• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, April 9, 2026

More prediction-market forecasts on how our economy is doing -- as well as who will win Oscars awards and MVP sports hardware -- are coming by way of your favorite broadcast and cable TV network.

Just what we need? Perhaps not.

Prediction platform Kalshi has now struck a sponsorship-content deal with Fox Corp. for Fox News Channel, Fox Business, Fox Weather and Fox Nation.

Kalshi, like Polymarket and other predication platforms, now adds to the ever-growing list of consumer and forecasting sentiment content on news, sports, and other networks. Kalshi also has deals with CNN and CNBC.

Polymarket does not yet have deals with networks. But it has one with The Wall Street Journal. In January 2026, Polymarket became the exclusive prediction-market partner of the Golden Globes, which aired on CBS Television Network and Paramount+.

And last month it signed a massive multi-year deal -- estimated to be in the $150 million to $300 million range -- to become the official prediction market of Major League Baseball.

This will, in turn, mean significant exposure on national sports TV networks like ESPN and Fox Sports.

Many people enjoy betting on the future, and there are many heavy wagers of all types. But is this news -- and does there need to be more transparency?

This comes as sports-wagering platforms DraftKings and FanDuel have been in the marketplace for years now -- all due to now-legalized online wagering on sports in the majority of the U.S.

Through the first three months of 2026, Kalshi has spent $10.6 million on national TV advertising, according to estimates from iSpot.com.

Kalshi started its national TV ad spend in September 2025 -- which through end of the year was estimated to spend $6.5 million. These were no available estimates for Polymarket at press time.

By way of comparison, DraftKings spent an estimated $66.1 million over the first three months of the year, per iSpot. FanDuel was at $38.5 million.

The difference between prediction markets and sports-focused online wagering sites is that the former are federally regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

It treats prediction-market bets as "event contracts" -- a type of financial derivative -- rather than gambling.

No matter. It’s the high-gloss content of all types that grabs views -- pushing sports channels and financially focused cable news networks (especially financially focused channels) to give them major awareness.

Is there a downside to this? Supporters argue that these platforms provide more accurate data than traditional polling.

At the same time, columnists, ethicists and lawmakers believe markets can be manipulated from well-funded traders.

In effect, some believe manipulators can buy a ‘headline’ and/or a skewed narrative-story on a channel that goes in their favor.

From all of this, should sports, news and other networks be more forthcoming about this content playing to a not-so-well informed TV audience?

Place your bets here.