December 19, 2025 - Week in Review: The Oscars on YouTube, Rob Reiner, and Santa's beard

On this edition of The Culture Show, Culture Show co-hosts Jared Bowen, Callie Crossley and Edgar B. Herwick III go over the latest headlines on our arts and culture week-in-review.First up, Hollywood’s biggest night is getting a new home. The Academy Awards will leave broadcast television and stream exclusively on YouTube beginning with the 101st Oscars in 2029, ending a more than five-decade run on ABC and signaling a major shift in how global audiences gather for live cultural events.Plus the entertainment industry gets its annual checkup. UCLA’s Hollywood Diversity Report tracks who holds power on screen and behind the camera — and finds progress remains uneven, with representation still lagging behind the diversity of today’s audiences.Then, a long-overdue honor for Donna Summer. The Queen of Disco was posthumously inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, recognized for writing and co-writing the hits that reshaped pop and dance music, from “I Feel Love” to “She Works Hard for the Money” and “Bad Girls.”And, a farewell to Rob Reiner. From playing “Meathead” on All in the Family to directing films like This Is Spinal Tap, The Princess Bride, and When Harry Met Sally…, Reiner’s work reshaped comedy, romance, and character-driven filmmaking.Finally, we split hairs over splitting hairs – from year-round whiskered Santas and organized beard-natural groups to professional Santas investing in hyper-real yak-hair wigs, the debate over whether Santa should grow his own beard or wear one is very much alive.