The TV night started with fans asking about Kyle Petty. Known for his Twitter use before and during the live TNT races, Petty's Twitter account was gone. As this is written, the Turner PR folks are working on a statement about why this happened. Being Twitter-friendly and interactive is the cornerstone of the TNT coverage.
There was no bad weather in Kentucky, but plenty of commercials raining down on TV viewers. The commercial total will be posted at the CawsnJaws.com website as soon as possible for you to view. This was the central theme of the fans watching on TV as it was tough to view the race in short segments between commercial breaks.
Adam Alexander hosted the pre-race show with Petty and Larry McReynolds. Kasey Kahne made a very polished appearance on the infield set for an interview. One feature followed Denny Hamlin on a sponsor-related trip to Alaska. Kevin Harvick's crew provided the pre-race audio feature. Another "NASCAR Generations" segment also aired featuring Jimmie Johnson, Bill Elliott and Ned Jarrett.
Alexander then moved upstairs with Wally Dallenbach Jr. and Petty. Matt Yocum, Chris Neville, Marty Snider and Ralph Sheheen were the pit reporters. McReynolds stayed in the infield with his cutaway car and strategy updates.
The race had long green flag runs, lots of pit strategy and track position as the key. This style of racing is familiar to fans. The style of TNT is casual with lots of conversation and almost no traditional play by play coverage. It is a style they have used for years. The pit reporters hustled, but often they provided the most excited commentary. The final few laps once again had conversation about everything but the race itself.
This post is intended to allow you to offer a wrap-up of the TNT coverage of the Sprint Cup Series race from the Kentucky Speedway. Comments may be moderated prior to posting. Thank you for stopping by.
107 comments:
I thought it was great that the grandfather and the kid both got the sides they wanted from KFC.
I've absolutely had it with TNT's NASCAR coverage after watching tonight's race. I'm guessing TNT will be gone after 2013 from what I've heard, hopefully it's true. I absolutely lost it with their coverage, I mean commercials tonight.
LOL @steven. Too many commercials. Hard to stay focused. Hard to be a fan.
Same crap, different day. TNT's coverage died alongside Benny Parsons. Can't wait for them to be sent packing.
I learned from the race that the KFC colonel needs lots of ED medicine and drives a high performance Canry. Who won the race?
How dare that race interrupt my commercial festival?! Enough said!
Love the pre-race Generations show. Could watch way more. TV coverage was poor. Only heard about 5 or 6 cars in total. Way too many commercials. Luckily in Canada we got a better mix than the endless KFC commercials so many others saw. Thankful to twitter for some extra coverage.
Twitter and a scoring ticker are not substitutes for quality coverage. They should call the race as if they had neither and allow those tools to supplement the coverage. Plain and simple.
Just again an insane amount of commercials by TNT. TV was a big reason if not the #1 reason for NASCAR growth in the 90s. TV is also IMO a big reason for the decline in attendance and ratings over the past few years.
Also, TNT just does a horrible job, they are so busy trying to work the tech gimmicks into the broadcast they forget actual race coverage. They need to get back to basics and worry about that.
How many times over the past couple of weeks has TNT been busy showing something that does NOT matter while they are missing a battle for the lead?
Is there a quota that TNT uses where they HAVE to get that through the field in? That is the worst segment in all of sports.
Did they ever report on Biffle's flat tire?
My last comment. There were 2 segments of green flag racing that TNT covered that was awful. One segment they showed 3 laps and another 4 laps. The 4 lap segment was when there was less that 25 laps to go.
I wonder though, is it safe to mix 5 hour energy, Viagra and KFC mashed potatoes or will that cause a dangerous interaction causing one to dress as Spiderman?
Another boring race at Kentucky few fans in the stands and another terrible broadcast by TNT. I hope both are gone next year.
The amount of time spent on commercials should be an embarrassment. Worse than that, the repetitive scheduling of the same commercial, what, a dozen times? It has got to make people angry. There will be NO loyalty to KFC.
I'd.pay to watch commercial free.
Commercials were flipping rediculous! Lets not carry it too far..... if we can't see racing there is no need to watch! *Get it!*
"COMMERCIAL FEST"
No play-by-play
Un-informed viewers
If not for Twitter and the normal media tweets, I would have been more lost than what I was.
BAD COVERAGE!
Next network please.......PLEASE!!
I am not happy with TNT and how they broadcast NASCAR, They are not fan friendly, we had the race on mute most of the race because the commercials being shown over and over was just too much. It was hard to keep up with what was happening on the track also, especially with no one calling the race, a lot of things happened during commercial break and we were not told about it, and that made for a very confusing evening.
I quite watching once they started with their commercials. I sat out in the car and listened on Sirius.
Will not be watching another race by TnT. I have been watching races for over 40 years and I am about finished with NASCAR.
The sad thing with these BS telecasts is when you listen to the announcers on the radio and the reporters who have to watch some of these races on TV they always tell the world it was a great televised race.
I guess we know who pays all their saleries
Horrible. Just horrible. I can't believe I am about to say this but I miss Fox. The amount of commercials was ungodly.... I see less advertising in the previews before a movie at the theater. Couple that with the timing of the commercials and it equals a rotten experience. Par for the course for TNT. Timing was do off... Missing crucial cautions, pit stops, half way, etc. I was shocked there was no commercial at 10 or 5 to go. I understand the need for commercials but TNTs use has become obnoxious to the point no one wants to watch. Even the post race coverage is ripe with commercial after commercial. Next week, I will Listen to PRN or use the XMSiriusNascar App on my iPhone because it is not worth the frustration. I has my daughter watching as a new fan and TNT blew it - she won't watch again.
