Masks for thee, not for me.
That might be the most enduring message from this Sunday’s Emmy Awards in Los Angeles. Will “Ted Lasso” and “The Crown,” this year’s big winners, join the pantheon of unforgettable TV series? Perhaps, but unlikely.
“The Handmaid’s Tale,” the television adaptation of Margaret Atwood’s 1985 novel and feminist grievance culture’s favorite parable about modern conservatism, set a record for most Emmy losses in a single season, according to Deadline. (“The Handmaid’s Tale” not getting the appreciation it deserves feels almost like we’re living in “The Handmaid’s Tale.”)
Ratings were up over the lows for 2020’s virtual ceremony, according to TV Line, with 7.4 million average viewers. That was still less than half what the competing “Sunday Night Football” telecast got, however.”
But the masks. Let’s talk about the masks — or the lack thereof:
No Masks at the #Emmys because rules are for the little people. pic.twitter.com/dNi34YRCP5
— Eric Bott (@BottAFP) September 20, 2021
The optics were bad enough that even Seth Rogen remarked on them during the ceremony.
“Good to be here at the Emmy Awards,” Rogen said during his monologue. “Let me start by saying: there’s way too many of us in this little room. What are we doing? They said this was outdoors! It’s not! They lied to us!
“We’re in a hermetically-sealed tent right now. I would not have come to this.”
Seth Rogan calls out the Emmys for being indoors. pic.twitter.com/nA7THaxDn6
— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) September 20, 2021
Rogen was joking, but all jokes that land effectively have some basis in reality. After all, Los Angeles County requires masks for indoor gatherings. But don’t worry, said the Los Angeles County Department of Health — the Emmys were exempt because “exceptions are made for film, television and music productions, as additional safety modifications are made for these controlled interactions.”
New: LA County Department of Public Health tells me that the mask-less Emmys were not in violation of the county’s mask mandate because “exceptions are made for film, television, and music productions” since “additional safety modifications” are made for such events. pic.twitter.com/6S105zYjbJ
— Oliver Darcy (@oliverdarcy) September 20, 2021
“The Emmy Awards Show is a television production, and persons appearing on the show are considered performers,” read a statement from the Department of Health provided to CNN’s Oliver Darcy.
The “performers” all had to be “fully vaccinated” and present a “verified negative” PCR test within 48 hours of the show.
“The Emmys reached out to Public Health in advance to share their safety protocols, which exceeded the baseline requirements for television and film productions,” the statement continued.
“Careful planning before large events is essential to assure that all health and safety requirements are adequately addressed.”
Righty-O. This meme might have summed it up best:
— ᴛʜᴇ ʀɪɢʜᴛ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇᴀʀ ᴍᴇᴍᴇꜱ (@grandoldmemes) September 20, 2021
Maybe the health department thinks Americans are stupid enough not to realize that exceptions for television and movie productions are for somewhat specific reasons? A soap opera’s adulterous kisses, for instance, don’t carry the same weight when they have to get through two layers of cloth.
A mass gathering like the Emmys isn’t the same situation, and Americans know it. It’s unbelievable anyone thought this would fly.
Your 6-year-old at a mall is in such grave danger from COVID-19 they need to wear a mask, but the environment at the Emmys was so carefully controlled that our woke celebrities needn’t follow the law. They’re entertainers, after all.
Fox News meteorologist Janice Dean may have put it best:
I think after seeing all the celebs without masks or social distancing in a packed tent at @TheEmmys we should pretty much move on with our lives.
— Janice Dean (@JaniceDean) September 20, 2021
That’ll be the enduring memory from Sunday’s ceremony. No matter how careful the “performers” on Sunday were — and the cheek of Los Angeles County for actually putting that excuse forward — the Emmys are still wholly extraneous to our lives.
Weddings, funerals, graduations, birthdays, retirements — these are all far more important to most of us than celebrating the artistic accomplishments of “Ted Lasso.”
If the same privileges afforded to our woke overclass can’t be afforded to the peasants, we’re not living in “The Handmaid’s Tale” but the run-up to the French Revolution, instead.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
