In an effort to add some needed entertainment, the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and CBS had earlier decided to pre-record eight award presentations and play them in snippets throughout the ceremony. Now, because of dissent from the creative community and lack of public support from the other major networks, this “time-shift” is not going to happen.
The TV Acad had intended to pre-tape eight award presentations in the hour leading up to the 5 p.m. PT start of the live three-hour telecast from downtown L.A.’s Nokia Theater, and then run clips of those presentations throughout the telecast. Yet just two weeks after the board overwhelmingly approved the final changes, the Acad confirmed that this year’s telecast will include the usual roster of 28 kudos presented live.
The fight that erupted after the time-shifting decision was announced boiled down to a question of respect for various disciplines — the plan was to drop two awards each from the writing, directing, acting and producing fields — but also a case of critical darlings vs. mainstream hits.
It’s strange to think that 28 awards are handed out in just three hours. To me, the Emmys always seem much longer than they actually are. That’s obviously not a good thing, but the eight awards they were planning to pre-record would have been from the writing and directing categories. Since my favorite shows are nominated in those categories, I would be disappointed if they weren’t given their due in front of the national audience. After all, the writers and directors are the backbone of what makes great television. I’m all for adding extra bits of entertainment to the broadcast, but CBS never announced what they had in mind. If anything, get rid of the Guest Actor/Actress categories to make room for some extra music and comedy.
