique to WSFS is that it has no separate board of directors. Its annual business meeting is held at Worldcon, run by convention staff. Each individual Worldcon also administers WSFS functions such as site selection and the Hugo Awards.
WSFS maintains a few permanent committees which may meet throughout the year, of which the Mark Protection Committee is one. In addition to managing WIP, the MPC has also been responsible for the Hugo Awards Marketing Committee (HAMC), which has been running wsfs.org and associated websites.
On to the main announcements:
Dave McCarty has resigned as a Member of the WSFS MPC. The MPC has elected Bruce Farr to fill the remainder of Dave McCarty’s term until the 2024 WSFS Business Meeting. Thereby Mr. Farr automatically became a voting member of the WIP Board of Directors (BoD).
Kevin Standlee has resigned as Chair of the WSFS MPC and Donald Eastlake has been elected Chair of the WSFS MPC. Notwithstanding his resignation as Chair of both the WSFS MPC and the WIP BoD, Mr. Standlee remains a WSFS MPC Member and WIP BoD Director.
The Hugo Award Marketing Committee (HAMC) of the WSFS MPC has been dissolved and its activities transferred to the WSFS Marketing Committee, an advisory board to the WIP BoD. At this time those activities include the management of the WSFS.org, Worldcon.org, TheHugoAwards.org, and NASFiC.org web sites.
To avoid any possibility of confusion, note that the “Tianwen Program” is not a part of WSFS and has not been approved or endorsed by the WSFS MPC or WIP.
Minutes of the special meetings of the WIP BoD held on January 28 and 30 and minutes of the meeting of the WSFS MPC on January 30 are posted at www.wsfs.org/committees/mark-protection-committee/mpc-minutes/.
Further changes may be on the horizon. Multiple efforts are underway to write proposals for this year’s business meeting to give WSFS more of a separate identity. This may include removing the work of administering the Hugos from individual committees to a permanent body, and empowering WSFS to revoke permission from seated Worldcons to use the WSFS marks (“World Science Fiction Convention”, “Hugo Awards”, etc.).
In Brief
Mark Merlino aka Sy Sable, co-founder of Confurence, the first furry convention, and later Califur, died February 20.
Remembrances: Ask Papa Bear • Dogpatch Press • Biography at WikiFurThe only bid to officially file to host the World Science Fiction Convention in 2026 is LA in 2026. Bid documents are available through the Site Selection page for this year’s Worldcon. Another bid for 2026, originally for Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, but later moved to Cairo, has been on hold since last year.
The Pegasus Awards for Excellence in Filking have opened their brainstorming poll (not a ballot) for 2024, through May 1. The nominating ballot will come after that. The awards will be presented at the Ohio Valley Filk Fest 40 (Worthington, Ohio, October 25-27).
Indiana Comic Convention (Indianapolis, Indiana, March 22-24) has added Hayden Christensen, Mary McDonnell, Bruce Greenwood, Mark Pellegrino, Shameik Moore, Emanuelle Vaugier, Manu Bennett, and Samantha Smith as guests.
Spooky Empire (Orlando, Florida, May 17-19) has added Kathryn Newton as a guest.
Tampa Bay Comic Convention (Tampa, Florida, August 23-25) has added Charlie Cox, Vincent D’onofrio, Chris Edgerly, Zachary Levi, Mela Lee, Paul Williams, John Glover, and Denise Crosby as guests.
FanX Salt Lake (Salt Lake City, September 26-28), has added Susan Sarandon, Anthony Daniels, Bonnie Wright, Charlet Chung, John Schneider, Lindsay Wagner, Lee Majors, Paul Williams, Lana Parilla, Wil Wheaton, and Randy Quaid as guests.
The Uncanny Experience (Minneapolis, Minnesota, September 28-29) has added Eric and Julia Lewald as special guests.
