DAYTIME EMMYS TO RETURN TO CBS

The Daytime Emmy Awards will be returning to CBS this year after being relegated to the lowly CW network last year where they drew a fraction of the viewers who had tuned in in the past. However, ratings for the Daytime Emmys, presented by the New York-based National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS), had been falling for years in tandem with ratings for most daytime programs — in particular long-running soap operas. Nevertheless, network executives had always regarded the awards show as an important primetime showcase for their daytime programs. “The Daytime Emmy Awards are one of the cornerstones of our business and we are thrilled to be back on CBS,” said NATAS chairman Herb Granath in a statement. In the past, the awards ceremony was held in New York, where most daytime programming was produced. This year, however, it is scheduled to be held in Las Vegas (at the Las Vegas Hilton) on June 27 — putting it in the backyard of the West Coast Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which hands out the primetime Emmy awards. The two groups have operated independently since a 1977 schism and have mutually agreed not to invade each other’s territory.