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Emmys are out of touch with TV viewers
By AprillBrandon in Pop Goes the Culture
September 17, 2009

First of all, does anyone even watch award shows anymore? I mean, besides catching the Oscars this year, which I only did because Wolverine was hosting them (and Momma loves her some Wolverine), I can honestly say I haven't watched an award show since my senior year in college. And that was only because my roommates were obsessed with the VMA's.

In today's world of instant news, there is no longer a need to watch award shows when you can get all the highlights immediately afterward wrapped up in a nice, pretty Internet bow. For example, I present Exhibit A: The Kayne West/Taylor Swift scandal. Why watch three hours of acceptance speeches and cheesy host banter when you can catch a two minute clip of the best action the next day?

But according to this Reuters story on Yahoo, it's not just the ever-evolving way we consume news that is slowing killing awards shows, especially in terms of the Emmy Awards (last year's Emmys had the lowest ratings in the show's 60-year history, attracting just 12.2 million viewers). It's the ever-widening gap between what judges say are the best shows and what TV viewers think.

According to the story, the shows that typically win Emmys are far from the most popular shows on TV.

"Asked to 'turn the Emmys upside down' by voting for the stars and shows 'overlooked and snubbed,' visitors to Entertainment Weekly's website EW.com chose HBO's "True Blood" for best drama and NBC's "Chuck" for best comedy series. Neither are Emmy-nominated."

Meanwhile, shows such as "30 Rock" and "Mad Men," both winners last year, pull in a fraction of the viewers that the most popular shows get.

However, the Emmys one saving grace this year may be their host. NPH! (For those not hip to initials, that stands for Neil Patrick Harris). If Doogie is a part of it, well then, I may just have to tune in this year.

P.S. The Emmys are on Sunday, for the four of you out there that plan to tune in with me.