Kennedy Center Honors ratings sink with Trump hosting: '35% decline from 2024'

WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump’s hosting of the Kennedy Center Honors marked a notable shift for the annual event, but not in the way supporters may have expected. Television ratings for the ceremony fell sharply, drawing 35 per cent fewer viewers compared to last year, as per reports.

Trump became the first President to personally host the awards show, which aired on Tuesday night, December 23. He had claimed that 'everybody else in America' wanted him to take center stage. However, Nielsen data painted a different picture, showing a significant 35 per cent drop in audience interest.

Viewership drops sharply as Trump hosts annual ceremony

The Kennedy Center Honors drew widespread attention this year, largely because President Donald Trump served as host. Despite the heightened buzz, viewership for the televised ceremony dropped sharply, as per Programming Insider report.

The awards show aired on CBS on December 23 and recorded its lowest audience ever. It averaged an estimated 2.65 million viewers, according to Programming Insider. As the outlet noted, “To put that in perspective: the 2024 broadcast averaged 4.1 million.”

Trump delivered opening remarks at the ceremony held on December 7, speaking for about 12 minutes. However, The Washington Post reported that CBS edited his speech down to just two minutes for the television broadcast.

Trump's Kennedy Center Honors 

At the 48th annual Kennedy Center Honors, held on Tuesday, December 7, Trump hosted the ceremony and the country recognized a group of cultural icons for their lifetime achievements.

The honorees included actor Sylvester Stallone, country music legend George Strait, disco singer Gloria Gaynor, rock band KISS, and British stage and screen actor Michael Crawford.

Performances and tributes featured artists inspired by the honorees, and the event drew a mix of celebrities and arts figures to celebrate their contributions to American culture. 

According to an internal email obtained by The Washington Post, CBS leadership explained that the network would keep referring to the venue and ceremony as the 'Kennedy Center,' noting that any official name change would require congressional approval.

The email stated, “If the president or other administration officials use the new name in a soundbite, that is their prerogative.” A follow-up message to staffers reportedly reinforced the guidance, saying, “We should NOT be calling it Trump Kennedy Center, or the Trump Kennedy Center Honors, unless quoting from those who don’t realize an official name change only comes from Congress.”

The reported renaming effort drew sharp criticism from members of the Kennedy family, including Maria Shriver, President John F Kennedy’s niece and grandson, Jack Schlossberg.