Emmy Ratings Drop To All-Time Low Despite Move To Monday Night

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) - The 2018 Primetime Emmy Awards drew a record-low audience, according to the latest Nielsen data released Tuesday.

An average of 10.212 million viewers watched the Monday evening ceremony broadcast from the Microsoft Theater in downtown Los Angeles, erasing the previous low of 11.394 set in 2016.

While the previous two Emmys broadcasts aired opposite "Sunday Night Football," this year's ceremony aired opposite an ESPN "Monday Night Football" game, which traditionally draws a smaller audience than "Sunday Night Football."

Another factor: the 5 p.m. start in the Pacific Time Zone, which meant many potential viewers were not at home for a least a portion of the ceremony, a challenge the Emmys did not face the previous two years when it aired on a Sunday.

Viewership for nearly all forms of programming has declined in recent years, both partially the result of increased viewership of streamed versions of programming simultaneously broadcast over the air and viewership of exclusively streamed programming.

The Primetime Emmy Awards annually rotate among the four major broadcast networks.

(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)