While Sean Spicer vowed during a controversial appearance at the 2017 Emmy awards that the program would have “largest audience to witness an Emmys, period,” the former press secretary for President Donald Trump could not have been more wrong.
Much like his claim that Trump’s inauguration was the most-watched ever, even Spicer’s gag about the Emmys proved false: The 69th annual Emmy Awards ended up tying for the program’s smallest audience ever. Ratings for the Emmys, broadcast on CBS and hosted by Stephen Colbert, drew about 11.38 million viewers, tying last year’s ratings. The 2016 Emmys on ABC already held the all-time lowest rating in the award show’s history, Entertainment Weekly reports. Emmys ratings have fallen in recent years; 2015 marked a previous all-time low with 11.9 million viewers.
The Emmys were overshadowed by the NFL, EW reports, which drew about 18.4 million viewers as the Atlanta Falcons faced the Green Bay Packers.