Nicole Manske Stakes Her Claim

Amid all the talk about the new hour-long Monday show and the continuing presence of co-host Ryan Burr, there is another developing story on NASCAR Now. Perhaps, no one is under more scrutiny this season than Nicole Manske.

Brought-in back in August of 2006 by SPEED to replace several popular on-air veterans at The SPEED Report, Manske struggled. The new format at SPEED and a non-supportive co-host put Manske behind the 8-ball.

She was put in the role of the dizzy blond newscaster, regardless of the reality of her professionalism. Her attire was scrutinized every time she hit the air and even posted on the Internet. Sometimes, those clothing choices led TV viewers to draw their own conclusions about her on-air abilities and her off-camera personality.

At the conclusion of the 2007 season, both Manske and her SPEED Report co-host did not have their contracts renewed. Transition in the television world is normal, but it was Manske who announced that she would be moving to Bristol, CT and co-hosting NASCAR Now.

After a tough season, ESPN was re-vamping this daily show from the ground-up. Manske would be part of a three person hosting team that included distinguished veteran Allen Bestwick and former ESPNEWS anchor Ryan Burr. It was a total on-air change.

From the first moment she stepped onto the ESPN2 set, Manske experienced a new level of exposure and began to understand what it meant to be an ESPN anchor. As many on-air talent have learned, ESPN throws a lot of work at you right away, and Manske was no exception.

Assigned first to the field, Manske began to establish herself with interviews of drivers and personalities that had a bit of spice and attitude. She knew her NASCAR, and often took her interviews a little bit off the beaten path to the delight of those answering the questions.

In addition, she began a careful re-structuring of her on-air image that has continued to this day. Gone is the blond hair and the "interesting" outfits. Manske now joined the other female ESPN announcers in a dress code that takes the focus away from the TV anchor and puts it right back on the subject at hand.

Her first big test came with the assignment to anchor a one hour weekend edition of NASCAR Now from the racetrack. Sitting alongside Rusty Wallace, Brad Daugherty and other ESPN personalities Manske established herself as a credible presence and began a positive change in her public perception.

Now, a little over one month into the NASCAR season, Manske has quietly done what good TV anchors learn to do. She gets out of the way. Just like her co-host Allen Bestwick has done for years, Manske directs traffic and lets the attention be drawn to the news being discussed or the person being interviewed.

Given a fair chance by ESPN, Manske is continuing to grow into the role of a national TV anchor/reporter with solid results. After watching her struggle through the off-balance and "trendy" SPEED Report, many of us were curious as to how she would transition to the ESPN stage.

Say what you will, one of the big stories of this season's NASCAR Now has been the easy integration of Manske into the NASCAR on ESPN team. Her ability to talk effectively with a wide variety of racing personalities has been on display for some time now, and is only getting better.

When ESPN made the commitment to change this show, they took a risk on a former local TV station anchor who was appearing once a week on a one hour motorsports show. Now, it seems that gamble has paid-off and the network has found a reliable and credible co-host for this high-profile daily series.

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"NASCAR Now" Ruins A Perfect Monday (2nd Update 11AM 3/26/08)

Update #2: I will be joining Dave Moody on Sirius Speedway Wednesday afternoon at 4:40PM to talk about some NASCAR TV topics, including the one contained in this story. Please join us on Sirius Channel 128 at 4:40PM Eastern Time for some live conversation.

It was February 26th when reporter Terry Blount appeared on NASCAR Now with "breaking news." His news was so important that it was the first story on the program with a big "breaking news" graphic on the screen.

It was only hours later when his "news" was revealed to be completely full of holes. The link to the column that appeared on The Daly Planet that day can be read by clicking here. Nothing that he reported was anything more than bad gossip and ridiculous speculation.

Blount reported on national television that California Speedway President Gillian Zucker was seriously considering tearing-up the racing surface after the disastrous rain-plagued weekend. Blount reported Zucker was considering installing high banks and making the Speedway a restrictor plate track.

