November 19, 2020
Despite Controversy, Ellen Takes People's Choice Award
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 2 MIN.
From being the "Be Nice" lady to the alleged "Queen of Mean" and facing slumping ratings and a waning influence on social media in the wake of a scandal, Ellen DeGeneres bounced back to claim the People's Choice Award, USA Today reports.
Ellen claimed the prize for best daytime talk show during the annual awards ceremony on Nov. 15, prevailing over fellow nominees "The View," "Today," "The Wendy Williams Show," and "The Kelly Clarkson Show." The awards are driven by a popular vote in which the public can cast their votes online for their favorites, with the ceremony being presented by E!
The out comedian expressed gratitude to her staff and fans for the win. "I say thank you to the people, thanks for all of my fans for supporting me, for sticking by me," USA Today quoted Ellen as saying. "I cannot tell you how grateful I am and what this means to me. It's more than I can possibly tell you. Especially right now."
Ellen notched the win despite last summer's scandalous allegations of back-stage conditions on her show, including workplace harassment, sexual misconduct, racial insensitivity, a toxic environment, and Ellen herself being very different behind the scenes than the kindly persona she projects for the camera.
Three of the show's producers were fired as a result.
Ellen tackled those issues head-on when her show returned for an 18th season in September, telling the audience, "I learned that things happened here that never should have happened. I take that very seriously and I want to say I am so sorry to the people that were affected.
"I know that I am in a position of privilege and power and with that comes responsibility and I take responsibility for what happens at my show," Ellen added.
Not everyone was in a forgiving mood, with a Twitter backlash following the award, Cinemablend reports.
"Meanwhile, one viewer was of the opinion that something just wasn't right with the People's Choice Awards' voting methods this year," CinemaBlend reported. "(Probably not the best accusation to make considering everything going on with the U.S. presidential election, but so be it.)," the article added.
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
