Over the last several months,
The Daly Planet has been getting very interesting comments from a reader who calls himself Erik. This reader has posted some ESPN information that is available only to ESPN employees.
This reader has quoted facts and figures that were not released to the public about ESPN issues. In fact, this reader speaks in authoritative terms as if he is making a statement rather than just offering his opinion.
On Sunday, October 7th,
The Daly Planet published a column entitled "ABC Struggles With Multiple Storylines At Talladega." The column covered a lot of issues, but focused on a few key TV topics, which is what this media project is all about.
Unfortunately, ABC missed the winning pass by Jeff Gordon on the last lap. Then, they bypassed any post-race interviews except the winner and signed-off the air. After they left, none of the ESPN Networks or programs including ESPN News or SportsCenter followed-up on the race.
Instead of interviews from the Media Center, ESPN showed a brief race highlight package where Dale Junior asked for the Redskins score. The ESPN announcers all thought this was hilarious.
There were some other interesting issues, like the new "Draft Lock," the boring COT racing, and the fact that Jerry Punch was getting absolutely no help from his fellow announcers on the RCR engine situation.
It did not help matters that the Dale Jarrett crash was ignored by the ESPN/ABC gang and only mentioned again...by Kyle Petty. Jarrett is a current member of the NASCAR on ESPN announce team.
The Daly Planet had one hundred and seven reader comments added to this column, and countless email messages. The final comment was one from the reader named Erik. I am posting it below in its entirety to get some reaction from NASCAR fans. Here it is:
October 9th - 8:10PM
ESPN/ABC have done an outstanding job broadcasting NASCAR events, and promoting the sport through their daily NASCAR Now show.
Because of that, more people than ever before can get NASCAR coverage. As the Worldwide Leader In Sports, ESPN's distribution network is unmatched.
NASCAR fans should be thanking their lucky stars that ESPN stepped-up to the plate.
NASCAR fans seem to have bought into the hype that they host a Superbowl every weekend. This is just laughable.
ESPN doesn't air a live post-race for IRL, why should NASCAR receive special treatment? They don't even do this for college football, whose ratings crush NASCAR. This expectation just shows how out-of-touch with reality some of these fans are. The world doesn't revolve around your sport. Normally, we would just take this comment in stride, but something about it just really punched us in the gut. This reader has been defending every ESPN action for months. Not from a standpoint of accuracy, but from a standpoint of superiority.
Its almost scary. The arrogant tone of this message echoes the arrogant tone of ESPN, who other than covering the races has only given lip service to this entire sport this year. Now, with only weeks to go in the season, the network's frustration seems to have been captured in this one comment.
If you read it and have a reaction, please take a minute and leave a comment. We welcome comments from all readers, and simply ask that you follow the rules for posting which are on the right side of the main page. There is nothing to join, and you do not have to leave your email address.
The goal of this site is to provide a platform for NASCAR fans to speak freely and without corporate interference on their feelings about the NASCAR TV partners. This year, we have dealt with Fox Sports, SPEED, TNT, and now the ESPN networks.
As the season winds-down, its time to reflect on ESPN's season-to-date, and summarize your experience as a viewer. Simply click on the COMMENTS button below to add your opinion to
The Daly Planet.
NOTE: Because of this post, the "TV question and answer forum" will open Wednesday at noon and run through late Thursday night for the West Coast readers. Thanks.
