The Amazing Race

If the falling ratings are any indication, some of you might think that the Emmy Awards are already too bloated and overstuffed with boring categories.  I know I could do without those miniseries and TV movie awards, especially since the networks rarely bother making them anymore.  Considering that the Emmys consistently run long and put many viewers to sleep, I'd think that if they planned to create a new award category it would have to be a pretty important one.  I am baffled, then, by Variety's report that the Emmys are considering adding a "Best Reality TV Host" award.  Yes, there could finally be a category where Big Brother's Julie Chen competes against American Idol's Ryan Seacrest and Phil Keoghan of The Amazing Race.  The question is, is this category really necessary?

Don't get me wrong, I realize that reality TV hosts have a tough job.  Unless you're Julie Chen, you're required to have a certain charisma without being irritating, which is a tough balancing act to pull off.  You only have to watch a few reality shows to realize that all hosts are not created equal.  Just try to compare Project Runway's adorable Heidi Klum to Top Design's stiff and wooden Todd Oldham.  Compare Ryan Seacrest with those two nobodies who host Dancing with the Stars.  It's easier to see which hosts are more comfortable, charismatic, and memorable.

The Daytime Emmys have long had categories for talk and game show hosts, but the primetime awards have never had an equivalent.  In my opinion, if they do add the category, they should keep it off the broadcast and lump it in with those technical awards no one ever hears about.  I really don't need to see Ryan Seacrest taking the stage and giving a long-winded speech.  I see enough of him on the other 85 shows he hosts, which, strangely enough, included last year's train wreck of an Emmys broadcast.

However, would Seacrest really have a shot at winning?  The Amazing Race has won the award for best reality TV show in every year the award has existed.  I think Phil Keoghan would have a lock on the host award, unless Survivor's Jeff Probst does something devious and drops him on a deserted island first.

The TV Academy board of governors will vote on whether to add this category in mid-March.  It's looking like it will definitely be approved, so place your bets now for who the first winner will be.


- Don Williams, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
Source: Variety
(Image courtesy of CBS)