There's nothing I can say that wouldn't be repeating myself, but I will offer that complaining about the endless barrage of commercials is ALMOST a refreshing change from complaining about not zooming out, complaining about overreliance on in-car cameras and on-car cameras, complaining about how many cars they showed crossing the finish line the last time, complaining about not knowing where my favorite driver is and why, complaining about the racing being in the small box while the commercial is in the big box, complaining about Waltrips, complaining about Kenny Wallace or complaining about Carl Edwards in general. (Almost.)
I had never used the #TDP1 tag before but perhaps the highlight of my night was Charlie telling the world how he blocked the animated GIF I use as my Twitter avatar. I know this is barely on topic, but look, fans, I'm laughing to keep from crying here. If I only had something less offtopic to mention...but TNT sure wasn't giving me anything to work with tonight.
It will forever echo in my head...
MASHED POTATOES AND GRAVY
I did not watch, and by reading the timeline, I'm glad I didn't. This presentation tonight doesn't make me want to go BACK to watching.
TNT= Terrible NASCAR Television. That's the truth.
I'm surprised TNT did not have AC/DC record a modified theme song for tonight called "KFC"
Prior to the race I posted:
"The Cup race could be brutal if one car dominates. I expect 7 cars parking (19 Bliss, 23 Riggs, 26 Wise, 30 Stremme, 33 Leicht, 87 Nemechek, 98 McDowell). That leaves 36 on the track with most concerned about adding points before the series heads to Daytona where points are a wild gamble. TNT will have to deal with most of the action taking place on restarts and most of the passing on pit road. It's critical that whatever action happens on the track is covered in a wide perspective, not inside, above, or under another car. It will be interesting to see if the pace of the race cooperates with the commercial load."
I watched the race using the TNT broadcast and RaceBuddy. I have to say, I relied on RaceBuddy a lot more than the TV broadcast. TNT did a good job with start/restarts showing the racing. But two commercial breaks within the first 20 laps told the tale of the night. I think the KFC and Hardee's commercials got more exposure than the actual race. The long green flag runs did not make distributing the heavy commerical load easy for TNT.
As for the rest of TNT, it was more of the same. The pit reporters did a good job on pit road (Ralph Sheheen remains the TNT MVP), AA was a bore, and Wally's checked out. At least Larry McReynolds was put on split-screen explaining the #14 engine problems. TNT also deserves credit for showing the *dangerous* towel that caused the debris caution.
What lost my interest? With long runs and green flag stops, the field spread out and was mixed together with lapped traffic. Instead of giving viewers a perspective of the field, Adam Alexander went through the news about the Matt Kenseth saga. Viewers watched the #17 race alone for several laps as the conversation ran its course in the booth. At this point, RaceBuddy was freezing constantly on my laptop. Without this second perspective, it was too frustrating to watch the ticker inbetween KFC commercials. I stopped watching lap 139.
This: Gold Star Tweet of the Night
Anonymous said...
How dare that race interrupt my commercial festival?! Enough said!
June 30, 2012 10:40 PM
JD
Didn't you tell us Mike Wells went to work for Indycar?
Who is directing the TNT races now?
Brutal. And I will never go to KFC again. Brutal.
What was up with them only asking Matt Kenseth one question after the race? He answered and then they abruptly switched to something else.
Commercial fest for the race. I'm probably going to have "mashed potatoes/ mac n cheese" nightmares tonight.
What was this the Kentucky Fried Chicken 500.
lots of rambling by the announcers, like no one knows who is in control or what to say... Example when they were going to give some award to Brad K. and then Kyle and Wally decide it should have went to Kasey (I agree that it should have). They didn't need to drone on and on and talk above/interrupt one another.
I agree with the earlier comment that said TNT coverage died when BP died...hasn't been any good since.
Moderate away, John, but everyone involved with NASCAR seems to have turned into dumbasses. Just between you and I, of course. We could never post that on a blog, but I think it every weekend. Even the races I go to aren't as good anymore as the non-televised races are; the ones NASCAR has no fingerprints on.
Congratulations to Brad Keselowski for winning tonight's KFC "Mac & Cheese Vs Mashed Potatoes" 400 at Kentucky Speedway! Come back next week on TNT for the KFC "Mashed Potatoes Vs Mac & Cheese Powered by Coke Zero" 400 at Daytona International Speedway!
That awkward moment when your watching a commercial on TNT and it's interrupted by a NASCAR race update.
I have to add, I like the 'Through the Field' segment. It gives viewers an idea where everyone is on the track when there is a long green flag run and the field is scattered. If properly used, it should run when there is minimal passing on the track and explore the top 20 or all the lead lap cars if there are less than 20.
ESPN runs a similar segment, 'Up to Speed', but it usually only covers the top 10 or just 6th-10th. I don't think FOX has a similar segment, since that style of broadcasting is a rotation of tight 1 car shots featuring as many cameras as you can fit inside/on/under the car.
There will always be people who complain no matter what the TV people provide.
I suppose you all want uber-tight shots and DW!
TNT is still refreshing compared to FOX!
JR
Refreshing... like a cool Mountain Dew that you'd trade your car for while munching on some mac & cheese PLUS mashed potatoes courtesy of KFC!
@ Wisconsin Steve
"Cause I'm KFC, leg or thigh?"
Horrid coverage. Commercials kept me from understanding what was going on. PRN made my night, they do good work and dont get enough credit for it. You can really tell TNT is mailing it in this year. This is what happens when the contracts are too long. Tonights broadcast was absolute crap.
Commercial load was actually good for me. I now have something to do between the morning parade and nighttime fireworks on the Fourth. Join me and head to your nearest Hardees to throw rocks at any adult so desperate for a free burger they'll appear in public dressed as spiderman. Whoever beans the most nerds gets Mac and Cheese and mashed potatoes and gravy for life!
