[Bob Tanner]

I just clipped this from jayski.com:
Phoenix TV ratings share match 2007: Fox's broadcast of last Saturday night's Subway Fresh Fit 500 Sprint Cup race at Phoenix International Raceway earned a final Nielsen Media Research rating of 4.4 and an 8 market share, Street & Smith's SportsBusiness Daily reports. The rating matches the 4.4 Fox earned last year, while the market share dropped from a 9 in 2007.(SceneDaily)(4-19-200

Actually a 4.4 isn't bad, considering the race started waay too late for the majority of the TV watchers. But the market share drop from 9 to 8 is telling. That's the number which the advertisers look at.

With the exception of that thing they called a race at California's Penske World, all the ratings have been up, though attendance has been down. Now we're beginning to see a slide in TV ratings. Why?

We can pass attendance off to the cost of gasoline and food (thank you very much corn ethanol backers. I'd rather have food on my table than some cockamamie gasoline substitute in my tank!). However, the TV rating can, I believe, be traced to one person, Dale Junior. He hasn't won yet and, in the eyes of his loyal following, just "running well" isn't considered success.

If Junior pulls off a Talladega win all will be right with NA__AR's TV world again. But if he continues to not showing up in Victory Lane, I believe the ratings, and the all important market share, will continue a slide.

But, I could be very, very wrong...

[jks812]

Originally Posted by Bob Tanner

.

However, the TV rating can, I believe, be traced to one person, Dale Junior. He hasn't won yet and, in the eyes of his loyal following, just "running well" isn't considered success.

I don't really agree with that. Last year he ran like crap and was blamed for ratings being down. This year he's running good and being shown alot every race and he's still being blamed? Maybe the ratings are down because of their coverage and that some of the races just aren't that good. Now I like seeing Jr going around the track and doing good, and I haven't watched a full race this year, with the exception of Daytona. And as a Jr fan, it's not because of the way he does or doesn't run. Even if he wins, it won't gurantee I watch all of the following races. Because the type of coverage will still be the same.

[LSC9901]

Originally Posted by jks812

I don't really agree with that. Last year he ran like crap and was blamed for ratings being down. This year he's running good and being shown alot every race and he's still being blamed? Maybe the ratings are down because of their coverage and that some of the races just aren't that good. Now I like seeing Jr going around the track and doing good, and I haven't watched a full race this year, with the exception of Daytona. And as a Jr fan, it's not because of the way he does or doesn't run. Even if he wins, it won't gurantee I watch all of the following races. Because the type of coverage will still be the same.

I have no real idea as to what the answer is but I do know that there is too much pre-race, too many commercials, terrible announcers and the races may be too long. I say they may be too long but if the other problems were solved then the race length may not be such an issue.

[Bob Tanner]

Originally Posted by jks812

I don't really agree with that. Last year he ran like crap and was blamed for ratings being down. This year he's running good and being shown alot every race and he's still being blamed? Maybe the ratings are down because of their coverage and that some of the races just aren't that good. Now I like seeing Jr going around the track and doing good, and I haven't watched a full race this year, with the exception of Daytona. And as a Jr fan, it's not because of the way he does or doesn't run. Even if he wins, it won't gurantee I watch all of the following races. Because the type of coverage will still be the same.

I respect your opinion. We can agree to disagree.

However, I think the stats will give some validity to my contention that NA__AR has allowed itself to be put in a position of "So goes Junior's fortunes, so goes NA__AR." And that is no slam against Junior, believe me. In fact, it shows just how valuable a commodity that he is.

Go to the stats from last years TV, for example ( Jayski's® Silly Season Site - TV Ratings 2007 ). Notice the season started normally then just kind of slowly slid downward until around Talladega. It was around this time the rumors about Junior leaving DEI began. (Actually I think it was apparent before the season started but that's another story)The ratings peaked at Talladega then started a downward spiral. Coincidental this was about the time DEI decided to make the #8 their R&D engine car and Junior began to have DNF's on a regular basis.

Then, this year the great anticipation of his new team and sponsor. Major hype and Daytona ratings were up over 5 points. Junior didn't win and hasn't won so far. Accordingly, rating begin to slip. The ONLY thing the majority (BUT OBVIOUSLY NOT ALL, as exampled by yourself) of the Junior fans care about is the fact that their boy (a) keeps making TV commercials, and (b) wins.

He ain't winning and they aren't caring as much. It's simply, for the fan who cares about NA__AR only if Junior is involved, a matter of personality and hype over competition and substance. Unfortunately NA__AR has managed to make this segment of fan the focus of their marketing because this segment is the one that wastes (spends) the most money. A losing proposition in the long run, if there ever was one.

