All posts tagged: Kennedy Center

Kennedy Center Defends Trump-Hosted Honors Ratings Performance

Kennedy Center Defends Trump-Hosted Honors Ratings Performance

Published by Daniella Wilson

The Kennedy Center is defending the ratings performance for the 2025 Honors, hosted by Donald Trump, which saw the show reach an all-time viewership low. “Comparing this year’s broadcast ratings to prior years is a classic apples-to-oranges comparison and evidence of far-left bias,” Roma Daravi, vp of public relations for the Kennedy Center, said in a statement shared with The Hollywood Reporter. “The program performed extremely well across key demographics and platforms, despite industry and timing disadvantages, including a Tuesday air date two days before Christmas.” On Tuesday, Nielsen Live + Same Day Panel + Big Data reported the 2025 Kennedy Center Honors averaged 4.1 million viewers, meaning this year’s show dropped 26 percent in viewership year-on-year. However, since the 2024 honors, Nielsen shifted its methodology, launching its “Big Data + Panel” system that combines its traditional panel data with data from smart TVs and set-top boxes. The 2024 show was broadcast on a Sunday with an NFL lead-in, the Kennedy Center outlined on background. “With overall television usage down roughly 20 percent year over …

Trump Kennedy Center Renaming Prompts New Round of Cancellations

Trump Kennedy Center Renaming Prompts New Round of Cancellations

Published by Daniella Wilson

The Kennedy Center is ending the year with a new round of artists saying they are canceling scheduled performances after President Donald Trump‘s name was added to the facility, prompting the institution’s president to accuse the performers of making their decisions because of politics. The Cookers, a jazz supergroup that has performed together for nearly two decades, announced their withdrawal from “A Jazz New Year’s Eve” on their website, saying the “decision has come together very quickly” and acknowledging frustration from those who may have planned to attend. Doug Varone and Dancers, a dance group based in New York, said in an Instagram post late Monday they would pull out of a performance slated for April, saying they “can no longer permit ourselves nor ask our audiences to step inside this once great institution.” Those moves come after musician Chuck Redd canceled a Christmas Eve performance last week. They also come amid declining sales for tickets to the venue, as well as news that viewership for the Dec. 23 broadcast of the Kennedy Center Honors …

Kennedy Center Honors Ratings Drop Following Trump-Hosted Show

Kennedy Center Honors Ratings Drop Following Trump-Hosted Show

Published by Daniella Wilson

The Kennedy Center Honors ratings indicate a drop in viewership this year, with the 2025 telecast averaging 3.01 million viewers, according to a Nielsen report CBS shared with The Washington Post. One year earlier, the 2024 Kennedy Center Honors reached an all-time ratings low of 4.1 million viewers. In total, the 2025 show decreased in viewership by 26 percent. This year’s ceremony was hosted by President Donald Trump, where Sylvester Stallone, Kiss, Gloria Gaynor, Michael Crawford and George Strait we honored. During the show, which was taped on Dec. 7, the president predicted that the broadcast would draw in the best ratings yet. He shared a similar sentiment during an event held a day before the Honors were filmed. “I believe — and I’m gonna make a prediction — this will be the highest-rated show that they’ve ever done, and they’ve gotten some pretty good ratings, but there’s nothing like what’s gonna happen tomorrow night,” Trump said. “We never had a president hosting the awards before. This is a first. I’m sure they’ll give me great …

A Former South Park Writer Gambled on Donald Trump’s Kennedy Center Renaming Plan—And Won

A Former South Park Writer Gambled on Donald Trump’s Kennedy Center Renaming Plan—And Won

Published by Sam Flores

At trumpkennedycenter.org, for example, one will find a site that suggests visitors “Ring in the New Year with a performance by The Epstein Dancers,” presumably a reference to Trump’s history with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. An altered logo for the center appears below, blackened by redactions similar to those found in the recently released files from the Department of Justice investigation into Epstein’s crimes. “Welcome to TrumpKennedyCenter.org,” a note on the site reads. “A national cultural center dedicated to legacy, loyalty, and the careful presentation of history. Here, tradition is preserved, narratives are curated, and performances are elevated beyond mere art. What is remembered matters. What is omitted matters more. We invite you to experience culture as authority, pageantry as truth, and excellence as defined by those in power.” It’s unclear how long that URL will be useful, however. On Monday, Democratic Representative Joyce Beatty of Ohio filed a lawsuit to force the removal of Trump’s name from the center, saying in her filing that the name change violates the Constitution. “Only Congress has …