I just hope that some folks at NASCAR's offices are fighting like those folks in the KFC ads I saw over and over tonight about how bad the TV product really is.. I don't think they are is the saddest thing..
#20 has an air conditioning prob.,
let's keep a tite shot of him on
screen.Race ends and never know who finishes behind Marcos Ambrose.
Winning team joy MUCH more important.
The race to me was fine. I will always like TNT better than Fox, so I might be biased. They actually showed more than one car finish, but of course we hear nothing positive about that... I don't understand the complaints that come up sometimes.
I had plans to go out after the race. I didn't wait that long, I left with over an hour left to go. I am now watching what I missed. Gotta tell you, my arm and hand are tired from picking up the remote to FF through the commls.
I believe that tnt is too dependent on Race Buddy so they can slack off. That's all fine and good for those who use it. I can't because it bogs down my computer. I'm also thinking of those who aren't online (my roommate). How do they know what's going on? At least rm has the advantage of me telling what's going on via twitter.
Regarding Kyle Petty off twitter, he picked a good time to do it. How could he ever defend tnt's coverage? I think Adam Alexander is part of the problem, he's tnt's version of Jerry Punch.
Based on what other people have said about Twitter and RaceBuddy, I get the sense that with all of today's technology, the TV networks are getting lazy. They need to go back to covering races as if there are no other sources of information. I shouldn't have to look elsewhere to follow a race. I'd rather just watch on TV.
The other problem is that the modern producers and directors of NASCAR telecasts seem to not understand how racing should be presented for the fans. A good director needs to know what the fans want to see, and often with TNT, like Fox, it seems that the director doesn't really know what information should be provided through the camera shots. It seems like few people who work for the networks truly "get it" when it comes to how the fans want to see NASCAR televised.
I also have to wonder why NASCAR races are filled with so many commercials when soccer telecasts on ESPN present both 45 minute halves commercial free. Do the NASCAR contacts really cost that much more, or do the networks not care about NASCAR enough to give us a break from the barrage of commercials. Do they see NASCAR telecasts as a good place to make a lot of money on commercials so that they don't have to play as many commercials on their other programs?
Overall, I'm just really disappointed with what has become of TNT's NASCAR coverage. They were the last of the three networks to provide quality telecasts, but now it seems like everybody has lost touch. Should I even hold out hope for ESPN? The past has taught us that they always tend to do a worse job with Cup compared to Nationwide, so I don't think I should hold my breath.
Once again I had to miss all of the fun live with the race and the #TDP1 feed on Twitter.
All I can add to what has been said so far is that tonight's telecast made me embarrassed to be from Kentucky, a NASCAR fan, and a former member of the media.
Unless ESPN somehow really picks it up when they take over the Cup races, I don't think I'm making it through the rest of the season.
WE fans are in a pickle, Dw and Fox stinks, and I thought last week maybe with the different set up of Sonoma coverage terrible was a fluke, it was not..I like Kyle, I think he is kinds fair and balance and doesn't interject his bias unlike DW...they need to get their stuff together, too many commericals and a lap or two commerical then an ariel view when they came back to the track with a huge commerical ticker that blocked overhead shots...Marketing is the downfall, makes me not want to buy any of their products including, gassing up my car with SUNOCO FUEL!!!...GEEZ, going to die of product overload..its a joke!..
Wasn't that just awful Saturday night?? We're half way through the season. Are Nascar viewers going to be subjected to those KFC and Danica/Junior commercials through the entire season? The guys in the booth were terrible. We did get some factual reporting from Larry Mac on Stewart's problems as well as pit stop strategy,fuel mileage,etc. AA is naieve. He just doesn't understand Nascar racing. Wally tells you what is just obvious as heck to the average viewer. KP just rambles on about whatever irrelevant thought crosses his mind. They played Hamlin's radio where he's asked to save gas. A few laps later, Johnson blows by him and the booth gets all excited about what is wrong with the #11. Fortunately Ralph Sheheen reminds them that Denny is just trying to save gas. I would have enjoyed a post-race interview with Logano after Newman dumped him. I apparently missed who dumped all that oil on the track. I was probably on the phone with KFC trying to decide if I wanted mashed potatoes or some other side order. Oh well, we can hope that Daytona is better.
Gawdamitee, I never saw so many commercials before in my life. Over the past several years, the ratio has been about 3, maybe 3.5 minutes of race to every minute of commercials. Last week was about 2 to 1, and I'm guessing last night was about the same. I guess TNT doesn't receive as much per 30-second spot at the other broadcast networks. Odd, because their ratings are about the same.
And why the heck do those two get to pick the sides? They didn't even get in the car to drive over there? I hope those that made the trip picked up slaw and a double order of green beans, and that the last biscuit gives that old man a coronary.
Too many commercials not enough updates on cars after cautions. TNT ranks 100th in race coverage out of three networks carrying Sprint Cup racing.
The top ten drivers are usually the ones to be interviewed, so, who do we see being interviewed?? The media favorite,20th place, Cousin Carl.
Another week of mindless rambling from Petty and Dallenbach, AA seemingly having trouble remembering who is in which car, and focusing tightly on whatever car has the sponsor in the next commercial break.
At least they showed the finish. Seriously though, I could watch those Mike's Lemonade ads all night!
I was out with family but recorded it, so I was about 45 mins behind live coverage. I caught up to it real quick. The commercials were the only thing that keep me awake. Boring race and too many commercials equal channel surfing. Doesnt TNT realize that ? I am at a loss of what to do. I love racing but the TV coverage of non stop commercials and only showing the the top 5 all the time is beyond unwatchable.
Since my husband's new business venture opened in early June (a kitchen inside an existing tavern), I haven't been able to sit and watch a race like I used to. I'm working sometimes, watching sometimes.