Prediction: If Junior wins Talladega (and he very well could; he's certainly good enough) ratings for the next couple races will be between 3-5 above those of last season.

But, again, I could be very, very wrong...

[jks812]

Ok I see your point. I guess that as huge of a fan of his that I am, I'm not the typical kind. I can still watch a race even if he has a bad run or even gets put out. I can still watch cause he's not the only reason I watch.

[jks812]

Originally Posted by LSC9901

I have no real idea as to what the answer is but I do know that there is too much pre-race, too many commercials, terrible announcers and the races may be too long. I say they may be too long but if the other problems were solved then the race length may not be such an issue.

Thats part of the reason I change channels. The other thing is the way they cover the race itself. If they have a good battle going on for say 15th place and the leader is just pretty much out front by himself, show me the battle for 15th. I'd perfer to see some racing instaed of riding, I don't care what position it's for.

[Bob Tanner]

Originally Posted by jks812

Ok I see your point. I guess that as huge of a fan of his that I am, I'm not the typical kind. I can still watch a race even if he has a bad run or even gets put out. I can still watch cause he's not the only reason I watch.

Last year Brian France made the same contention I made; a large part of NA__AR's dismal ratings last season was due to Junior. The Red Army immediately went into defense mode and cried out, 'Quit picking on Junior!"

It was just the opposite, the argument is a tribute to his popularity.

Another sign of how Junior's career is reflected in the success of others is that, for the first quarter of this year, NASCAR Authentics' CEO, Mark Dyer, said they made a profit for the first time in three years. Why? He attributed it almost entirely to the sale of Junior/HMS toy cars.

Yeah, Junior is making in excess of $50 million a year but in do so he's making a lot of people a lot of money, also.

[WestCoast]

I believe that, a lot of viewers are no doubt "casual" and only know a couple of the more famous names, and if they are not talked about by the announcers or running up front they will probably loose interest and change the channel.
The same thing applies to other sports as well, most people cheer for a single team, and if that team doesn't make it into the playoffs, then they don't watch them.
I call those "boosters" not "fans".

In 2006 there was a Canadian survey on Nascar with the following results:
86% of fans believe NASCAR requires corporate sponsorship.
84% of fans believe that NASCAR drivers could not run their cars without sponsors’ support.
Nearly 50% of fans know which companies support NASCAR and its’ drivers.
35% of fans support NASCAR and its drivers by purchasing sponsor products.
30% of fans support NASCAR sponsors more than sponsors of other sports.
NASCAR fans are more likely to purchase NASCAR sponsor products than NHL fans are to buy NHL sponsor products

[DOF_power]

Originally Posted by WestCoast

I believe that, a lot of viewers are no doubt "casual" and only know a couple of the more famous names, and if they are not talked about by the announcers or running up front they will probably loose interest and change the channel.
The same thing applies to other sports as well, most people cheer for a single team, and if that team doesn't make it into the playoffs, then they don't watch them.
I call those "boosters" not "fans".

Without "boosters" motorsport will be beaten soundly by the ball games.

[Racer Duck]

TV ratings will go up when the races become interesting.

Is Jr's success part of that equation? Certainly. His is the most famous name and face in NASCAR. And a goodly number of folks tune in to see how he's doing .. if he's not doing so well: 'click'!

Same with JJ & Gordo & some other "premier" drivers. Everyone wants to see the side by side duals for the win and they want to see "their" driver in the middle of the action. And they don't want to wait 4-5 hours to get to that point. I have nothing against the 500 mile races, but history shows that most folks will not watch a marathon. Race lengths should be set by average race speed converted into hours so that a race of about 3 to 3/12 hours is the norm rather than picking some arbitrary number like "500" .. what's wrong with a "300" or a "450"? No, I don't think the Daytona 500, nor the World 600, nor the Southern 500, nor any of the other "historic" races should be shortened, but there are plenty that should be. NA$CAR has the responsibility in this area and they are responsible for the boring, extended length races. And I'd be willing to wager the number of "debris" cautions would decrease if teams were fined for littering the track (how is it a part can fall off a car after 10 laps of racing?), and if drivers were fined for driving around the track dropping fluid in the racing groove. "Why?" you ask. Because these cause race delays and are, for the most part avoidable. NA$CAR is responsible for running the race in an orderly fashion with the minimum of delays .. another cause for fans switching channels!

