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If you were a big name—like Jack Benny, whom Samuel calls “the king of integrated advertising”—“plugola” was par for the course.

Reaffirming its history as a cavalcade of plugola, the show was front-loaded with numbers from the nominated musicals — and even some that weren’t.

It’s unclear just how widespread such “plugola” schemes are now.

Such product-friendly segments aren’t just potentially deceptive; they’re illegal, under a federal law that prohibits “payola” or “plugola,” as the practice is commonly known.

The payola for the plugola usually goes to accommodating producers or property men.