Just like @sunsethunter I am also a sports fan, so I did found the article a little harsh. But I have to admit that there is a lot of truth in the article. Like the romans said: give the people bread and entertainment (Panem et circenses)!
The older I get the less I am motivated to watch sports on television. When I was younger I could watch a complete cycling race, even if it was dull and boring.
But while the sentiment about sports in the article is rather negative there are also some good things about sports, most of them scientifically proven:

• watching sports on television inspires you to do sports yourself
• believe it our not but even by watching a sport event on tele your will burn calories, when going to the event itself you even burn more calories
• it creates a social network, not only with friends but also with random supporters of the same team, and again believe it or not this will increase the duration of your life
• a strange one but it is good for the relation with your wife/husband. Watching a game on television together stimulates the happiness in the relation and when the team wins you know what can happen in the bedroom :)
• It makes you smarter. The university of Chicago investigated if watching sports increases the brain activity, which it did!

And it is good for the economy and creates lots of jobs. Okay the money earned with the sport events is spread fairly, but try to imagine how many people earn their money with sport events, from the one selling the hotdogs at the stadium to the ones creating advertising up to webpages for an event!

I would rather prefer that my kids watch a sports event on the television then some kind of brain killing show for kids or stupid youtube video!