Is the announcer's chatter part of that equation? Most certainly! It only takes a quick moment to compare the TV announcers to the Radio announcers and their calling of the race. Sad to say, the Radio announcers make the race more interesting.

Is the TV production part of that equation? Again, most certainly! When the camera follows one car running alone for lap after lap after lap, while the announcers chit-chat - B-O-R-I-N-G!!! And why cannot the director and announcers "synch-up"? When one of the announcers has a point to make about a particular car/driver, why can't we see a shot of that car/driver? And why cannot we follow the progress of one of the "stars" who for what ever reason finds themselves in the back or mid-pack and is fighting their way to the front? Is seems we only know where they are if we follow the non-realtime "ticker" or they "suddenly" break into the top 10!!! Why can't "split screen" work for commercials? Why do we have to return to the race after it restarts? Why do we have to see wreck replays 47 times? Why do we have to have 2 hours of pre-race and 5 minutes of post race? Why not televise the post race media room proceedings? or at least part of it?

Yes, production values and announcers are something that can be improved and will, I repeat, WILL make a difference in ratings. Jr's success is not something that the TV people can control, but how and what they show and say can be. And NA$CAR has the responsibility to deliver a product to TV that is interesting, exciting and within reasonable time constraints.

Maybe if all these people who have the ability to change things were forced to sit in a room and watch the entire TV coverage every Tuesday, they'd soon find ways to "spruce up" their product!

[LSC9901]

Originally Posted by Racer Duck

Maybe if all these people who have the ability to change things were forced to sit in a room and watch the entire TV coverage every Tuesday, they'd soon find ways to "spruce up" their product!

For those that high up the ladder, they really don't even care about the race. It's all that important stuff that happens when the race isn't being shown that holds their attention. Sponsors equals CASH !!

More race delays (cautions) = more commerial time which = more money.

[Racer Duck]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

More race delays (cautions) = more commerial time which = more money.

that's one view, but

more race delays (cautions) = more commercial time which = lower audience rating = cheaper commercial spots = less money

fact of life: people don't turn on the tube to watch commercials .. people above the age of 5, that is.

too bad Nielson doesn't count "refrigerator/potty breaks" in their counting...

[Bassdogs]

I agree with the point that the TV voices and the mindless / endless commercials are dragging down ratings and have said so in previous posts. Jr's impact to the ratings are IMO a matter of some importance, but not the driving factor.

Now a question. I have gone to using the DVR on my Dish system to record the races and do something else at least for what would be the first hour and a half or so. When I sit down, I quickly FForward to the flyover and the green flag. I keep the remote handy and skip thru the commercials and even the all to frequent long yellows. I usually catch up to "live" near the end of the race. You just have to program the DVR to record 60 minutes past the scheduled end of the broadcast so you don't miss the checker if there is a delay in the race. [The question] How may others have gone to this method to eliminate the fluff and snake oil sales pitches? Any other suggestions?

[Racer Duck]

Originally Posted by Bassdogs

I agree with the point that the TV voices and the mindless / endless commercials are dragging down ratings and have said so in previous posts. Jr's impact to the ratings are IMO a matter of some importance, but not the driving factor.

Now a question. I have gone to using the DVR on my Dish system to record the races and do something else at least for what would be the first hour and a half or so. When I sit down, I quickly FForward to the flyover and the green flag. I keep the remote handy and skip thru the commercials and even the all to frequent long yellows. I usually catch up to "live" near the end of the race. You just have to program the DVR to record 60 minutes past the scheduled end of the broadcast so you don't miss the checker if there is a delay in the race. [The question] How may others have gone to this method to eliminate the fluff and snake oil sales pitches? Any other suggestions?

I find the "live" broadcasts fit quite nicely into my regimen: grab a bite or potty break or a little quick web surfing or 'what else is on' , etc. during commercials. nice thing is you can almost bet on each commercial break being 7-10 minutes so you don't really have to rush and the likelihood of having more than 10-12 minutes of actual live racing on the tube is pretty remote, so you can get back to those things you left hanging pretty quickly. of course, this only works if you have a capacity for multi-tasking.

also, since I usually watch the race with my son, and he keeps track of several things via Trackpass, I'm pretty much assured of not missing anything important. and when I do, he has an "edited" version of the happening for me along with his "unedited appraisal" of the drivers/event. he's so good deciphering the Trackpass thingy that he will tell me what's going on during the commercials and who's pitting 30 seconds or more before the announcers say a word. and he follows the radio communications of Mark Martin (his favorite) closely - and usually with lots of "unedited appraisals" of those conversations!

we keep the DVR for when one or both of us cannot watch the race for whatever reason.