Daytime Emmys droop to record ratings low on CW

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Plenty of daytime shows are hurting for viewers. But the audience is positively fleeing the Daytime Emmys.

Sunday’s 36th Annual Daytime Emmy telecast -- which aired for two hours in prime time on the CW -- skidded to an all-time low of 2.2 million total viewers, according to preliminary data from Nielsen Media Research. That’s a 58% plunge from last year’s show on ABC.

The closing days of summer seldom produce blockbuster audiences, and on Sunday what viewers there were flocked to an NFL pre-season matchup between the Bears and the Broncos on NBC (9.9 million). But the Daytime Emmys have been drooping for years, and this year’s results are likely to raise questions about the ceremony’s future.

Those daytime fans who did tune in saw the hosts of ABC’s ‘The View’ upset repeat winner Ellen DeGeneres in the talk-show host category, while ‘Sesame Street’ took home a lifetime achievement honor.

-- Scott Collins