I was able to see quite a bit of the "coverage" last night. It wasn't anything that would make me start DVRing the races. I can't really speak to the booth commentary - I couldn't hear it.
Obnoxious amount of obnoxious commercials.
Thank goodness for Twitter. That's how I keep up with the race happenings. I have my own racing list I've carefully built over 3 years - I don't bother with NASCAR's hashtag. You can follow my racing list on Twitter, I'm Wiresculptress over there.
I took a nap
Me too. Fox was much better, hopefully ESPN/ABC will be a lot better than that infomercial that showed 3 minutes of the race & went back to commercials. I've never seen it as bad as it was last nigh.
Unless ESPN somehow really picks it up when they take over the Cup races, I don't think I'm making it through the rest of the season.
Aparently this person didn't see what ESPN did at the conclusion of the NNS race the night before.
The checkered flag droped over the #3 car and no other car was shown passing under the checker and it took 3 seporate commertial breaks to put a ticker up to show the finishers. If anyone thinks ESPN will do a beter job is dreaming.
I agree. I'm boycotting KFC!
Me either! I never want to see KFC again!
And with all the online information, the guys in the booth need to realize that we can get REAL TIME data. Such as 'seconds behind', the lap speeds etc. Also see the progress +/- AND radio transmissions. I'll hear about a problem, let's say the 24, on lap 25 about a vibration. A few laps later Jeff will say that all is fine now...must have been some rubber on a tire and now he's back to full speed passing cars. Then around 10 laps later the booth will report a potential problem with the 24 and I already know there is none! Same with lap times, car advancing, etc. They just make up a drama story failing to realize we know what's REALLY happening.
A lot of us sit around week after week, month after month, complaining about the tv coverage and what is blatantly obvious is that the networks aren't listening, NASCAR certainly isn't listening, so what do we do, us the unwashed masses?
Actually we have two choices, one we just watch and take what they give us, ie; poor coverage, AA, the Waltrips, the commercial overload, the IROC type cars, the non-racing. Two is; stop watching the network broadcasts en-mass. Sure we'll be missing out but as much as we'll be missing we'll also be missing out on the garbage we are being given now. Go for as long as it takes to remind NASCAR and the networks that they have nothing without us. The sponsors, the tv ads, they'll quickly notice the decline in numbers and they'll begin to ask why. NASCAR and the networks should be listening to us but they aren't. A total boycott from a hundred thousand tv fans would get the attention we aren't getting now.
We now do have options for seeing or hearing the races that we haven't had before, we just have to make use of them. We don't have to accept the product we have been getting, we don't have to accept being ignored while NASCAR and the networks profits off our numbers. They only do so because we let them.
Once again I'll throw out the words of Brian France, "I'm not concerned with the complaints of the fans". Maybe those words can be pushed back down his throat.
LOL, I'm pretty oblivious to advertising. I didn't notice that ad the first 50 times it was on....really. Only until people were discussing it did I realize what they were talking about.
My 7 year old did notice and is repeating it a bunch today.
No more KFC after last night haha. But, the coverage was stupid. Full of commercials, lack of racing shown, lack of excitement. There'd be one thing shown on the screen and they would be talking about something else. With the new rules package, there was actually some good racing from about 2nd through 15th. TNT barely even showed it! Like when Jeff Gordon lost 4th to Dale Jr. or even covering how Matt Kenseth started to slide back. None. Very disappointed. I think ESPN will be better, however, just as long as they fix their Danica issue lol.
My thoughts are TNT is airing Home Shopping Network with racing commercials. They should be ashamed for their sloppy broadcast.
@Cheatin_Chad (Twitter)
Pathetic performance by TNT. What I don't get is TNT has a skeleton crew yet they have so many commercial breaks it actually makes me nauseous. TNT has ruined at home viewing for NASCAR fans. I wish NASCAR would go to PPV as an extra for the fans who don't want to be lulled into watching more commercials than the actual race. NASCAR will continue to lose viewership if this continues which is sad because it doesn't have to be this way. If NASCAR truly cared about the core fan base as they say then major changes would happen to the race coverage; instead the TV production package has gotten worse over the past few years.
It was kind of fun to watch Kasey Kahne race through the field at the end of the race, and TNT did follow him through the pack.
Is it possible that there is a "vision" that is missing when it comes to NASCAR and television?
For instance, the NBA has a channel plus TV partners.
MLB has a channel plus TV partners (and by the way, if you've ever had to sit through 160 Root Sports hype-based broadcasts, you'd think NASCAR broadcasts were pretty good).
The NFL has a channel plus TV partners.
Golf has a channel plus TV partners.
Tennis has a channel plus TV partners.
The NHL has a channel plus TV partners.
The BIG 10 has a channel plus TV partners.
The Texas Longhorns have a channel plus TV partners.
The Horizon League in college has an online television channel.
Heck, you're watching every match of EURO 2012 commercial free on ESPN.
NASCAR?
Might the problem folks have be related to races that don't feature much passing, coupled with a lack of television "vision" from leadership at NASCAR? All other sports find a way to take some level of ownership of their sport.
Thoughts?
Didn't see it and glad I didn't. Watched video replay segments on NASCAR.COM when I got home.
Did watch the Nationwide race and the usual frustrations. There is always something to watch but damned if they want to show it. If all the cars are stretched out, I'd be satisfied to watch the leader put cars down a lap. But, they won't even show me that. They'll show me a tight shot of the leader where I can't even see the track much less if he's coming up on someone. Brutal.
If they'd shorten all the races it would be fine with me because they aren't going to show the racing and I still can't seem to break free of watching for the most part. Sounds a lot like a drug addiction. It ain't serving me but I can't stop.
