The CBS telecast of the 69th Emmy Awards was watched by about 11.4 million viewers on Sunday, roughly equaling last year’s audience level.
The good news for CBS is the number did not decline from 2016, when the broadcast aired on ABC and hit an all-time low.
Ratings for the Emmys have been on a downward slide since the 2013 telecast hosted by Neil Patrick Harris on CBS, which was watched by 17.7 million viewers, according to Nielsen data.
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Presenter Oprah Winfrey and Emmy winner Elisabeth Moss of “The Handmaid’s Tale†after the show won the Emmy for drama series.
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Elizabeth Moss receives her Emmy for lead actress in a drama series (“The Handmaid’s Taleâ€) from Tatiana Maslany and Jeffrey D. Morgan.
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Elisabeth Moss hugs co-star Joseph Fiennes along with the cast of “The Handmaid’s Tale†after they won the drama series award during the 69th Emmy Awards at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles.
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Bruce Miller and the cast congratulates Elisabeth Moss of “The Handmaid’s Tale†after they won drama series.
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Cast and crew of “Veep†accept the comedy series award onstage.
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Nicole Kidman reacts to “Big Little Lies†winning the limited series Emmy.
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Nicole Kidman accepts the award for lead actress in a limited series or a movie for “Big Little Lies.â€
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Reese Witherspoon, center, accepts for “Big Little Lies†afer winning the Emmy fpr limited series.
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Nicole Kidman with the Emmy for lead actress in a limited series or movie for “Big Little Lies.â€
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Sterling K. Brown accepting his Emmy for lead actor in a drama series for “This Is Us.â€
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Alec Baldwin accepts his Emmy for supporting actor in a comedy series.
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Host Stephen Colbert being carried offstage in a scripted performance.
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A tender moment on stage is shared between actors Anna Faris and Allison Janney, the stars of TV comedy series “Mom.â€
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Anika Noni Rose and Cecily Tyson present the Emmy for limited series or movie.
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Charlie Brooker accepts the award for outstanding television movie for “Black Mirror: San Junipero.â€
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Charlie Brooker and “Black Mirror: San Junipero†win for television movie.
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Riz Ahmed wins for lead actor in a limited series or movie for “The Night Of.â€
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Norman Lear and Carol Burnett present comedy series.
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Julia Louis-Dreyfus returns to the stage with Norman Lear and Carol Burnett after her show “Veep†wins for comedy series.
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Julia Louis-Dreyfus wins lead actress in a comedy series for “Veep.â€
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Julia Louis-Dreyfus wins lead actress in a comedy series.
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Former White House press secretary Sean Spicer appears onstage during the 69th Emmy Awards at Microsoft Theater.
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Chris Hardwick presents Julia Louis-Dreyfus her Emmy as she wins lead actress in a comedy series.
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Julia Louis-Dreyfus and her husband Brad Hall react in the audience.
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LOS ANGELES, CA., ††September 17, 2017: Sterling K. Brown accepting his Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series†during the show at the 69th Emmy Awards at the Microsoft Theater†in Los Angeles, CA., Sunday, September 17, 2017. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
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Oprah Winfrey speaks onstage before presenting the award for drama series.
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A tender moment between actors Anna Faris and Allison Janney, the stars of TV comedy series “Mom.â€
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Actresses Anika Noni Rose, left, and Cicely Tyson present the award for limited series.
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John Oliver of “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver†accept the award for variety talk series.
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Actors Jessica Biel and Joseph Fiennes onstage.
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Executive producer David Mandel and the cast and crew of “Veep†accept the award for comedy series for “Veep.â€
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Reed Morano accepts her award after winning the Emmy for directing for a drama series.
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Jean-Marc Vallée accepts his Emmy for directing in a limited series or movie (“Big Little Liesâ€).
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“Ghosted†actors Craig Robinson, left, and Adam Scott present the award for directing for a variety series.
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Christopher Jackson sings as a picture of Adam West appears on-screen during an in memoriam tribute at the 69th Emmy Awards.
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“Big Bang Theory†actor Jim Parsons and “Young Sheldon†actor Iain Armitage during the show.
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“Star Trek: Discovery’s†Sonequa Martin-Green and “Entourage†actor Jeremy Piven during the show.
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Writers Aziz Ansari and Lena Waithe accept the writing in a comedy series award for “Master of None.â€
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Seth MacFarlane and Emmy Rossum onstage during the 69th Emmy Awards.
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Actress Viola Davis
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Kaitlin Olsen and Tracee Ellis Ross onstage during the 69th Emmy Awards.
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Kate McKinnon accepts her Emmy for supporting actress in a comedy series Sunday during the 69th Emmy Awards at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles.
