The Kennedy Center Honors have long been a staple of American arts and culture, a glittering annual celebration that draws together luminaries from music, film, and stage. But this year’s event—held on December 7, 2025—was unlike any in the institution’s storied history. President Donald Trump, never one to shy from the spotlight, took center stage as the first sitting president to serve as “Master of Ceremonies.” But the gamble did not pay off: the broadcast, aired by CBS on December 23, drew the lowest ratings the event has ever seen, sparking controversy and debate over Trump’s attempt to rebrand the show and the center itself.
According to preliminary Nielsen data cited by Programming Insider and TV Insider, the 48th Kennedy Center Honors averaged just 2.65 million viewers on CBS—a stunning 35% drop from the previous year’s already record-low 4.1 million. That’s a far cry from the 5.2 million who tuned in just three years ago. “A staggering drop for one of broadcast TV’s most traditionally reliable specials,” Programming Insider observed, highlighting the magnitude of the decline. Even among the all-important advertiser demographic, the numbers were described by Vulture as a “massacre.”
So, what happened? The ratings collapse can’t be chalked up to a lack of star power. This year’s honorees included country legend George Strait, Broadway and West End star Michael Crawford, Hollywood icon Sylvester Stallone, disco queen Gloria Gaynor, and the rock band KISS. Tom Cruise was reportedly offered a place among the honorees but declined due to scheduling conflicts, as reported by The Washington Post.
The drama started months before the curtain rose. In February 2025, President Trump abruptly fired the Kennedy Center’s existing board and installed himself as chair, stacking the board with loyalists. This move paved the way for an even more controversial decision: just days before the ceremony, the new board voted to add Trump’s name to the institution, renaming it the Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts. Trump quickly began referring to the event as “THE TRUMP KENNEDY CENTER HONORS” in posts on Truth Social and even had his name added to the building’s exterior. According to The Daily Beast, this rebranding was not without opposition—members of the Kennedy family reportedly railed against the change, and at least one board member, Ohio Congresswoman Joyce Beatty, claimed she was muted during the vote. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, however, insisted the vote was unanimous.
Despite Trump’s efforts, CBS News refused to acknowledge the new name, citing legal requirements. An internal memo obtained by The Washington Post made it clear: “It would take Congressional approval to officially change the name. Therefore, CBS News will continue to use the ‘Kennedy Center.’” The network’s standards and practices director, Jack Renaud, reinforced this stance in a staff email. For viewers at home, the show remained the Kennedy Center Honors—at least for now.
Trump, ever the showman, hyped his “Master of Ceremony” debut with characteristic bravado. “At the request of the Board, and just about everybody else in America, I am hosting the event,” he wrote on Truth Social. He even floated the idea of leaving the presidency for a full-time gig as a television host, asking, “Tell me what you think of my ‘Master of Ceremony’ abilities. If really good, would you like me to leave the Presidency in order to make ‘hosting’ a full time job?”
But when the cameras rolled, the reception was frosty. CBS made the unusual decision to slash Trump’s 12-minute opening remarks down to just two minutes for the broadcast, excising several unscripted asides—including a moment when he reportedly called the audience “miserable, horrible people.” According to The Daily Beast, Trump quipped, “If there is one thread that connects all of these amazing artists together, it is the word ‘persistence.’ I know so many of you, and you are persistent. Many of you are miserable, horrible people. But you are persistent, you never give up. Sometimes I wish you’d give up, but you don’t.” The network’s edit was so thorough that even Trump’s rebranding of the event was largely absent from the televised version.
Behind the scenes, the controversy over the renaming simmered. While the Kennedy Center board’s vote was touted as decisive by the administration, the process drew criticism for its opacity and for sidelining dissenting voices. The Kennedy family, whose patriarch the center was originally intended to honor, voiced their objections publicly, framing the move as a hijacking of a national arts institution for political gain.
For many longtime observers, the tumult was just the latest chapter in the Kennedy Center Honors’ recent struggles. Ratings have been on a downward slide for years, with 2024’s 4.1 million viewers already marking a historic low. The honorees themselves have remained a bright spot, with last year’s event—under President Joe Biden—recognizing filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola, the Grateful Dead, Bonnie Raitt, jazz musician Arturo Sandoval, and the Apollo Theater. But this year, the focus shifted decisively away from the artists and onto the host.
Some critics argue that Trump’s heavy-handed approach and focus on self-promotion alienated the show’s traditional audience. Others point to broader trends in television viewing, with live event ratings declining across the board. Still, the 2025 Kennedy Center Honors’ ratings collapse stands out, both for its scale and for the political drama that surrounded it.
It’s worth noting that CBS’s refusal to embrace Trump’s rebranding wasn’t just a matter of semantics. As Entertainment Weekly and The Washington Post reported, the network’s standards department was adamant: until Congress acts, the Kennedy Center remains the Kennedy Center. For now, at least, the name—and the legacy—of John F. Kennedy endures, even as the institution navigates uncharted waters.
As the dust settles, one thing is clear: the 48th Kennedy Center Honors will be remembered not for its honorees, but for the spectacle surrounding its host. Whether this marks a turning point for the institution, or simply a dramatic blip in its long history, remains to be seen. But for a night meant to celebrate the best in American arts, it was the politics—and the ratings—that stole the show.
