MediaCritic :Network executives have supposed that

MediaCritic :Network executives have supposed that television viewership is declining due to the availability of television programs on other platforms, such as the internet, video-on-demand, and mobile devices. These executives claim that declining viewership will cause advertising revenue to fall so far that networks will be unable to spend the large sums necessary to produce programs of the quality now available. That development, inturn, will lead to a dearth of programming for the very devices which cannibalized television's audience. However, technology executives point to research which indicates that users of these platforms increase the number of hours per week that they watch television because they are exposed to new programs and promotional spots through these alternate platforms. This analysis demonstrates that networks can actually increase their revenue through higher advertising rates, due to larger audiences lured to television through other media.

The portions in boldface play which of the following roles in the media critic's argument ?

(A) The first is an inevitable trend that weighs against the critic's claim; the second is that claim.
(B) The first is a prediction that is challenged by the argument; the second is a finding upon which the argument depends.
(C) The first clarifies the reasoning behind the critic' s claim; the second demonstrates why that claim is flawed.
(D) The first acknowledges a position that the technology executives accept as true; the second is a consequence of that position.
(E) The first opposes thecritic's claim through an analogy; the second outlines a scenario in which that claim will not hold.