The 35 categories of Image Awards are voted on by members of the NAACP. There are also honorary awards, including the President's Award, the Chairman's Award, Entertainer of the Year and The Image Award Hall of Fame.
The awards were first presented in 1969.
BEYONCE "HALO" NAACP IMAGE AWARDS CRYSTAL CLEAR TOP QUALITY LIVE PERFORMANCE 2009
The awards series, normally broadcast with tape delay and aired by Fox Network, was broadcast live for the first time in 2007 for the 38th edition of the awards show. The ceremonies usually take place in or around the Los Angeles area in February or early March.
Past Shows
Controversy
The NAACP Image Awards have sometimes been the subject of controversy due to claims that certain nominees did not deserve to be honored by the NAACP.
NAACP Image Awards - Jennifer Hudson, Beyonce, Halle Berry
Janet Jackson 2008 NAACP Image Awards
For example, in 1994, Tupac Shakur was a nominee for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture for the film Poetic Justice although he had been charged in December 1993 with sexually abusing a woman. In 2004, R. Kelly's Chocolate Factory was nominated for Outstanding Album although he was under indictment at the time for charges related to child pornography.
Other nominees have faced controversy due to their portrayals of major civil rights figures.
Beyoncé - Halo (NAACP Image Awards)
BEYONCE NAACP IMAGE AWARDS ACCEPTANCE SPEECH FOR WINNING OUTSTANDING ARTIST 2009
In 2003, the movie Barbershop received five nominations including Outstanding Motion Picture and Cedric the Entertainer as Outstanding Supporting Actor.