Let's face facts. The success or failure of NASCAR this season is going to be due in large part to the on-air efforts of ESPN and SPEED. NASCAR's other TV partners like Showtime, TNT and FOX focus only on promoting their own programming for a variety of reasons.
It's up to SPEED and ESPN to do the heavy lifting and this might be the first year that both of those companies got the message. Aside from offering solid weekday news shows, another sign that things are changing is this season's television coverage of media day at Daytona.
On Thursday over fifty drivers from all three national touring series will shuffle through media interviews. It might seem like a boring exercise, but it really is a focused media event. National TV, Sirius radio, online video and tons of social media content will flow from Daytona for an entire day.
Content is king these days and the off-season has not been kind. This is an opportunity for drivers to escape the politics of the recent media tour and engage in some interviews specific to Daytona and of a more personal nature. It's a very different environment from the shops back home.
ESPNEWS is set to offer three hours of live coverage from noon to 3PM ET. It will be Mike Massaro and Nicole Briscoe co-hosting with Ricky Craven providing analysis. This is a great opportunity to get some quality national TV time, especially for some of the Nationwide drivers since ESPN2 televises that entire series. Massaro will then be back at 5PM on ESPN2 with a full version of NASCAR Now.
As we have suggested for several years, ESPNEWS could play a key role in helping the sport this season by integrating NASCAR content into the mainstream sports reporting and highlights. When NASCAR Now is preempted, ESPNEWS is the perfect place for the show to air.
SPEED is going to edit highlights of interviews into a special that will air at 7PM ET. The network has been good at exposing the sport at a later hour when more viewers are home and this timeslot is normally used for the popular Race Hub series. SPEED's new NASCAR show called The Ten will follow.
Click here for the direct link to NASCAR.com's online streaming webcast of media day. This presentation is set to begin at 8AM ET and run the full length of the day until 4PM. Marty Snyder, Matt Yocum, Lindsay Czarniak and Larry McReynolds will be handling the hosting duties for the NASCAR.com team.
Pushing more content online is going to be huge this season, whether it is through NASCAR.com or additional media partner websites. After the success of SPEED.com's efforts at the recent Daytona test, it should be interesting to see just how NASCAR.com does with this daylong production.
Finally, Sirius/XM NASCAR Channel 128 will be on-site in Daytona and on the air starting with The Morning Drive program at 7AM. Sirius and NASCAR would get a lot more bang for their buck if the Sirius 128 signal was made available for online streaming as well. Hopefully, this impasse between several parties can be solved down the road.
2011 Media Day in a year that is going to be dominated by social media means only one thing. NASCAR fans will be swarming Facebook and Twitter on Thursday for videos, pictures and interactive conversations with personalities in the sport and the media members who cover them.
All of this might just come together in a brand new way as the interactive synergy of today's online media merges with NASCAR's existing television partners. It should be interesting to watch the different media outlets offer their own unique approach to this content.
This post will host your comments on NASCAR Media Day 2011. To add your opinion, just click on the comments button below. This is a family-friendly website, please keep that in mind when posting. Thanks for taking the time to stop by The Daly Planet.
Do we come here to watch Media Day because it is private, or do we go to nascar.com?
ReplyDeleteThank you for the great updates regarding the activities today and the link to the streaming. Without your blog I would not have known that anything was being streamed live today - since I do not visit Nascar.com very often and when I do I struggle to find things on the site.
ReplyDeleteThis blog is where I go each day to stay informed on media for Nascar.
I recorded Race Hub and NN last night but I have not been able to watch the episodes yet. Not sure if they did this or not-but wouldn't it be a good idea to promote the live streaming at Nascar.com on these 2 shows? Right now the streaming seems like a secret for us die hard Nascar fans. I am a die hard Nascar fan and I am leaving for Daytona on Wednesday.
I'd like to see a reporter from other than Rusty's employer ask the drivers how they feel about racing next to crash-prone young Stephen in the 500.
ReplyDeleteShould be great, if it is live, un-edited stuff.
Maybe the body-language and other non-verbals will tell the story on how the drivers REALLY feel.
Thanks for the info, JD. I wouldn't have known about it without your posting.
ReplyDeleteI won't catch much of the live stream because we are not permitted to do that at my workplace, but still, for those who can access it, this is a really good idea. I'll probably catch the recap on Speed.
IMO this offseason has been a huge wasteland for NASCAR. Your blog has been the only place that has interested me in what has been happening. I looked at Jayski's site every day and I don't remember a time when I've read almost NOTHING that has been linked.
SIRIUS could step up, but they have turned me off so much that I have a hard time even listening to them when I'm in the car and since I can't stream it on my home computer, I probably won't bother giving it any attention.
