Super Bowl counterprogramming Although it is consistently one of the most watched sports television events in the United States , television broadcasters have often attempted to counterprogram against the Super Bowl by intentionally running new original programming against the game , often during its halftime break . The practice was popularized by Fox : prior to Super Bowl XXVI in 1992 , the performance group Up with People performed in four Super Bowl halftime show s between 1976 and 1986 ( the most of any act in the game ' s history ) , and performed at the pre - game show of Super Bowl XXV in 1991 . By the 1990 ' s , the style of halftime performance they helped define during the 1970 ' s and 80 ' s were frequently lambasted by critics for being too dated and not in touch with modern popular culture , while some of Up With People ' s halftime shows were regarded by critics as being the worst in Super Bowl history . As an alternative , Fox aired a special episode of its popular sketch comedy show " In Living Color " during halftime at Super Bowl XXVI ( which featured a halftime show entitled " Winter Magic " , starring Gloria Estefan ) . The live episode ( which featured football - themed sketches and a clock counting down to the end of halftime ) drew 22 million viewers ; Nielsen estimated that CBS lost 10 ratings points during halftime as a result of the special . The unexpected success of the " In Living Color " special prompted the NFL to take steps to prevent the further loss of viewers at halftime during future games : beginning at Super Bowl XXVII , the league began to invite major pop music performers to perform during the halftime show . The first of these , featuring Michael Jackson , led to a dramatic increase in viewership between halvesthe first in the game ' s history . This practice continued until 2005 , when an incident at Super Bowl XXXVIII ' s halftime show involving Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson prompted a string of halftime shows featuring classic rock acts ( such as The Rolling Stones and Bruce Springsteen , aiming to prevent a repeat of the incident ) until Super Bowl XLV , where The Black Eyed Peas became the first pop act in six years to perform at the Super Bowl halftime show . Recurring Super Bowl counters have included Animal Planet ' s annual " Puppy Bowl " , a special featuring dogs playing in a model football stadium , and the " Lingerie Bowl " , a series of pay - per - view broadcasts of all - female football games played in lingerie proving popular enough to be spun - off into its own Lingerie Football League . Out of respect to its fellow NFL broadcasters , the three major networks who regularly broadcast NFL games and alternate airing the game ( specifically CBS , Fox , and NBC ) will typically not schedule new programming on the night of the Super Bowl . Many cable channel s also air sometimes themed marathons of existing programming prior to or against the game : in 2009 , AMC aired the first three " Death Wish " films and ESPN aired a marathon of " World Series of Poker " episodes , Counterprogramming efforts are not limited to television ; for Super Bowl XLV in 2011 , WCHK - FM , a station in the Green Bay , Wisconsin area announced it would counterprogram the game with dead air , since the hometown Packers were in the game . However , its goal was not to attract listeners from the game , but to do the opposite .