Event Calendar
Weekend of March 1-3
CoastCon 46, Biloxi, Mississippi, USA
Picocon 41: The Menagerie, London, UK
Ret-Con 2024, Cary, North Carolina, USA
Cor41u (fanzines), Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Cardboard*Con: Ye Olde Cardboard Con 15 (cardboard sf costuming), Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Gdakon (anthropomorphic), Gdansk, Poland
Wild Wild West Steampunk Convention 12, Tucson, Arizona, USA
Evercon 24 (gaming), Rothschild, Wisconsin, USA
SaltCON Spring (gaming), Layton, Utah, USA
Tennessee Game Days Spring 2024, Franklin, Tennessee, USA
GAD-CON 2024 (gaming), Aberdeen, Maryland, USA
CincyCon 2024 (gaming), Hamilton, Ohio, USA
Cold Barrage 2024 (miniatures gaming), Havre de Grace, Maryland, USA
Games With Trains, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Intercon V: Voices (LARPs), Warwick, Rhode Island, USA
Kawacon: 3 Wishes (anime), San Antonio, Texas, USA
SwampCon Cirque du Gator (anime), Gainesville, Florida, USA
Made in Asia (anime), Brussels, Belgium
Anime Crossroads 2024, Plainfield, Indiana, USA
ExpOtaku Almería 2024 (anime), Almería, Spain
Puchicon NJ (anime), Teaneck, New Jersey, USA
Hall of Heroes Comic Con, Elkhart, Indiana, USA
Emerald City Comic Con, Seattle, Washington, USA
Sunrise Comic Con, Sunrise, Florida, USA
Cult Classic Convention (media), Bastrop, Texas, USA
KhromaKon (media), Baltimore, Maryland, USA
PeoriaCon 2024 (media), Peoria, Illinois, USA
House of Mouse Expo (Disney-owned media), Kissimmee, Florida, USA
Weekend of March 8-10
Cleveland ConCoction, Aurora, Ohio, USA
MarsCon 2024, Bloomington, Minnesota, USA
Pulp Fiction Central, Dania Beach, Florida, USA
Fur the More: Arthurian Legends (anthropomorphic), Arlington, Virginia, USA
VancouFur 2024: Claws & Clockwork (anthropomorphic), Surrey, British Columbia, Canada
14. Bremer Spiele-Tage (gaming), Bremen, Germany
Granite Game Summit, Nashua, New Hampshire, USA
Gratislavia (gaming), Wrocław, Poland
Dice Tower West (gaming), Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
ShushCon 2024 (gaming), Pawleys Island, South Carolina, USA
MidWinter ‘24 (gaming), Haugesund, Norway
TezalCon (video games), Daleville, Alabama, USA
PrinceCon 47 (marathon RPG), Princeton, New Jersey, USA
Lost Golaricon 2024: Once More With Feeling (Pathfinder & Starfinder RPGs), Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
MinamiCon 29 (anime), Southampton, UK
Banzaicon (anime), Columbia, South Carolina, USA
Mississippi Anime Fest, Jackson, Mississippi, USA
Anime Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
Wilkes Comic Con, North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, USA
Japan Expo Marseille (anime), Marseille, France
ACEcon 2024 (anime), Palm Harbor, Florida, USA
Kikori Con 2024 (anime), Flagstaff, Arizona, USA
Power Comicon, Florence, South Carolina, USA
Collective Con (media), Jacksonville, Florida, USA
Dublin Comic Con, Dublin, Ireland
CarrierCon 2024 (media), Alameda, California, USA
TFcon (Transformers), Burbank, California, US
Weekend of March 15-17
SFW 15, Great Yarmouth, UK
Nerdi Gras 2024, Duluth, Georgia, USA
45th International Conference on the Fantastic in the Arts, Orlando, Florida, USA
GollanczFest 2024 (sf books), London, UK
Gateway Fur Meet: Murder Mystery Party (anthropomorphic), Saint Louis, Missouri, USA
Furnal Equinox: Under the Sea (anthropomorphic), Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Texas Furry Fiesta: Singularity Point (anthropomorphic), Dallas, Texas, USA
BashCon 38 (gaming), Toledo, Ohio, USA
Zuiderspel (gaming), Veldhoven, Netherlands
Ludesco (gaming), La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland
LeiriaCon (gaming), Leiria, Portugal
Terminal City Tabletop Convention (gaming), Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
AireCon (gaming), Harrogate, UK
TokenCon 2024 (gaming), Midwest City, Oklahoma, USA
Breakout 2024 (gaming), Toronto, Ontario, Canada
GOBfest (boardgames), Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Playthrough (video games), Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
