1. One of the big reasons networks like to air live sports is because they can use the platform to push their other shows that nobody cares about.
Who can forget all the years Fox used to stuff the stars of their little-watched shows into ballparks and then show them on camera during the game and have Joe Buck act all excited that a D-list celebrity actually attended an MLB playoff game.
Over the years, though, promos for other shows have gotten more complex and high-tech. And networks have gone out of their way to blur the line between what’s a commercial and what is the actual broadcast.