By Marty Smith, NASCAR.COM
September 21, 2006
10:49 AM EDT (14:49 GMT) Commercially saturated NASCAR broadcasts have long been a considerable point of contention for viewers, to the point now that one mother/son tandem on a fan-produced Web site tracks weekly the number of commercials and companies advertised therein; short corporate promotions and the number of companies promoted therein; restarts missed due to commercials and total minutes of commercial time vs. race time in each NASCAR broadcast.
That, to me, is a sign. Fans are fed up.
They plead incessantly that side-by-side coverage be implemented into NASCAR broadcasts as it is during Indy Racing League events, and quite frankly don't care why, as I wrote here two weeks ago, it's "simply not an option in NASCAR."
If it can work for the IRL, it can work for NASCAR, they say. And while the hows and whys are indeed complicated, I'm not certain that rationale isn't fundamentally true.
My understanding was that IRL broadcasts are advertising buys by the series to the network partner. Five different people -- some in NASCAR, some, even, involved in the production of ABC's IRL broadcasts, confirmed this notion. Five people.
But IRL executive vice president for communications Fred Nation says that's incorrect. The IRL, he said, gets paid for the rights to broadcast its races just like NASCAR does. Though the IRL contract isn't as lucrative as those enjoyed by NASCAR, they are structurally similar, Nation said.
That got me thinking -- if that's indeed true, and the IRL can produce side-by-side coverage during its broadcasts, why can't NASCAR? Money?
"IndyCar worked closely with ABC/ESPN and our key sponsors to implement side-by-side two years ago," Nation responded in an e-mail. "There was some initial resistance by some sponsors fearing less attention to their commercials.
"Those fears have proved unfounded according to network research. Side-by-side is ideal for auto racing, and there is no inherent reason not to do it.
"It takes a commitment from both the network and the series to work with sponsors. If both are willing and enthusiastic, it is possible."
ABC/ESPN spokesman George McNeilly said Wednesday that the network would enjoy the opportunity to bring side-by-side coverage to NASCAR fans, but obstacles abound. Intricate dynamics are involved.
It's not as easy as simply doing it.
"ESPN is on the cutting edge of technology and would like the opportunity to pursue side-by-side with NASCAR, but we are contractually prohibited at this time from doing so.
"We see side-by-side as an opportunity to serve sports fans so they don't miss the action, and still provide great value to advertisers on the telecast. We'd like the opportunity."
McNeilly said, too, that ABC/ESPN is in dialogue with NASCAR daily, and that NASCAR officials have shown they're willing to listen to new and innovative broadcast ideas.
Contacted Wednesday, NASCAR spokesman Ramsey Poston said NASCAR is still searching for the proper solution.
"We are always interested in finding the best way to showcase our racing in a manner that serves fans, sponsors and the networks," Poston said. "Up to this point we have not seen a split screen solution that accomplishes that."
In other words, NASCAR is open to a picture-in-picture concept, just not in the same fashion the IRL uses.
Truth be told, side-by-side coverage has produced no noticeable increase in IRL viewership ratings for ESPN/ABC. Nation said it was "arguable."
The fundamental difference between here and there, it seems, is the cost difference between a 30-second commercial spot during an IRL broadcast and the same spot during a NASCAR broadcast, which is considerable.
"The reason NASCAR probably doesn't want to use side-by-side is the same problem we had with the Indy 500 in 2005 -- advertisers don't want it," Nation said. "In 2005 we did it for all races except the Indy 500."
The IRL works with fewer advertisers than the Nextel Cup Series does, so fundamentally there are fewer sponsors to convince that it's a viable course of action.
FedEx is one of many Fortune 500 companies that runs multiple commercial spots weekly during NASCAR broadcasts.
"As a marketing leader, FedEx is always looking for unique ways to communicate with our key audiences," FedEx spokesman Chris Swearingen said. "Side-by-side broadcast coverage of races and commercials with NASCAR is certainly a way to effectively advertise without interruption."
So ABC/ESPN is open to it. NASCAR is open to researching ways to make it work. And it seems some sponsors see its effectiveness.
I'm not so sure side-by-side coverage in NASCAR can't happen.
Granted, it might not look like it looks in the IRL. But if it ultimately comes to fruition, it'll look pretty dadgum good to the NASCAR fan base, regardless.
The opinions expressed are solely of the writer.
