Hollywood may have laughed when Emmys host Michael Che said the only white people who thank Jesus are “Republicans and ex-crackheads,” but Tinseltown’s latest middle finger to Middle America fell flat in flyover country, and may have contributed to the telecast’s all-time low viewership.
Co-host Michael Che left many viewers of the 70th Annual Emmy Awards upset during the opening monologue with his fellow “Saturday Night Live” star Colin Jost, explaining that his mother would not be watching the show on Monday night.
“She says she doesn’t like watching white award shows because you guys don’t thank Jesus enough,” Che said. “That’s true. The only white people that thank Jesus are Republicans and ex-crackheads.”
The joke didn’t sit well with some viewers, who took to Twitter to complain. Not only that, the show’s ratings dropped 10 percent from last year’s already-dismal numbers, setting an all-time low, according to TheWrap.
The ratings are in, they prove the only people watching the #Emmys were in the audience at the performance.
— Chuck Woolery Tribute (@chuckwoolery) September 18, 2018
Wow! Ratings for last nite's Emmys hit an all-time record low. How could that be? TV is losing middle America is one reason. The punch lines may have have been funny (some of the jokes were flat). But this one-sided approach, beating up one political target, is a loser's game.
— John Aidan Byrne (@JohnAidanByrne) September 18, 2018
Now, the numbers are in and they are lower than anyone could imagine.
From Deadline:
In the final numbers, last year’s Emmys snared 11.8 million viewers and a 2.5 rating among adults 18-49. That translated into matching the previous viewership low of the Jimmy Kimmel-hosted 2016 Emmys and a new low among the key demographic. Those record lows, based on the first set of numbers we are looking at today, appear very likely to be eclipsed this year.
Even in a small-screen environment where the likes of the Academy Awards and the Grammys have experienced up to 20% ratings drops of late, the early numbers for the Emmys are surprising.
It’s clear that people have just had enough.