Concrete Cow (RPGs), Milton Keynes, UK
Ambercon US (diceless RPGs), Livonia, Michigan, USA
Founders & Legends (D&D), Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, USA
Ani-Me Con 12.0 (anime), Fresno, California, USA
EvilleCon: Year of the Dragon (anime), Evansville, Indiana, USA
Anime New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
Colorado Anime Fest 2024, Denver, Colorado, USA
Toronto Comicon, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
All-Con (media), Dallas, Texas, USA
GalaxyCon Richmond (media), Richmond, Virginia, USA
Armageddon Expo Tauranga (media), Tauranga, New Zealand
Paris Manga Sci-Fi Show (media), Villepinte, France
Florida PolyCon (media), Lakeland, Florida, USA
Weekend of March 22-24
Picocon 41: The Menagerie, London, UK
MidSouthCon 39, Memphis, Tennessee, USA
FantaSci 2024: The Words Must Flow, Durham, North Carolina, USA
OutlantaCon/Gaylaxicon 2024 (LGBTQ+ geekdom), Atlanta, Georgia, USA
WOWCon Beyond (women in media and geekdom), Dallas, Texas, USA
Fluke 2024 (independent comics and zines), Athens, Georgia, USA
Consonance 2024 (music), Santa Clara, California, USA
Motor City Furry Con: The Lost World, Furassic Park, Ypsilanti, Michigan, USA
Thaitails Unifursity (anthropomorphic), Bangkok, Thailand
GameStorm 24, Portland, Oregon, USA
WittCon XIX: The Search for Steve (gaming), Springfield, Ohio, USA
Gary Con XVI (gaming), Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, USA
Alamo City Game Convention, San Antonio, Texas, USA
Ratinger Spieletage (gaming), Ratingen, Germany
KennyCon (gaming), Marietta, Georgia, USA
NerdCon (gaming), Robinson, Illinois, USA
Ludinord (gaming), Mons-En-Barœul, France
Great Plains Game Festival, Lincoln, Nebraska, USA
COSCON XXXIV (RPGs), Butler, Pennsylvania, USA
SIMCON 45: Time Travel! (boardgames), Rochester, New York, USA
PAX East (video games), Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Hotlead (miniatures gaming), Stratford, Ontario, Canada
Adepticon 2024 (wargaming), Schaumburg, Illinois, USA
Nadeshicon (anime), Québec City, Québec, Canada
ScottyCon (anime), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
AlmaCon (anime), Alma, Michigan, USA
Zenkaikon 2024 (anime), Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA
Tora-Con 2024 (anime), Rochester, New York, USA
Harucon 2024 (anime), Jerusalem, Israel
Atlantic Entertainment Expo (media), Charlottetown, PEI, Canada
ETSU-Con (media), Johnson City, Tennessee, USA
Weekend of March 29-31
Levitation 2024 (UK national sf convention), Telford, UK
Minicon 57, Saint Louis Park, Minnesota, USA
Norwescon 46: Into the Wylde, SeaTac, Washington, USA
Fauntastic: Greetings From Camp Critters! (anthropomorphic), Lyon, France
Las Vegas Fur Con 2024: Nuclear A-paw-calypse, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
GothCon XLVII (gaming), Göteborg, Sweden
Fastaval (gaming), Hobro, Denmark
Conpulsion 2024 (gaming), Edinburgh, UK
EyeCon 2024 (gaming), North Ryde, Australia
Scrum Con (wargaming), Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
Conquest Games Convention (RPGs), Melbourne, Australia
Louisville Arcade Expo, Louisville, Kentucky, USA
FreeCon 20 (anime), Tallahassee, Florida, USA
KokoroCon 3 (anime), Nottingham, UK
Kanpai!Con (anime), Omaha, Nebraska, USA
Anime Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Anime Detour: Glow Up!, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
MTAC Dueling Dragons (anime), Nashville, Tennessee, USA
Kawaii Kon (anime), Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
Triad Anime Convention, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA
WeebCon (anime), Allen, Texas, USA
Sakura-Con '24 (anime), Seattle, Washington, USA
Puerto Rico Comic Con, San Juan, Puerto Rico, USA
Angers Geekfest 5e Édition (media), Angers, France
My-Con (media), Orlando, Florida, USA
WonderCon 2024 (media), Anaheim, California, USA
BABSCon 2024 (My Little Pony), Burlingame, California, USA
Coda
The Florida Man Games (Associated Press)
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