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ESPN's 'Monday Night Football' will break with tradition and air the national anthem tonight
AP Photo/Matt Dunham
ESPN's presentation of "Monday Night Football" will break with tradition and televise the national anthem tonight, ESPN confirmed to Business Insider.
The network's airing of the national anthem before the game between the Dallas Cowboys and Arizona Cardinals comes amid a prominent protest movement of kneeling during the anthem, which saw more than 200 players participate on Sunday.
The movement has received repeated condemnation from President Trump, who in turn has faced backlash from NFL owners, athletes, and celebrities.
ESPN will also re-air the NFL's unity-promoting ad "Inside These Lines," which first aired during Super Bowl LI.
While The Wrap speculates that televising the anthem could capitalize on ratings intrigue in the wake of a national news story, "Monday Night Football" and NFL broadcasts at large have seen a big decline in ratings.
In week two, "Monday Night Football" ratings dropped 14% in live and same-day average viewers compared to the same week in 2016, according to UBS. Overall, the league saw a 12% drop in ratings in week one and a 15% drop in week two, according to Nielsen.
And the protest controversy sparked by Trump this weekend hasn't exactly been a ratings boon for all NFL games.
The "Sunday Night Football" match-up between the Oakland Raiders and Washington Redskins was down around 12.9% compared to last year's game in the same week, according to Reuters.
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