[Bob Tanner]

I know some of you are into reading the print media and critical writing more than others. For those of you who don't care to read in-depth articles about NASCAR you can bypass this thread now. No harm-no foul.

For those of you who do like to read more objective articles, my buddy, Monte Dutton wrote one yesterday which you may find interesting, or even downright scary.

GastonGazette.com - The Website of The Gaston Gazette

I'd be interested in seeing some of your comments.

[Quality88]

This is the somewhat opposite of the Military writing their own news. Military writes it's own news cause the media only reports the bad. Except in this situation Nascar doesn't want any unabridged(non-nascar) opinions. An independent wouldn't report a supposed racing incident.... they would say one driver dumped another driver on purpose to win, and Nascar let them get away with it. Where as the TV won't dare question Nascar's judgement and say what Nascar wants them to. Good article Bob. That just shows the sport is gettin to be more and more canned instead of spontaneous.

[Bob Tanner]

Originally Posted by Quality88

This is the somewhat opposite of the Military writing their own news. Military writes it's own news cause the media only reports the bad. Except in this situation Nascar doesn't want any unabridged(non-nascar) opinions. An independent wouldn't report a supposed racing incident.... they would say one driver dumped another driver on purpose to win, and Nascar let them get away with it. Where as the TV won't dare question Nascar's judgement and say what Nascar wants them to. Good article Bob. That just shows the sport is gettin to be more and more canned instead of spontaneous.

Yep, that's pretty much the way I read it.

I find it ironic that before NASCAR got these major TV contracts and they depended on the print journalists to push their product, NASCAR kissed a ton of print media booty. Now, they have TV and, as Monte gave the example, during a recent foul-up with the media, NASCAR told the paper writers, "We're sorry, we'll try not to let it happen again." Then, to the TV shills, they immediately began to move mountains to ensure harmony.

OPINION ALERT: Warning. Read the following at the risk of being offended
Of course, in today's society, with so many people reading at an elementary educational level and having to depend on visual news for their knowledge, ( I could easily go on a MAJOR rant about THIS topic but... discretion is the better part of valor) none of this should be too surprising. Once more, NASCAR shows that it works to appeal to the lowest common denominator

[WVGrandma4Kasey]

Originally Posted by Bob Tanner

OPINION ALERT: Warning. Read the following at the risk of being offended
Of course, in today's society, with so many people reading at an elementary educational level and having to depend on visual news for their knowledge, ( I could easily go on a MAJOR rant about THIS topic but... discretion is the better part of valor) none of this should be too surprising. Once more, NASCAR shows that it works to appeal to the lowest common denominator

As sad as your statment is, I can't see where there will be any change. Have you picked up a recent novel. Words are a forgotten art. Knowledge is spoon fed to are grandchilden. I really don't know how good or bad this is, but with advancements being made in many area, I guess we will have to let time decide.

[Bob Tanner]

Originally Posted by WVGrandma4Kasey

As sad as your statment is, I can't see where there will be any change. Have you picked up a recent novel. Words are a forgotten art. Knowledge is spoon fed to are grandchilden. I really don't know how good or bad this is, but with advancements being made in many area, I guess we will have to let time decide.

My basic thought on this is: An uneducated, or indoctrinated populace is less capable of independent thought and action and thus, is much easier to control and manipulate.

OK! OK. Ross. Sorry. I'll play nice and return to topic. I just don't often get a chance to put forth that thought in a non-political forum, and the temptation just got to me.

[TN_Gal]

Sorry to hijack your thread Bob...but this was an interesting article comparing PBR to Nascar and it's growth. Good crossover piece....thanks

What do you think about this?

Unbridled ambitions
of bull riding. No bull.

'If NASCAR won America's heart, we can too'

By Aaron J. Moore
The success of NASCAR on television, climbing as it has to the No. 2 TV sport after NFL football, is serving as an inspiration for a lot of other sports that have felt snubbed over the years.
The thinking: If NASCAR can do it, why then the world is ready for--you name the sport.
The latest to make this argument is professional bull riding. We may think of bull-riding as a major attraction of rodeos, but in recent years it has broken away, in the form of Professional Bull Riders Inc., in an effort to build its own audience.
The aim is to grow from a regional sport to a national one with a truly national audience, as NASCAR has done.
"A lot of what we want to do is like what NASCAR does," says PBR chief executive officer Randy Bernard. "There's a connection because we share a lot of the same audience."
Bull riding's cause was advanced significantly in a recent deal in which the circuit will begin airing events on the Outdoor Life Network.
The new two-year deal with OLN is valued at $1 million per season, basically the same amount the league received from its previous carrier, TNN.
However, the league believes the OLN pact provides it with a more valuable commodity, increased television time. Beginning in November, the PBR will have seven hours a week of TV coverage compared to just the one hour TNN devoted to it.
Bernard says he was looking for a TV deal that stressed the importance of time commitment, not just a financial commitment. He says the key for an emerging league like his is to secure a consistent time slot so it can maintain and develop a television audience.
PBR events will be shown on OLN every Saturday and Sunday night from 8 to 9:30 p.m. ET, along with an hour-long Tuesday evening highlight show.
TNN often moved bull riding around on its schedule and might wait weeks before airing an event, and the effect was to confuse fans.
"A lot of times our fans would switch on the channel and not be sure if they would see us or something else," says Bernard.
"We have a lot of people who want to watch but were confused when we were on. Now we finally have a regular time for people to know they can watch us."
Bernard believes its featured status on OLN will enable the PBR's popularity to grow to include a larger fan base among the outdoor enthusiasts who are OLN's viewers. The network is available in nearly 55 million homes across the country.
In addition to its deal with OLN, PBR will also buy time on the broadcast networks in an effort to build a national following. Six events will air on NBC and a seventh will be shown on CBS.
As was the case with NASCAR, the PBR is trying to become more mainstream by first developing its content to make it a regional hit, then taking the next step of gaining national television exposure. This strategy allows the league to effectively search out a large enough audience that national broadcast and cable networks demand.
Bernard says that NBC has interest in carrying the PBR because of its crossover appeal with NASCAR fans. The relationship could prove beneficial for both sides. He notes that NBC is constantly looking for sports content to air in the winter against Fox and CBS's NFL coverage.
For many in the metro East Coast, the existence of a professional league devoted solely to bull riding may come as a surprise. In fact PBR found a strong if under-served following.
The league test-marketed events in cities like Worcester Mass., and Tampa, places not known for having a bull-riding tradition. Yet the events sold out.
The league is very fan-friendly and guarantees audiences that they will see only the best bull riders in the world by mandating that the circuit's top 45 athletes appear at every event. If a participant fails to show, he is off the tour.
This may be extreme, but Bernard feels it is a necessary procedure to assure fans that they will consistently see the best product the league can offer.
Overall, the PBR's combined TV viewership is now close to 100 million, a dramatic increase from 1996, when it attracted 33 million.
The demographics for bull riding fans come as no surprise. Men comprise more than 60 percent of the audience with 39 being the average age.
The current list of sponsors includes Wrangler, Ford and Jack Daniels.

[WVGrandma4Kasey]

And may I add.

" Auto racing, bull fighting, and mountain climbing are the only real sports ... all others are games."
- Earnest Hemingway