Needless to say, it took the International Speedway Corp. about five minutes to issue a terse release saying there would be no changes at "their" speedway in California. It took less time for other analysts and reporters to point out that any experienced NASCAR journalist would never have gone on-the-air with that information.

Such is the fine line that NASCAR Now has only crossed once or twice this season. The one where hardcore reporting and expert analysis give way to the dark-side of NASCAR journalism that most reporters detest. Gossip and unfounded allegations that are rushed to the national TV airwaves before common sense is allowed to prevail.

Monday, Allen Bestwick led a panel of three through a one hour version of NASCAR Now from the Bristol, CT studios. There was no dark-side reporting and no unfounded gossip. Instead, there was fun and conversation and the one thing that NASCAR Now has been trying hard to build since February's Daytona 500. That is credibility.

Host Nicole Manske led Tuesday's NASCAR Now directly to Mr. Blount once again. This time, Blount had been assigned the task of trying to sell magazines for ESPN. In all of the hype that fans witnessed on this TV series in 2007, there may have been nothing to top this effort.

Suddenly, Blount was revealing that Jack Roush found a Roush-Fenway part on a Toyota car in the garage area. Roush alleges that it was a part that his company created, and suggests in so many words that it may have been stolen. What a NASCAR bombshell. Imagine, a story this big breaking on a Tuesday afternoon.

Unfortunately, here is the reality. This story was not breaking and had nothing to do with Tuesday's NASCAR news. It was simply planted in NASCAR Now to sell ESPN the Magazine.

Like a fifth-grader trying to make enough money for the big class trip, Terry Blount was at your door and really needed you to buy it now. Twenty-six issues of ESPN the Magazine for only $26.

The line in ESPN-owned Jayski.com says it all. "ESPN the Magazine has an interesting and potentially explosive quote from Roush-Fenway Racing co-owner Jack Roush as part of its 10th Anniversary issue, which is on newsstands this week."

Imagine that. You can buy ESPN the Magazine to see the actual article that talks about the two-week old quote from a car owner who is still steaming at Toyota for comments earlier in the season. Surprisingly, the Roush story is about Toyota allegedly doing bad things to him.

There were thirty-four comments on the ESPN.com page about this story late Tuesday night. Fans suggested that the stolen part may have been an oil-cooler lid or perhaps the gas pedal from the 26 car, which apparently is missing. Words like "sour grapes, whining and even pre-school" were featured in the ESPN comments.

After a Monday of wonderful NASCAR conversation and information, this story caused me to turn-off this program for the first time in two years. Going from Bestwick, Marty Smith, Brad Daugherty and Andy Petree to this reporter selling junk once again as truth did me in.

Regardless of how slickly Blount worded his script and regardless of how delicately he skated around the timeliness issue, this was a planted story aimed at selling magazines. Regardless of the actions of Jack Roush in the future on this issue, it was presented to try and drive NASCAR fans to another ESPN property.

Over at the SPEEDtv.com message boards, one reader said very clearly what many people were thinking. "If Jack actually made these comments at Atlanta why did no media outlet other than ESPN The Magazine report it? They had no problem reporting the rest of his accusations against Toyota, why not this too?"

All the good will and outstanding content generated by the Monday show now has a black could hanging over it from this repeat of the dark days of 2007. Erik Kuselias and Doug Banks may be distant memories in the minds of many fans, but Terry Blount has drawn the short-straw this season.

The "hype" he has been offering may serve once again to motivate fans to simply skip this TV program and go directly to the Internet for their NASCAR content. NASCAR Now needs to understand that a direct alternative to their efforts is at the fingertips of every fan, and does not require them to tune-in at 5:30PM.

Update #1: Here is the link to Dave Moody's blog story that some of you have been asking about. His original words are the ones I listed from Jayski in reference to this topic. Just to make sure we are all on the same page.

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No Jacket Required For "NASCAR Now"

In the middle of the college basketball season, ESPN's NASCAR Now team stepped-up to the free throw line with everyone watching. The TV cameras were on, there was a high-profile visitor watching and there was an hour to fill.