I do know that it costs a lot of money to put on a NASCAR race, so of course they have to sell, sell, sell. But to bombard us viewers with the same sell, sell, sell commercials is nothing short of insane. TNT has a couple of shows that I do watch, note I said a couple. When I am watching them they still show the same sell, sell, sell commercials. So in the life of TNT, the old saying "Variety is the spice of life, does not apply. Behind the scenes of TNT, I can see the workings of a robot crew, regardless of what they are showing. Now you have an answer to the question that everyone is asking, What is going on at TNT"? Answer, Not one brain in the entire bunch.
Put Ralph Sheheen back in the booth! After Bill Weber-gate a few years ago, Ralph did a great job in the booth. This year has been a massive commercial-fest on TNT (more so than before). I used to look forward to the TNT coverage but this year has been painful. During one of the commercial breaks, My son & I were veiwing Race Buddy as Martin Truex, Jr. went into an unscheduled pit stop as a result of his being involved in the Ryan Newman richochet incident. Pretty important stuff, right? A chase contender has a cut tire, makes an unscheduled pit stop, and the 'Drama' is potentially ratcheting up. The commercials end on the broadcast,they're back, AA starts off with some long-winded promo, and finally they quickly mention Truexes pit stop as if nothing happened. Good grief.......
Too many commercials, I don't like TNT's "casual" booth coverage any more than I like the way Fox allows DW to take over rather than having Mike Joy do play by play. I don't tune into a race broadcast to listen to casual conversation, I tune in to WATCH and get information about the track action.
I guess TNT has to get their commercial load in so they can go commercial free for Daytona. I've watched less racing on TV this year than other, mostly because the TV partners aren't actually showing me much.
There have been some columns I've seen lately spouting the theme of "fans should be grateful for the TV coverage we have". Really? Not when I know it can be better because it WAS.
NASCAR is supposedly in negotiations with the partners for the renewal. They need to get a grip and realize that this is not serving their interests in keeping their fan base. Of course, they could just be so interested in keeping their message "consistent" that they can't worry about silly things like making sure the broadcasts are decent enough to keep fans watching.
If you want to see/hear how a race should be broadcast...tune in to Speed and the truck races. Much better.
I made an honest attempt to keep track of the number of racing laps/number of commercial laps. Starting with lap 58, I made it to lap 150. Surprisingly enough, it ends up 50/50, but if you look at the way it breaks down, it's easy to understand why you wouldn't believe it without the math... lap 58 commercial, lap 65 return, lap 71 commercial, lap 76 return, lap 79 commercial, lap 85 return. You notice that is NINE laps of racing shown in 27 laps on the racetrack. Then the green flag pit stops came, and they stayed on the race (for a total of 15 laps), but only a select few had counter's shown for the pit stop time. It goes on in that vein throughout the 96 laps that I managed to keep track of, and that would explain why I can't STAND TNT coverage... I sincerely hope that NASCAR can and will do something about this travesty.
BTW, I have directv at home and can watch hotpass, so at least I have a small option. If I wasn't a Jr. fan, though, I doubt that I would enjoy it as much...
After getting home from work I sat on the couch with my phone, a laptop and the TV.
All I can say about that race is: Thank God for DirecTV Hot Pass, Race Buddy and Twitter. If I hadn't been too tired I might have cranked up the desktop and put on MRN.
I enjoy KP's analysis but really don't think TNT has found a good way to present it. I think both the booth chemistry and the presentation are really lacking. I happen to appreciate the info provided by "Through The Field", as it used to be done several years ago. It too has become a shadow of its former self. Is it lack of money, or just boneheaded producers?
Like I have said before - and have been proven right - , a few weeks of TNT and ESPN will have most fans (who far outnumber the Waltrip haters) realizing that FOX wasn't half-bad by comparison.
Tried drinking. Coverage still was bad. I'm more interested in why Kyle deleted his Twitter account. Any updates on that?
The whole night I was shaking my head at both the frequency and the repetitiveness of the commercials (We probably saw more of the old man and the kid wrestling over mac and cheese and mashed potatoes than the race) but I think it was one of the last cautions that had me really irritated. In a 10-minute span, they aired like 8 minutes of commercials! Say what you want about Fox, but at least they don't take whole "coffee breaks" during cautions. And theyre damn sure not ashamed about covering NASCAR like ESPN seems to be either. Heck, I was in Times Square in April and the FOX display there was promoting the race in Richmond, and NASCAR was featured quite nicely during their 25th anniversary special a while back.
And apparently the drivers notice too. Keselowski's tweet from this morning: "Woke up this morning with a sting hankering for mashed potatoes and macaroni and cheese. Not sure why..."
This is what my hubby laughs at. I follow on twitter and will tell him of something I read. Ten minutes later the booth will jump in with the developing drama or often miss it entirely. We are just about done with Nascar. Too bad it used to be a big thing for us.
Jim,
While Kyle's account is no longer active on Twitter we have no idea if he chose to close it.
I have a request into TNT about the situation, but have yet to get an email in return. They told me they are working on it.
The heart of TNT's coverage is the interaction between fans and the network through RaceBuddy, chat comments and Twitter.
Kyle was a force in social media for years. Once I get a statement from TNT or perhaps Kyle I will pass it along in a new post.
Thank you,
JD
I tried to watch the race and hung on until Kyle Busch grazed the wall and broke something. The next thing I know, I woke up to Victory Lane. If a race puts me to sleep that early, something is wrong. How can you enjoy the commercials when they keep putting a blip of a race in the mix? I have decided to avoid any product that forced their ads on me during the race.
My cousin had a wedding at 2:30 PM central time yesterday. Rather than rush home early to catch the race, I figured I'd be better off staying for the entire thing. I ended up having one of the best nights of my life last night and didn't get home until 1:00 AM. From the comments already posted, I am SO glad I didn't waste my time with this crap.
