NASCAR and ESPN "appear almost at war with each other
in these final days of their sports marriage," according to
Mike Mulhern of the WINSTON-SALEM JOURNAL, who wrote "there
is a decidedly sharp edge to the relationship" between the
two companies. Mulhern: "The battling has escalated to the
point that executives at ESPN are worried that NASCAR
officials will bar their reporters from the Winston Cup and
Busch garages next season." Meanwhile, ABC "hasn't helped"
ESPN by "refusing to release some of its top talent to cover
Winston Cup racing" on NBC and Fox next year (WINSTON SALEM-
JOURNAL, 10/9). Meanwhile, Mulhern cited NASCAR execs as
saying that next season "there will be absolutely no TV
blackouts for Winston Cup races, regardless of ticket
sales." Mulhern: "That will likely hurt live crowds at
several tracks" (WINSTON SALEM-JOURNAL, 10/9).
AD MONITOR: USA TODAY's Rudy Martzke credited TBS for
its "No Brakes" coverage of Sunday's UAW-GM Quality 500
race. The network, "knocked by fans for commercial clutter
on a Pocono race," showed Sunday's race "via split screen
during some commercials" (USA TODAY, 10/9). In Atlanta,
Prentis Rogers wrote that the "No Brakes" split screen
"worked well, although it won't be necessary on breaks
during caution flags" (ATLANTA CONSTITUTION, 10/9).
