If the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences is going to continue treating the Daytime Emmys the way they did on June 22, they should stop holding the ceremony at all.
The evening opened with four vastly inexperienced social-media hostesses “interviewing” daytime celebs, most of whom they did not recognize, on the red carpet. Along with mindlessly repeating the stock question, “Who are you wearing?” they stooped to questions like, “What’s it like being a black man on soap operas today?” Twitter immediately lit up with outrage from daytime vets and journalists aghast at the spectacle.
While the red carpet was the worst part of the night, the ceremony wasn’t much better. Host Kathy Griffin told irrelevant stories, swore with impunity and insulted winners by shouting them offstage. “Wrap it up, lady!” she screamed at The Youngand the Restless’ EP Jill Farren Phelps. ET’s Linda Bell Blue suffered similar treatment.
Daytime TV isn’t what it once was. Neither is TV. That said, you don’t see anyone swearing, screaming or falling over drunk at the Primetime Emmys. (The Golden Globes, that’s another story.) When the TV Academy hands out an Emmy, winners receive respect along with it. The TV Academy has worked hard to burnish its image to a fine glow.
Not so with NATAS. The Daytime Emmys is poorly organized and virtually unwatchable. Worse, it’s degrading to the industry it’s supposed to honor. Soaps attract millions of loyal fans and have launched the careers of many into prime. As for syndication, we would have liked to see someone try shouting Oprah off the stage. The people who work untold hours to produce these shows deserve at least two hours of respect.
