Ellen DeGeneres is seeing ratings for her talk show plummet to what The Wrap reports is a new low, as accusations mount that she oversaw a toxic work culture where young staffers were mistreated and in some cases, sexually harassed and assaulted by senior-level producers.
The Ellen DeGeneres Show drew a 1.0 live and same-day household rating for the week ending July 26, according to Nielsen as reported by The Wrap. The outlet noted that the decline is a new all-time low for the series. The figure represents a 9 drop from the prior week and a whopping 29 decline from the same week last summer.
Once an invincible force in daytime television, the show is now under investigation from corporate parent WarnerMedia after dozens of former employees alleged that senior-level producers created a hostile work environment rife with verbal abuse. Some ex-staffers claimed that they were fired for taking medical leave and bereavement days.
Others said that producers preyed on young male employees, who experienced unwanted grabbing and sexual propositions.
Ellen DeGeneres issued an apology to her staff, claiming that she was unaware of the problems in her production office. However, a former producer has alleged that Ellen was aware of the hostile work environment and even encouraged it at one point.
Hollywood stars Brad Garrett and Lea Thompson have also publicly questioned Ellen’s apology, saying that it is “common knowledge” that Ellen herself mistreated staffers.
The avalanche of accusations has fueled rumors that Ellen will leave her show. It also spurred the the #ReplaceEllen hashtag on Twitter. But so far, neither DeGeneres nor WarnerMedia has given any indication that she will resign from the show.
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