While our black sister Stereohyped explores the politics behind the new black and lady commentators popping up on cable news, it'd be smart to recognize the influx of pundits isn't just because we suddenly need non-white, non-male talking heads to talk about issues that are suddenly relevant to more than aging white men.

Rather, it makes perfect economic sense.

For years, cable networks have signed analysts to envious contracts, with six-figure fees thrown their way because, it was argued, they didn't want a competitor snapping them up in an exclusive deal, keeping the expert from appearing on their own network. And the more high-profile experts any cable net had, the more boldfaced the channel's image. (Remember why a certain pair of Newsweek staffers didn't accept buyouts at their print employer?)

No longer. With editorial budgets being slashed thanks to dwindling ad spends, CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC are smartly swapping out some of their high-fee analysts with a flurry of lower-budget replacements. Say hello to Air America's Rachel Maddow on MSNBC, Democratic strategist Jamal Simmons on CNN, and Republican strategist Angela McGlowan on Fox News.

They might all look different than your typical on-air guests (black, brown, or lady-like), but they also come a lot cheaper.

But why pay these people at all? Surely they, too, benefit from the arrangement; most have books to promote, candidates to endorse, or consultancy fees they can spike based on their TV-assembled expertise.

[Graphic: New York Times]