Donald Trump 'saddened' by Emmys ratings as he pokes fun at 'deplorables'

Donald Trump said he was "saddened" by the "bad" ratings of Sunday's Emmys,  an awards ceremony that was marked by jokes and jibes at the US President.

Stephen Colbert, the host of the Emmy Awards, and a Sean Spicer cameo helped the ceremony avoid a ratings slide but failed to significantly boost viewership.

"I was saddened to see how bad the ratings were on the Emmys last night - the worst ever. Smartest people of them all are the "DEPLORABLES," Mr Trump tweeted on Tuesday night.

Sunday’s Emmys on CBS drew 11.38 million viewers to rank as the week’s No. 6 programme, according to Nielsen figures released on Tuesday.

Contrary to the president's claim, it was not the worst night for the awards. Last year’s audience of 11.3 million was still a record low for the ceremony.

Many of the winners and presenters made barbed comments about the president and his policies during Sunday's three-hour ceremony honouring the best of television.

Alec Baldwin prompted laughter from the audience when he mocked Mr Trump as he received his reward for his impression of the President.

Colbert’s opening song-and-dance routine and extended monologue included a number of digs at Mr Trump.

The evening also saw a surprise appearance from Mr Spicer, the president's former press secretary. 

Mr Trump's adviser Kellyanne Conway had already suggested the poor ratings was down to the political nature of the awards show. 

“The Emmys, the Miss America pageant was very politicized. Our sports are very politicised. It looks like the ratings are suffering,” she told Fox News.

“It looks like Americans are tuning out. They want you to stick to your knitting. They want you to stick to the stuff that other people write for you.”

She later retweeted a story about low ratings for this year’s Emmy ceremony.

While the NBC hit drama "This Is Us" was among the nominees, the field also had a number of more niche shows such as Hulu’s "The Handmaid’s Tale," streaming TV’s first top drama winner. The increasingly splintered nature of TV is one reason the Emmys are challenged to draw a bigger audience.

The ceremony also competed with a top-ranked NFL game.