@Spring Rubber: I've always felt that with RaceBuddy the networks don't have to go out of their way to provide a great broadcast now that they have alternatives. I always found it odd how ESPN would advertise RaceBuddy as "enhanced coverage" before every race. I mean, isn't that YOUR job?! I remember 10 years ago I could watch a full race on tv and enjoy every lap; now I'm forced to use alternative methods like Twitter, RaceBuddy, and online streaming of PRN to enjoy it. Personally, I'd rather just watch the race on tv, but I guess tv is nothing more than a money generating machine for NASCAR now.
I am one of the millions from Ohio to North Carolina that didn't have TV last night - the entire Comcast system here was down, including phone and internet.
But from the way it sounds, I didn't miss a thing. I read who won in the Sunday newspaper, and that Jimmie finished 6th. I'm good with that.
I was a fan that taped qualifying & EVERYTHING Nascar up to 3 yrs ago. Didn't watch the race last nite, won't watch this Sat nite (I don't do nite races anymore). I found out who won the race on SC, which shocked me to tell the truth. I have Sirius radio in the house-and didn't listen to one minute on Sunday. I found out where my driver finished & just didn't care after that. Sad, sad, sad. I miss having my passion for the only sport I've EVER followed diluted & basically dumped in the toilet.
I think that TNT needs more professional commentators. Larry McReynolds is the only one that acts professional out of the whole group. I also think that Fox and or ESPN needs to take over the races that TNT covers and just put us out of our misery
J.D.,
According to CAWSnJAWS, here are the figures. Apologies in advance if I didn't copy them correctly, but I did check twice. All times are minutes and seconds.
2012 TNT coverage
Total duration of the race: 183 (minutes)
Actual time of race coverage: 125
Total traditional commercial load*: 58
% of race coverage: 68.3%
% of commercials: 31.7
Race coverage per 60 minutes: 40(mins):59(seconds)
Commercial load per 60 minutes: 19:01
2011 TNT coverage
Total duration of the race: 195 (mins)
Actual time of race coverage: 143
Total traditional commercial load*: 52
% of race coverage: 73.3%
% of commercials: 26.7
Race coverage per 60 minutes: 44(mins):00(seconds)
Commercial load per 60 minutes: 16:00
You can see by the comparison that this year's coverage had an additional three minutes of traditional commercial time per hour.
*This does not include "placements" which are either graphics displayed on screen or mentions adjacent to statistics. For example there is a logo present next to the ticker. For a more detailed breakdown including raw number of spots, lists of the advertisers (and later this week a tally of the number of mentions and on-screen presence for each driver), you'll find them on CAWSnJAWS.
It would be interesting to see and hear the reactions of Brian "What me worry?" France and his merry band of yes-men (particularly Mike "They need to get a life" Helton#) if they were, er, deprived of the opportunity to watch the race at the track but instead had to watch a full race the way we do, but without any access to the Internet or radio coverage.
(It would also be interesting to find out if any of them could describe the circumstances during the race for any of the normal midfield teams which never make the Chase.)
# Helton's reply when asked about race fans who questioned the existence of debris which necessitated cautions for invisible debris.
WCK
I'm just wondering...........would coverage be any better if NASCAR would switch to or partner with some kind of pay per view? Those who do the PPV would get enhanced coverage, no commercials and limited voice over sounds. Those who don't want to pay would get the crud that's being peddled by the networks.
Another wonder......is coverage so bad because the racing has become so boring? Heck, even Bruton Smith admits the racing is bad and he's suggested that NASCAR take "time outs" like other sports do. Of course, old Bruton says the racing problems aren't because his 1.5 mile tracks stink, but because of tires and boring cars. Can you imagine the TV coverage if NASCAR instituted mandatory time outs every 50 laps? Insanity run amok.
That was Robin Pemberton who called fans who expected to see the debris 'needy'.
West Coast Kenny beat me to posting the Caws n Jaws comparative analysis for this week, but I don't mind. Saved me some work. :)
Look at what I think are the most telling numbers: the duration of race and the actual race coverage. From last year to this and rounding it off, the key is 20 minutes MORE in commercial and hence 20 minutes LESS in race. Sheesh.
No wonder I tweet talked with Doug Rice of PRN during the race saying that were it not for radio I would have ditched the puppy to which he answered "Thanks for hanging in"
As for KP's Twitter silence, Herm advanced the theory that KP was tired of Trolls (are not we all). After race some of us batted this about a bit and Kenny came back on and said that what he said was just "his idea". However, it is now Monday and "his idea' has not been knocked down and Kenny does work with the guy each week so you may draw your own appraisal...
Finally, of the posts here the one from Anon 10:43pm June 30 is the best and funniest thing I have read on any site. Made me howl:
I wonder though, is it safe to mix 5 hour energy, Viagra and KFC mashed potatoes or will that cause a dangerous interaction causing one to dress as Spiderman?
Kyle must be in withdrawal...is there a 'twitterholics' support group? Seriously, the man loves his Twitter, ya gotta wonder what that's all about.
Anyway, to be honest, I was on the computer too & just sort of tuned out the commercials. But I have taken to following my race team's Twitter since I can't find anything out otherwise. I too looked at CAWSnJaws & looked the commercial times, and that didn't count the pre-race, which would no doubt make the number of times we saw the KFC & Hardees ads go up. But my guess is, companies would not pay for that if it didn't work. It's like negative campaigning, we all hate it as viewers, but their research tells them it's effective so they won't stop. That bit at the beginning with Colonel Sanders was kinda creepy though...
The race itself was not that bad, not that we saw much of it. Disappointed in TNT this year. I thought Adam had a little more energy this week, but I'm not sure that helped much overall.
