Hundreds of editorials are written everyday about racing. Many of these editorials are centered around individuals, tracks, sponsors, and events connected to racing. Team members, fans, owners, and sponsors gather crucial information about the industry though which they are involved. Here are some editorials which will help you develop better reading skills while learning more about the sport of racing. All editorials are reprinted with permissions from their author.

A Headline We Missed

By Jeff Alan - Staff Writer
Catchfence.com
05/25/2002

Buried amongst the excitement, headlines and fallout from The Winston, I took great interest in a story that your average NASCAR news-junkie would have probably shunned. On the outside, it appeared innocuous. On the inside, this story quietly sent shock waves through the suits at Bill France Boulevard. Shock waves that reached as far as Madison Avenue. NASCAR has been quiet about this, and with good reason.

This week, the Sports Business Journal, a clearinghouse for information that 99.9% of the fans would have no interest in, chopped into those numbers by reporting that teen and young adult men are either turning off NASCAR on TV, or not tuning in at all. Anyway you look at it, this could have enormous implications for the future of this sport.

First of all, we are dealing with a significant loss (or deficit) of a viewing demographic that ranks as the single, most important target for manufacturers and marketers; Adult males, 18-34. This is the group that is most susceptible to change. Brand loyalty is traditionally established during these years. Men typically marry and start families during this time. Homes and domiciles are being established. Cars, houses, furniture, food and beer are bought. Credit lines grow, bolstering buying power. Lifestyles are pursued and cemented during these years. In short, this is the age group that spends most of the money that flows via fiber optic cables across our nation from one branch of the federal reserve to another.

And these are the people most major advertisers want to reach.

But let us step back. Why isn't NASCAR appealing to males between 18-34? What is NASCAR coverage lacking? Or, what is it about NASCAR that isn't attracting these viewers in the first place?

Don't tell me those NASCAR commercials are ‘all over the place.' They aren't. The only place where you really see many the spots that we all love to watch, are broadcast during the races themselves. You have to watch an awful lot of TV to be able to see more than one or two NASCAR commercials on other networks. And will someone tell me how useful those "how bad have you got it?" NASCAR promos are, when they broadcast them only during a race? NASCAR should spend a few bucks buying time on major networks and cable outlets to have those promos aired ---- where they can reach and stimulate an audience that may be thirsting for excitement in a televised sport.

And in a day and age of young rookies tearing up the tracks, and slowly making their way into mainstream advertising, you would think that seeing these young guns would provoke a group of guys to stay home and call out for pizza and beer every Sunday afternoon. Just seeing those life-sized cut-outs of Junior in just about every store that sells Bud should at least increase awareness of the sport.

But this ‘problem' defies logic. In actuality, the aura, the danger, and the excitement of stock car racing, is a perfect medium for young to middle-aged males seeking a visual thrill. In fact, NASCAR has taken great strides to attract and retain those prized 18-34 males. Look at their presentations. Fifteen years ago, almost every NASCAR race telecast or promo featured country or rockabilly music. Today, when a broadcast opens, its heavy metal all the way. It shows the effort that NASCAR, in conjunction with its broadcast partners, has made trying to shed its image as a redneck sport dominated by funny talking southerners. Part of that transformation includes the format in which it is presented to the viewing public.

But what about the viewing habits of the 18-34 demographic as a whole?. Why aren't men between 18-34 tuning in?

One colleague of mine suggested that young men are extremely mobile. Weekends are respites from reality, he says, and activities often do not include sitting on the couch on a Sunday afternoon watching racing.

My response to that is that those same 18-34 year old males that shun auto racing have no problem sitting on the couch on a Sunday afternoon watching the NFL all day, or seeing how many foul shots Shaq can miss. The NFL has a surplus of 18-34 males who zero-in on the gridiron during the winter months. Perhaps they may lend some to NASCAR?

I'll make a concession that young men, and especially young families, are more apt to be outside the reach of the TV during the summer, when family activities are more frequent. But the statistics already take that into account. Those men between 18 and 34 that remain at home and watch TV on Sunday are already factored-in to the equation. Fair being fair, the latest numbers still look bad no matter how fast you spin them.

Another possible reason is that NASCAR still does not get the headlines and coverage that other sports receive from major sports publications. Sports Illustrated, for instance, only gives NASCAR scant coverage on its major races. And its safe to say that every high school and college athlete or a sports fan reads SI weekly. When I was in school back in the days of Robin Hood and Sherwood Forest, there was always a line of jocks waiting their turn to read it. And now that ESPN isn't a member of the NASCAR family, coverage there is almost nonexistent. I'll bet if a copy of Winston-Cup Scene, or Stock Car Racing magazine were in every high school and college library, you'd see a tremendous awareness of the sport.

Admittedly, NASCAR has always been at a disadvantage merely because of the nature of the sport. Stock Car Racing is a specialized, dangerous and expensive sport. High School and College Phys Ed classes don't offer auto racing as a part of the curriculum. Your local Lions Club does not sponsor a little league stock car series at the community ballpark. Kids don't race stock cars on their family driveways (although many might race their family car on the back roads). Adult recreation leagues give you the opportunity to play softball or tennis, but you'll never be able to sign up to race modifieds on an asphalt oval.

In short, we are drawn by tradition and practicality to accept stick and ball sports ---- baseball, football, soccer, and hockey ---- as a normal part of our lives. Many will look at stock car racing as a special sport that requires knowledge of it to enjoy. We already all know the basics of a football game, the rules, and the aura of those who play the game. We all know the intricacies of that sport. But your average Joe would look at a race like the Daytona 500 as a bunch of lunatics driving around in circles. And when we shake that mentality from those that know no better, and NASCAR begins to weave its sport into the fabric of our daily lives, and presents it so that it is as normal to watch a stock car race as it would to watch the Super Bowl, then you will see those viewing numbers change. And you will see NASCAR grow faster then the expanding universe.

So what does all this mean to the fans? While it is doubtful that the fans will be personally affected, it is not entirely impossible. But if a team is about to fold because they don't have a sponsor, are losing a sponsor, or a potential sponsor pulls out because they aren't happy with the current or potential exposure of their target demographic, then I can assure you a lot of good people will be affected. Perhaps even your favorite driver. And that doesn't even count the apparel and merchandise vendors who would be stuck with inventories of merchandise that is, for all intents and purposes, outdated, and saleable only at deep discounts. Finally, think of the TV broadcasters. Both FOX and NBC lost staggering amounts of money last year. If an advertiser can buy time on another network program that draws a larger segment of the ‘prime demographic,' then you can be sure that ad agency is going to put their bucks where they make the loudest bang.

As you can see, this is a complicated problem that must breed an equally complicated solution. And it is a problem that I can assure will be addressed behind closed doors in the next few weeks. It has to be. If NASCAR cannot find a way to attract more young men, it cannot possibly grow in the long-term. And that is a most frightening prospect.

You can reach Jeff Alan at: Jalan5000a@aol.com

Reprinted with permission from Jeff Alan, Catchfence.com, for educational use only. 2002