If nobody watches NBCNews, ratings drop, no one sees their ads, sales for those products drop, sponsors stop advertising there. They’re not healthy now. More loss of ad revenue could kill ‘em.
In short, you only really get NBC’s attention if you organize a successful boycott of Sunday Night Football. THAT is what matters to the bottom line.
Good point, but not likely to succeed. Football is huge and you're asking everyone to turn off the Texans and the Bears tonight.
NBCNews on the other hand is easily supplanted by the others.