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Actor Christopher Jackson performs during the in-memoriam section of the 2017 Emmys.
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The cast and crew of “The Voice†wins the Emmy for reality competition program.
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Laura Dern accepts her Emmy for supporting actress in a limited series or movie during the 69th Primetime Emmy Awards.
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Television Academy President Hayma Washington onstage during the 69th Emmy Awards.
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Donald Glover accepts the award for directing a comedy series for the “Atlanta†episode “B.A.N.†at the 69th Emmy Awards.
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LOS ANGELES, CA., September 17, 2017: Ann Dowd accepts the award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for ‘The Handmaids Tale’ during the show at the 69th Emmy Awards at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, CA., Sunday, September 17, 2017. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
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Seth Meyers, left, and James Corden speak onstage during the 69th Emmy Awards.
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Singer Jon Batiste performs onstage during the 69th Emmy Awards at Microsoft Theater.
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Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman in the audience at the 69th Emmy Awards.
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Rachel Bloom performs onstage during the 69th Emmy Awards, introducing the accountants.
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Ernst & Young representatives appear onstage during the 69th Emmy Awards.
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Actor Alexander Skarsgard accepts for supporting actor in a limited series or movie for “Big Little Lies†with Dolly Parton, left, and Lily Tomlin during the 69th Emmy Awards.
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Director Jean-Marc Vallée accepts the directing for a limited series, movie or dramatic special award for “Big Little Lies†onstage during the 69th Emmy Awards at Microsoft Theater.
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Lorne Michaels and the cast of “SNL†accept the award for outstanding variety sketch series for “Saturday Night Live†at the 69th Emmy Awards.
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Dave Chappelle and Melissa McCarthy speak onstage during the 69th Emmy Awards at the Microsoft Theater.
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The band Stay Human performs during the show at the 69th Emmy Awards.
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Host Stephen Colbert doing his monologue during the 69th Emmy Awards.
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Host Stephen Colbert is led offstage by costumed individuals recalling characters from HBO’s “Westworld.â€
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Actors Issa Rae of “Insecure†and Riz Ahmed of “The Night Of†speak onstage.
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Actors Gina Rodriguez (“Jane the Virginâ€) and Shemar Moore (“Criminal Mindsâ€) speak onstage during the 69th Emmy Awards.
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Host Stephen Colbert speaks at the 69th Primetime Emmy Awards at the Microsoft Theater.
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Actor Laura Dern, left, reacts when her name is read as the winner of the Emmy for supporting actress in a limited series or movie for “Big Little Lies.â€
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Actor Laura Dern accepts supporting actress in a limited series or movie for “Big Little Lies.â€
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Host Stephen Colbert dances onstage during the 69th Emmy Awards.
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Actors Shailene Woodley, left, Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon, Laura Dern and Zoe Kravitz of “Big Litle Lies†speak onstage during the 69th Emmy Awards.
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John Lithgow accepts his Emmy for supporting actor in a drama series for “The Crown.â€
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Host Stephen Colbert performs onstage during the 69th Emmy Awards.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) Audience levels for all live awards shows have slipped in recent years, as a growing number of younger viewers prefer to watch clips of them online or live online streams of the broadcasts. The Emmy Awards were available to subscribers of CBS All Access, the streaming service that carries the network’s programming. No data was available on how many people watched the CBS stream.
But the sluggish ratings for the Emmys is also likely to raise the question as to whether the ceremony is putting off some viewers because it has become too political. The show was packed with barbs against President Trump by host Stephen Colbert and Emmy winner Alec Baldwin. There were also earnest speeches stating opposition to his administration.
The Emmy Awards is also suffering from the same challenge facing the Oscars, which rarely recognizes big box office hits. Television’s highest honor now celebrates programs on streaming services that are not as widely known as the biggest hits on cable and broadcast network TV.
For example, NBC’s “This Is Us,†the breakout hit of last season, only earned one award — Sterling K. Brown for best actor in a drama series. Broadcast networks ABC, CBS and PBS had no winners and scant representation among the nominees recognized on the broadcast.
“The Handmaid’s Tale,†available only on the streaming service Hulu, was the winner of the best drama award. It was the first time a series from a streaming service was honored in the top category.
HBO won the most honors of the night with 10, thanks to its movie star-studded limited series “Big Little Lies.â€
Streaming services were aware of the major exposure they get on the Emmy Awards. Both Netflix and Hulu advertised in the program.
The Emmy Awards telecast had its highest rating in West Palm Beach, Fla., where it averaged a 12.3 rating. It scored a 12.2 rating in New York and a 9.0 rating in Los Angeles. A rating point represents a percentage of the TV households tuned in.
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Twitter: @SteveBattaglio
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