The first season of "The Kelly Clarkson Show" received Daytime Emmy Awards nominations for best entertainment talk show and host, while "Jeopardy!" veteran Alex Trebek's nod for best game show host could give him a second consecutive win in the category.
"General Hospital" earned a leading 23 nominations Thursday, including best daytime drama, lead actress nods for Finola Hughes and Maura West, and lead actor nods for Steve Burton and Jon Lindstrom.
Other top nominees are "Days of Our Lives" with 22 bids, "The Young and the Restless" with 21 and "The Bold and the Beautiful" with 13.
"Days of Our Lives" star Susan Seaforth Hayes was nominated for best supporting drama actress. Hayes, 76, is the only cast member to appear in the series in each of the six decades that it has been on the air.
Trebek, who has continued to host "Jeopardy!" as he battles pancreatic cancer, has won six Daytime Emmys for his work on the show, and received a lifetime achievement Emmy award in 2011.
The 47th annual Daytime Emmys, airing June 26 on CBS, are skipping a theater ceremony because of the coronavirus and will be presented virtually.
CBS' decision to broadcast the awards is a bright spot for the daytime honors, which had been consigned to an online presentation in recent years as viewer interest dwindled.
Awards in top categories will be presented in the telecast, with winners and "other special guests appearing from home in light of the COVID-19 pandemic," the network and National Academy of TV Arts & Sciences said in a joint announcement this week.
Winners in other categories will be announced on Twitter during the two-hour show, with more awards to be presented in a July ceremony, the academy said.
For a full list of nominees, click here.
Civil rights groups call on major corporations to stick with DEI programs
A broad group of civil rights organizations called on the CEOs and board members of major companies Thursday to maintain their commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives that have come under attack online and in lawsuits.
An open letter signed by 19 organizations and directed at the leaders of Fortune 1000 companies said companies that abandon their DEI programs are shirking their fiduciary responsibility to employees, consumers and shareholders.
The civil rights groups included the NAACP, the National Organization for Women, the League of United Latin American Citizens, Asian Americans Advancing Justice and the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.
"Diversity, equity and inclusion programs, policies, and practices make business-sense and they're broadly popular among the public, consumers, and employees," their statement read. "But a small, well-funded, and extreme group of right-wing activists is attempting to pressure companies into abandoning their DEI programs."
Companies such as Ford, Lowes, John Deere, Molson Coors and Harley-Davidson recently announced they would pull back on their diversity, equity and inclusion policies after facing pressure from conservative activists who were emboldened by recent victories in the courtroom.
Many major corporations have been examining their diversity programs in the wake of a Supreme Court decision last year that declared race-based affirmative action programs in college admissions unconstitutional. Dozens of cases have been filed making similar arguments about employers. Critics of DEI programs say the initiatives provide benefits to people of one race or sexual orientation while excluding others.
In their letter, the civil rights organizations, which also included... Read More