Ratings were not the only numbers down at this year’s Emmy Awards. No actor of color won an award during the televised ceremony.
Monday marked the 78th Emmy Awards, which drew about 6.7 million viewers, nearly 10% fewer than last year. The ceremony aired on NBC and streamed on Peacock while competing with ESPN’s “Monday Night Football” matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and Denver Broncos. It also moved from CBS and Paramount+, which carried the ceremony last year as part of the Emmys’ rotation among broadcast networks.
Representation among the acting nominees declined as well. 17 performers of color were nominated in this year’s lead and supporting acting categories, down from 28 last year, according to Variety. That represents a decline of nearly 40%.
Christian Cuevas, a graduate student in the cinematic arts, film and television production program, said the results reflect a broader problem with representation at prestigious award shows such as the Emmys.
“It’s not built for us,” Cuevas said. “We have to build within our own communities. These shows aren’t made for us to be the cream of the crop, if involved at all.”
Cuevas questioned whether people of color should continue seeking recognition from institutions he believes have excluded them.
“Should we keep chasing access to a club that clearly doesn’t want you as a member?” Cuevas said.
Cuevas was not alone in questioning the industry’s commitment to representation.
For some students, that frustration has turned into disengagement from major award shows.
Julian Fontenot, a student majoring in game development and interactive design, said he does not regularly follow the Emmys or other major award ceremonies. He said the absence of acting winners of color during the broadcast did not surprise him.
“People of color tend to get snubbed in these kinds of ways,” Fontenot said. “Instead of making it into the general categories, it has to be an award strictly for their culture.”
The process for selecting those nominees and winners begins with the Television Academy.
The Television Academy is a professional membership organization that has more than 27,000 members. Members are divided into peer groups based on their areas of work in television. For acting categories, eligible members of the Performers Peer Group vote to determine the nominees and winners.
According to the Television Academy’s 2026 rules, members had until Aug. 26 to submit their final-round votes. The votes were then tabulated by an independent accounting firm to determine the winners.
The academy’s membership remains predominantly white. According to its 2026 Transparency Report, 67% of members who voluntarily reported their race identified as white, down from 69.2% in 2025. The academy reported no notable year-over-year change in the overall racial makeup of its membership.
Grace Molina, a USC junior studying musical theater, said she was surprised that no performers of color won acting awards during the televised ceremony.
“It makes me think that the industry pretends representation is important,” Molina said. “But the reality is they stick to traditionalism.”
Although the percentage of white members declined slightly, the report does not show how individual members voted or prove that the academy’s demographics caused this year’s results.
The question still remains: Who does the industry choose to value?
Edited By Leo Li and Fashion Castillo