Typical poor job by TNT. Inside Trax and Enchanced Audio are especially dumb (there's a reason no other networks shoot a round of pit stops from an in-car side cam!).
Worst part was the restart reset graphic that said:
"Wave Arounds: 4 cars".
Wow, thank you for that great in-depth information! Replacing that with something like "34, 38, 83, 87" would have been way too difficult right?
What's next?
"Lucky dog: YES"?
"Race Off Pit Road Graphic: Tires: SOME"?
"Cars on Lead Lap: SOME"?
"Caution Flags: MULTIPLE"?
Let me add this about the #NASCAR carriage of Tweets about the ads during the race.
I saw tons of them -- all negative-- and made some myself. At one point someone (don't remember who) complained they were not showing up on #NASCAR. A little while later Randy @Janinda a Twitter "curator" tweeted back that they indeed were so I began following both my and the #NASCAR feeds using separate devices and Randy was correct they were showing up. This got me to thinking and my conclusion is my personal account, which has as its follow foundation JD's, is more sensitive to such issues than is the more broadly based #NASCAR. This makes sense to me especially when I realize that probably about 1 in 6 times do I remember to put in #NASCAR; the ratio is a bit better I expect for #TDP1 but still I often forget that too when in race Tweets are flying thick and fast. So, bottom line #NASCAR did OK reporting our collective displeasure.
JD,
I have done a little searching but the only thing I found was an anonymous source saying both Kyle and Steve Latarte deleted their accounts because of to much negative feedback.
Jim
I didn't watch the race, but listened to the end on PRN. Digesting West Coast Kenny's data
it appears that the ratio of
racing to commercials is approximately 2 to 1. Last year it
was approximately 3 minutes racing to 1 of commercials. Do You really think NA$CAR cares?
OK the anonymous source was wrong about Steve Letarte. His account is still active. Should have checked my facts better, Sorry.
I normally have problems with people bashing whoever but I agree at least with advertisement placement. Toward the end TNT came out of break did a quick thru the field and went to break again!. They would have a break, get a yellow and go to another break. Its getting bad. What is comparison of commercial percentage TNT vs FOX and perhaps ESPN. Is it equal or does TNT have more commercials and if so WHY? It seems that they want the fan to watch Race Buddy during the breaks but thats not always possible. In fact I couldnt get it to work on my Sprint Android phone.
Wonder if KP cancelled his twitter account because of all the negative comments he has been receiving?
Finally Larry Mac (and Cheese or is it mashed potatos) is not a good host. TNT should have hired a pre-race host.
I've been wondering about this for a long time. Since we watch cars on the track with sponsors all over them, aren't we already watching commls? Shouldn't this warrant fewer comml breaks?
Another thing I've wondered about is, why aren't there any drivers in commls anymore? (excluding Danica & Jr). I find that if drivers are in commls, they're more fun to watch. Even my mom (not a race fan) said she hadn't seen Marcos in a long time.
(It would also be interesting to find out if any of them could describe the circumstances during the race for any of the normal midfield teams which never make the Chase.)
I watched the 6 hours of the Glen on speed. What a different commentating style.
Anyway, they offer some sort of prize for the best team (??) midway through the season. That's the kind of thing NASCAR really needs to liven things up for the little and mid-pack teams. Heck, they could even have a Start and Park competition....most laps run without starting and parking.
Then there would be several races within a race, coverage for more teams and no necessary TV cautions for Bruton.
Dot: The best commercials ever featuring drivers was (ironically) the ESPN "NASCAR Ride Along Program". The best! Dale Sr. being a back seat driver to Jr. Terry Labonte with the ferret in his lap, etc. That's when it was tolerable to watch commercials during a race.And now a word from my sponsor...
Dot, I think you must've missed Clint Bowyer walking through his 5 hour energy, Tony Stewart polishing up with his Armorall, Kyle Busch (I find myself thinking, I hope he's trying to sing badly on purpose...), the Coke drivers, Casey Mears with his gecko, Mark Martin with Waltrip, Kasey Kahne & the insurance recruits, Jimmie & his Sprint phone, Jeff & his Papa Johns (that one is new)...but I would guess that there are fewer simply because there are fewer full time sponsors, and fewer advertising dollars that go toward that. Perhaps just a reflection of the economy. In Marcos' case, his ads were Little Debbie, and they're still with the 47 & Labonte. But *any* commercial is annoying if you see it 10 times an hour.....
A couple of months ago I tried following KP on twitter and had to unfollow him after several weeks. I can see where he may have gotten tired of people constantly bashing him personally, but he certainly wasn't helping his cause by RTing and replying to almost every one of those idiots. The trolls were starting to take it as a point of pride to be RT'd by Kyle. Someone should have introduced Kyle to the block button a long time ago.
Another one I tried to follow but couldn't hang with is Kenny Wallace. That man needs to learn how to reply directly to someone without RTing to all his followers. All day you'd get dozens of messages from Kenny "Hello __________!! I see you!" Stuff like that.
AR,
Randy is a Twitter employee but is not curating NASCAR hashtag tweets.
Other topics:
Kyle Petty returned to Twitter on Monday. Just took a short break and is back for Daytona.
Social media is just like the Internet, it is what the user makes it. We have only seen the tip of the iceberg with Twitter, top athletes, networks and major news sources now routinely use Twitter to break news.
This was recently the case with Denny Hamlin, who announced his contract extension.
Lots going on right now, will be updating with a new column tonight.
Thank you for all the comments, they have generated a ton of feedback throughout the sport.
Keep them coming.
JD
July 2, 2012 11:11 AM
"(It would also be interesting to
find out if any of them could describe the circumstances during the race for any of the normal midfield teams which never make the Chase.)