The starting line-up ESPN chose to put on the floor was Allen Bestwick, Marty Smith, Andy Petree and Brad Daugherty. These veterans were ready for action.

Bestwick led the show with an explanation of the lack of suit jackets on the panel. The last time Brad Daugherty forgot an item of clothing, it was his suit pants. While ESPN was able to find a pair in time for the show, there was going to be no such luck in finding a suit jacket for a seven foot tall adult in Bristol, CT. Even the Men's Warehouse could not fill the void.

Without a Cup race, the manner on the show was easy and relaxed. This is exactly what the show needed as it continued to build momentum. A feature on the season-in-review led the panel into a serious discussion of pressing NASCAR issues. Daugherty, Smith and Petree all raised big topics that had not really been raised by the mainstream NASCAR media.

The type of free-ranging discussion led by Bestwick is the key to the success of this show. Daugherty was criticized at first, but often puts his views on the table so they can be discussed by the more experienced members of the panel. Give Daugherty credit, his enthusiasm never wanes and this is a good TV venue for his skills.

Early on, it was clear that the program would be an issue-oriented discussion. As the show went on, it then became apparent it would be the theme of the entire hour. What a nice change of pace for fans who are lambasted with highlights on most NASCAR TV shows on a regular basis.

Continuing to erase the painful memories of last season, it was clear that the NASCAR Now Producer had been given the green light to throw the doors wide open and talk about everything and anything under the NASCAR sun. From dollars to tires, and from personalities to failures, this show may have taken its format from the NASCAR message boards on the Internet.

Time-and-time again, the conversation came back to money. The country's economic crisis has taken a toll on NASCAR and is now actively affecting all three series. All four panel members were very clear in making solid points about the problems, and what can be done to address those issues. It was not a pretty prognosis.

At halftime, Bestwick changed the strategy and offered one topic for a quick comment from the panelists. The COT, Toyota, and Goodyear got some great reactions and some interesting comments from the panel. Petree was outstanding in his hardcore racing comments from his crew chief perspective, and his knowledge served to set the table for the comments from Smith and Daugherty. It was a nice mix of talent.

Surprisingly, Bestwick launched the most controversial topic when he said the words "NASCAR officials." To have an ESPN TV series that focuses on NASCAR having an open discussion about officiating borders on amazing.

The show included a nice recap of the Saturday stand-alone Nationwide Series race at Nashville, TN. It included soundbites from the winner and a good selection of highlights that told the story of the race. The Kyle Busch spinning discussion was interesting, and the panel pointed the finger at Busch for his actions.

IRL driver Danica Patrick was at ESPN promoting the upcoming season opener at Homestead. In another statement about the maturing of this series, she was quickly asked to come on the show and talk racing. The results may have done more to promote the IRL race than all her other ESPN appearances. Does anyone watch First Take?

Patrick was made to feel comfortable right-off the bat, and responded with a good interview. She was blunt in her response to her failure to win an IRL race, and was clear that she was gunning to win this season. In terms of NASCAR, she put her perspective on the table and then asked the panel why she should "come over" to NASCAR?

As the discussion progressed, it was clear that she was a politician and left the door open to the other "art form" of racing in the closed-wheel ranks. It was fun to watch her put the panel on the spot, and the "guys" struggle to tell her why she should change series. If she ever did decide to jump ship, it certainly would bring some new fans over to NASCAR.

As you might expect, the panel closed the show with a look ahead to the Martinsville weekend. This preview really put a nice end to a fast-paced and interesting hour program. NASCAR TV is being well-served on Mondays, and the mix of personalities in this show really clicked.

ESPN2 answered the question of how this NASCAR Now team would fill an hour with only one race to review. Each panelists came through with some interesting opinions and Petree predicted firmly that Hendrick Racing would be back up-front at Martinsville.

The result of this hour was that NASCAR fans are going to make plans to return next Monday, get some great NASCAR information and see if the ESPN2 dress code has changed once again. Maybe the panel could take turns forgetting a suit jacket, because the shirts-and-ties edition of NASCAR Now really clicked.

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