http://trinity.aas.duke.edu/~jvigdor/nfl5.pdfIn summary, we have shown evidence of a statistically and economically significant black
quarterback effect. Monday Night Football games featuring black quarterbacks have Nielsen
ratings 11% higher than otherwise identical games with two white starting quarterbacks. This
effect is robust across specifications, increasing in magnitude upon introduction of measures of
observed quarterback ability. The effect is largest among young males and roughly identical
within the other two demographic groups for which we have data. The behavior of network
executives responsible for scheduling the Monday night games suggests that these individuals
took this effect into account in later years. Finally, the effect appears to be largely contained to
the more popular Monday night broadcasts. How might we make sense of these patterns? The
following section presents a surprisingly coherent explanation.
Just an interesting article that was posted on an econ sight I read. In light of Rush Limbaugh's comments, I thought I would post a link here.