When it was announced back in January that NBC’s telecast of the 2014 Primetime Emmy Awards was getting bumped up to August — nearly a month earlier than last year’s September ceremony — nobody really thought much of it. After all, the Peacock network pulled a similar stunt when it aired the Emmys back in 2006 and 2010 in an attempt to avoid any conflict with Sunday Night Football. Makes sense, right? However, then it was announced that the awards show wouldn’t just be moving up a month, but would also be airing on an entirely different day of the week — a Monday, to be exact. That’s right, the Emmys will air at 8 p.m. (ET) on Monday, August 25. Say it with me now… WHAAAATTT?!?!
I mean… Monday? Really? It was a bold move, which left a lot of people scratching their heads and many West Coasters wondering what kind of excuse they could come up with in order to get out of work early. (Let’s not forget, it starts at 5 p.m. for those guys! Seriously, good luck with all that weekday LA traffic.) But that still begs the question as to why this sudden shift from a Sunday to a Monday is being made in the first place. Wanna know the last time the Emmys aired on a Monday? It was back in May of 1976 — almost 40 years ago. So what exactly is NBC thinking? Let’s break this down together, shall we?
Football Strikes (Punts?) Again
Though the actual start to the football season won’t kick off until next month, there are still the pre-season games to take into account. NBC aired a Sunday Night Football: Exhibition game, between the Bengals and Cardinals, on Sunday, August 24 during the exact time frame the Emmys would’ve inhabited. Sure, to us non-football watchers (i.e. this girl), it wouldn’t have seemed like a big deal to give up. (After all, pre-games mostly serve as just a form of practice for the players.) But football is football to a sports fan, so was bound to bring in big ratings — something the network clearly wasn’t willing to sacrifice.
Now the VMAs Wouldn’t Be an Issue
If NBC had opted to pull the plug on football and continue with the ceremony's Sunday tradition, it still would’ve been competing against MTV’s Video Music Awards, which began at 9 p.m. (ET). Truly dedicated award show fans would’ve probably been willing to jump back and forth between the two, but I doubt the Peacock wanted to risk hardcore music fans jumping ship once the clock struck nine. If they were looking for another reason other than just football to take the Monday plunge, I bet this was it.
The Same Goes for True Blood’s Series Finale
Not only did this serve as the final episode of the season, it also served as the final episode of the series in general. From here on out, there will be no more True Blood — which could've become a major factor for viewers when deciding what to watch. (Though if you’re ever facing the dilemma of watching two things at once, we have a few helpful suggestions.) But since the Emmys are now airing on Monday night rather than Sunday, Trubies weren’t forced to choose between the two. Because that would’ve truly sucked.
NBC’s Just Messing With Us Because They Know We’ll Tune In Anyway
Whether it’s Monday at 8 p.m. or Saturday at 4 a.m., any true TV lover wouldn’t dream of missing television’s biggest night for anything. Not even sleep.
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