Awards ceremonies: on or off?

The writers' strike in the US, led by the Writers Guild of America (WGA), could mean a distinct lack of stars at both the Golden Globes and Oscar ceremonies.
The strike, which started in early November, has attracted direct support from the Screen Actors Guild: its members will not cross WGA picket lines. So no column inches will be wasted on who wore what or which actress broke down in tears, etc.
This then raises the question of what worth do awards have if there is little or no press coverage of the awards themselves.
However, the organiser of the Golden Globes, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, is hopeful of finding a way for the “creative community to participate”.
Why are writers striking? Simply, it's about residuals (or what was once known as repeat fees for actors) - specifically rates for their work when downloaded or streamed or otherwise featured in new media.
The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers argues that writers are already compensated for digital downloads.
For more information, the BBC has established a decent strike backgrounder page.
As the final point of that page acknowledges, the writers' strike has impacted the livelihoods of film crews, putting them out of work.
We're unlikely to feel too much impact over here as so much US TV product is screened up to a year after initial US broadcast.
Meanwhile, the Directors Guild of America needs to kick off its own negotiations, raising the potential scenario of the writers agreeing a deal, but the industry then facing the possibility of a directors' strike if the helmers don't get the deal they want.