Ellen DeGeneres Has Lost 1 Million Viewers Following Workplace Misconduct Allegations

Ellen DeGeneres's day time show has lost more than a million viewers after multiple allegations of workplace misconduct.

New York Times reports The Ellen DeGeneres Show has lost a million viewers since September, pulling in about 1.5 million viewers over the last six months, down from 2.6 million in the same period last year. The numbers come from the research firm Nielsen, which measures audience ratings for TV.

The decline translates to a 43% decline, which the Times reports is a bigger drop than any of its competitors. Dr. Phil, for example, reports an average of 2.5 million viewers, and Live: With Kelly and Ryan pulls in an average of 2.7 million viewers.

Last April, Variety reported that The Ellen DeGeneres Show's crew, which consisted of more than 30 employees, were "outraged" over their treatment amid the coronavirus pandemic. At the time, crew members said they were kept in the dark regarding their pay, hours, and "inquiries about their mental and physical health" for over a month amid the beginning fo the pandemic.

Since then, the show and DeGeneres herself have faced accusations of workplace toxicity. DeGeneres has denied rumors that she does not allow people to make eye contact with her, and has apologized to staffers, and fired three producers after reports of a toxic culture at the show.

In July, BuzzFeed reported that several of the show's former and current staff members said they had experienced "racism, fear and intimidation" on the set.

DeGeneres addressed the claims during the season 18 premiere of her show, which the Times notes had the highest ratings for an Ellen premiere in four years (though viewership then declined).

"As you may have heard, this summer there were allegations of a toxic work environment at our show and then there was an investigation. I learned that things happened here that never should have happened," she said at the time. "I take that very seriously and I want to say I am so sorry to the people who were affected. I know that I'm in a position of privilege and power and I realized that with that comes responsibility, and I take responsibility for what happens at my show. This is The Ellen DeGeneres Show. I am Ellen DeGeneres. My name is there, my name is there, my name is on underwear."

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