NASCAR "stands before its passionately loyal fans ...
accused of heartless greed" in its TV rights agreements,
according to David Poole of the CHARLOTTE OBSERVER. While
race fans "have legitimate concerns about what will happen
once Fox and NBC-TBS take over," Poole wrote that with the
amount of money these new TV partners "are investing in the
new contract, they're the ones who are demonstrating a
willingness to treat NASCAR like a major-league event. They
will have 466.7 million reasons per year for NASCAR to
remain popular and for its fans to enjoy the telecasts."
Poole wrote that NASCAR must "keep looking ahead," and the
new TV deal, despite losing partners ABC/ESPN and CBS/TNN,
"is an important step in [that] direction" (CHARLOTTE
OBSERVER, 11/14). NASCAR President Bill France dismissed
the notion of non-loyalty and said ABC/ESPN and CBS just
came up short in a high-priced market. France: "Anybody who
says that, if they knew what the deal was, wouldn't say
that. If you're just a few bucks apart, you stay with who
brought you. That wasn't the case. This is America. The
market rules, pure and simple" (USA TODAY, 11/15). But in
Indianapolis, Robin Miller wrote that "once again, ESPN
helps to raise [a] sport, only to watch it leave [the]
nest." Miller called NASCAR's decision "good business and
bad manners," as NASCAR "turned its back on CBS and ESPN in
a move that will help Winston Cup's wallet, but could hurt
its overall exposure in the long run" (INDY STAR, 11/14).
IMPACTING TWO FOOTBALL LEAGUES: In Boston, Will
McDonough reported that the key aspect of the NASCAR deal is
that NBC's deal runs until 2006 to "air races every Sunday
in the fall." As the NFL's TV deals with Fox, CBS and ABC
run through 2005, NBC has "neatly taken itself out of the
pro football mix." The NFL will "not have NBC to use as
'leverage' in the bidding wars" for TV rights (BOSTON GLOBE,
11/13). In Baltimore, Milton Kent wrote that the new summer
and fall NASCAR package "may signal the end of NBC and
Turner's ruminations about starting up a new fall football
league." NBC Sports Chair Dick Ebersol said the two parties
will make an announcement after Thanksgiving about the
future of a new league (SUN, 11/12). In Houston, David
Barron writes that after listening to the "yuk-it-up good
humor" between Ebersol and Fox Sports TV Group Chair David
Hill during Thursday's announcement, "it won't be a shock if
the league gets scrubbed" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 11/15).
FROM THE PITS: Kyle Petty: "I assumed that ABC or CBS
would be one of the two. ... It shock[ed] me that Fox was
able to come in and that ABC and CBS were out. ... As an
athlete in the sport I'm a little bit disappointed that CBS
and TNN and ESPN and ABC didn't get a part of it" (DAYTONA
NEWS-JOURNAL, 11/14). Petty said it will be different
dealing with the new networks, as he had relationships who
ABC/ESPN and CBS/TNN personnel. Petty: "If I step back and
I look at the World Series and see that guy Jim Gray and he
walks in, all of a sudden I've got a bad case of lock jaw.
I don't know this guy. I have no relationship with him"
(CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 11/14). NBC's Ebersol, on the net's
coverage: "We don't want to change anything. We want to
depict it as it is and show the American [people] its
greatness" (Gaston GAZETTE, 11/14).
PRESS CLIPPINGS: In Winston-Salem, Mike Mulhern
reported that the next step for NASCAR is the launch of The
NASCAR Channel, something that NASCAR "should be ready to
discuss more openly in the next six months." Mulhern wrote
that "one [surprising] aspect of NASCAR's announcement of
the TV deal was the awkward press conference to discuss it
all." NASCAR execs thought they would have a week before
the story leaked, and "weren't prepared for ESPN to break
the story Wednesday night." Sources said that NASCAR execs
"quickly leaked more details themselves" to USA Today and
set up Thursday's conference call (W-S JOURNAL, 11/14).
ODDS & ENDS: FSN's Jim Rome on the deal: "It's bad news
for every non-redneck in America; NASCAR is coming, and
there's nothing we can do about it" (OREGONIAN, 11/12).
...FSN's Keith Olbermann, when highlights of the Pennzoil
400 were shown during last night's "Fox Flash": "How's this
for a coincidence? Thursday we got the NASCAR contract.
Tonight, NASCAR's in the 'Fox Flash'" (FSN, 11/14).