I watched the 6 hours of the Glen on speed. What a different commentating style. "
For sure.
For a different form of racing,try listening to Phil Liggett + Paul Sherwen who cover the Tour de France for NBC Sports. These guys cover 3+ hours a day for 3 weeks.
They use the tour TV feed and are rarely caught out on the correct things to say. If the camera focuses on someone in 110th place, they read off stats about that rider (years as a pro, where born, major accomplishments, married, pets.....). If a camera pauses on a castle they will tell you that Charlamenge in 810 laid seige to it for 3 months. It would be great if NASCAR had people with half the talent of these 2 covering races.
Anon @ 8:57, I'll give TNT credit for that 'restart graphic'. It may not provide the full details for 'wave around' cars, but it provides more information than Fox or ESPN have provided in the past.
To Anon 12:43PM, Touche. Still, more sponsors need to have their drivers' do at least one comml. The ones that run over and over are tiresome. And yes, I know Little Debbie isn't MA's sponsor anymore.
I just hope BSPN is paying attn to us and will place the commls better.
Anon 3:04 pm makes an excellent Point about Phil Liggett. Years ago I was a fairly serious cyclist and to this day watch much of the yearly Tour de France. Announcers like Kyle Petty and the Waltrips could learn so much from Phil Liggett. He's extremely focused, doesn't say more then he has to, and if he has a favorite, you can't tell who it is. He's the consummate professional.
JD does TNT use same number of cameras on the telecast as FOX did (or is it does)on their Cup telecasts on FOX ? To ask another way, is TNT's production any less than what FOX produced?
Anon, it is basically the same layout. Each network has individual items, but the cameras to cover the racing are the same.
Just had a friend post they watched Transformers on TNT for the first time ever, loved the movie and a lot less commercials than the NASCAR race... Do we nead anymore proof?? Welcome back Kyle, glad to see you are back. Don't know why you left and JD what was your tweet about earlier?? TNT big news??? Explain please...
@Sally: Thanks for correcting me. Although they look nothing like each other, I just look at them as Brian's Merry Band of Yes-Men who promised his father that when Brian says "Bark like a dog," they both say "Bow Wow."
Reading some of these accounts here on Kyle's absence makes me wonder if I was seeing the same things they did. Kyle Petty's Twitter account was still around noon, he was just inactive since June 24. It didn't say he had closed it, it looked like a normal, active account with the user inactive.
I did a search on Google News and found nothing. If only we could put a generator on the rumor mill. We'd generate enough electricity to shut down all the power plants.
WCK
Yesterday I read another article from Jeff Gluck, again he called the "show" unwatchable, I am curious that there is no mention of it here! AS I HAVE STATED PREVIOUSLY, HOW DOES NASCAR CONTINUE TO ALLOW THIS. TNT started off OK, then fell off the table. Tony Stewart has problems with his motor, coverage was miserable, AA should stick to fronting the Speed Center, he does not "fit in" as a PXP person. Why should a viewer HAVE to rely on outside sources to know what is happening on the race track? With all the people 'reporting" the event, why does a fan have to have ten ways to follow a race? This last race at Kentucky, was certainly a statement about last years mismanaged "show", the parking lots looked rather empty, I hope Burton got the message! What does it take for NASCAR to understand the core fan is totally fed up with the networks repeated miserable coverage being blasted every week. Now we look forward to ESPN covering the last half of the year. Brad K stated the only thing that matters is to stay in the top ten in points and get all the bonus points you can for the chase! This is NOT NASCAR, this is wheel of fortune! Only we interrupt the commercials with a little "show" blurbs, to keep the masses watching!
The structure of Jeff Gluck's column is hilarious as he interrupts it 3 times for #KFC ads, but those who follow him on Twitter know just how really and truly frustrated he was Saturday night.
I feel his pain as many of us do, but I fear it will be of little use until, as many have observed, the PTB are compelled to watch a race(s) on commercial TV.
It really does not have to be this way, folks, and we all know it.
Loved Gluck's column from yesterday, I added my comments on the TV coverage to that one, too.
Glad to hear, JD, that the comments are generating feedback, but darn it, I'm looking for improvement.
Does Brian France even know there's a problem? Any time he gives one of his tremendously informative press conferences, he always seems so "surprised" by everything that people have been talking about for months/years!
I still go with my theory that no one is willing to tell him anything so we're back to the emperor has no clothes scenario.
Just saw the TNT-TruTV news. If you make a new column I'll just move this comment over.
I'm disappointed with the announcement. Putting the same thing on 2 different channels offers nothing to entice the viewers. Turner can put slug racing on all it's networks, but if people aren't into it, they won't watch it. It's not wintertime 1979 where you could count the channels on one hand and entertainment options on the other.
I've seen the argument that this puts the sport in front truTV viewers, but does network loyalty even exist today? I watch the network for the shows, not the other way around. If one of my shows happens to not air that night, there's many other things to do, it's summertime.
It seems like nobody in the sport gets it. NASCAR doesn't need a thousand marketing people to return to it's former popularity. Instead, NASCAR needs to fix the game it created. That's what attracted people, then turned fans away. 1,000 people screaming the praises of NASCAR will do no good if the problems with the rules, cars, schedule, and tv coverage are not addressed. Also, Turner doesn't need to put NASCAR on two channels to promote viewership. End the booth conversation & news hour and try calling the race. Decrease the odds when I flick to TNT that it will be a commercial. Simple stuff.
Column up shortly.
The race was on as I was coming back from vacation. So I watched it Sunday morning. I thought it was just me with all the commercials. You really notice those things when you DVR the race and skip through the commercials. I remember one time seeing 9 laps of racing, missing 6 laps of racing because of commercials, seeing 6 more laps of racing, and then 6 more laps missed of commercials. Unacceptable.
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