Gary - that is a GREAT point. Rusty's conflict of interest continues - lucky us!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the link! Despite my complaining I am ready to go racing.
ReplyDeleteI knew they were doing it from Twitter but didn't realize it started so early! So missed a bit :). Glad they're providing this too us.
ReplyDeleteI went to the live streaming of Media Day on Nascar.com and the picture is jerky, stop and go and makes it hard to watch. The audio is fine.
ReplyDeleteI do have a lower end computer but two days ago I updated my internet download speed from 4Mbps to 8Mbps. I got this update hoping I would be able to see Nascar internet feeds better.
Before I updated to this faster download speed I was still able to watch Race buddy and Truck buddy and it was not as jerky as it is today.
As a side note I can watch the internet streaming of Rush Limbaugh in HD and it runs perfect.
To bad Nascar can't find out what Rush uses as a streaming provider and go with that.
Nascar.com has to realize there are some of us that don't have Super computers.
Have been watching nascar.com's TNT produced web stream of Media Day. Very impressed with this new online deal. Lindsay Czarniak and Adam Alexander are hosting this segment. What a difference these two bring to the typical bla bla bla stuff we're used to seeing/hearing. So far they have talked to Casey Mears and Kyle Busch. Everyone is refreshingly relaxed and conversational, good stuff.
ReplyDeleteSorry you were having issues Charlie :(
ReplyDeleteThoroughly enjoyed ESPN News' three hours of updates. Ricky Craven is spot on! Excellent stuff.
ReplyDeleteLet's go racin', boys!
hate to be off topic, but gary- nobody had a problem with Ned Jarrett calling Dale Jarrett's 500 win, so why is it a conflict because Rusty's son is in the 500. He is no more crash prone on plate tracks than anyone else. This is all b/s hype started by media people looking to create stories.
ReplyDeleteWell that was fun :)
ReplyDelete@Gymmie
ReplyDeleteYou're right that WAS fun
Watching the highlights of media day on Speed. Speed has rolled out their new graphics package, as well as theme music and logo. Lookin sharp!
ReplyDeletestork--from SBNation:
ReplyDelete(he's DNF-prone)
"According to FoxSports.com's Lee Spencer, Wallace will be using the points that formerly belonged to Hornish's now-defunct No. 77 team:
Penske also verified that the No. 77 points will be used by Stephen Wallace, who is attempting to make his Cup debut at Daytona. Wallace, 23, currently drives the No. 66 Toyota for his father at Rusty Wallace Racing.
While Wallace has admittedly improved from his early days as a 200 mph wrecking ball, he has seven DNFs in 12 career Nationwide Series restrictor-plate races. Yet on Feb. 20, he'll be in the Daytona 500.
This is happening, folks! Hornish's team finished the season in the top 35, so Wallace won't have to qualify his way into the field.
Though this news may be fodder for Wallace's skeptics, at least one of his supporters believes this could be the first step toward a fantastic Cup career: His father, future Hall-of-Famer Rusty Wallace, told us last year that he thinks Steve will be a Cup champ within five years.
Just another reason to watch the Daytona 500, we suppose."
Just going to add my 2 cents:
ReplyDeleteIf you are a NASCAR fan, you simply have to get on Twitter.
All the drivers, the teams and the media folks are there and interacting directly with fans.
Exclusive pictures and videos along with direct links to the latest NASCAR news just flow constantly.
I like Facebook and I love this blog, but for instant news and information there is nothing like Twitter.
If I can do it, you can too. Best part is, it's all free!
JD
Twitter is making a big difference for me this year. Feel more a part of what is going on. Following some of the media folks is just as much fun, if not more in some cases, than drivers and other NASCAR folks.
ReplyDeleteOn flip side, I was bored with NN's media show. Just seemed same ol, same ol. Plus Massaro in CT and Ricky in Charlotte. Weird. I'll try Speed's show later.
Could it be I already got info on Twitter that was more interesting??
I agree with another poster, I come to JD' site for information. I just scan Jayski's and find I rarely click on articles anymore. Maybe if David Newton or Marty Smith. Everyone just seems to copy what others write/say.
On a postive note. We could hear the ARCA cars on the track from the RV park. Now that really makes it exciting!! Moving to the track on Saturday.
JD
ReplyDeleteYou are right about Twitter. I have learned it. I follow you for racing primarily and two (non-racing) people you follow (among others for racing and non racing subjects). For racing I use you as a gatekeeper and it mostly works tho I sometimes think you retweet too many bits, but pleeze don't stop and don't increase. You've got it pretty near good now.:)
Watched Speed's Media Day. So much better. The driver's seem more like themselves. More relaxed. Like they are among friends. Hermie is great. JR was two different people if watched him on NN vs the Speed interview.
ReplyDelete