Best Director Oscar Nominations 2013: Kathryn Bigelow and Ben Affleck Snubbed

Culture

The list of the 2013 Academy Awards nominees was announced this morning and the big snubs seem to be in the director's category. Kathryn Bigelow, Ben Affleck, and Tom Hooper were all left out of the category even though their films (Zero Dark Thirty, Argo, and Les Miserables) were all nominated for Best Picture. The most political of these slights seems to be the omission of Bigelow who has been scrutinized by the media for her film's portrayal of torture. The other two omissions can, thereotically, be more easily understood. 

The list of Best Director nominees is as follows: 

David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook

What do you think of this Best Director list? Would you have added those three in? Left them out?