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by Michael Hiestand
USA Today
Jul 1, 2007
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NASCAR TV coverage sometimes can seem like one big infomercial for race teams' sponsors.
But on TNT's coverage of Saturday night's Pepsi 400, at least viewers won't have to sit through commercials interrupting action.
TNT's so-called "Wide Open" coverage will not include national ads. Turner Sports president David Levy says the experiment, if deemed successful, will lead to the new approach being used on all of TNT's NASCAR races next year.
The idea is simple: Except when races are under caution, cutting away for ads means missing action — and giving channel-surfers the chance to find something else to watch. Saturday night, coverage still will be interrupted by local TV ads, which usually constitute about one-third of the ad time.
In 2000, TNT aired a NASCAR race during which a small portion of the TV screen carried live action while ads covered most of the screen. ABC/ESPN have frequently used ads and action running side-by-side.
For the Pepsi 400, viewers will see "vignettes" from 10 sponsors — created specifically to seem relevant to the race — rather than commercials. Turner Sports tried such vignettes — all from Philips Electronics — to replace ads during a college football game last fall.
For Saturday's race, Turner created vignettes for nine of the 10 sponsors, says Turner Sports senior vice president Jenny Storms, to create a "customized message." Footage will show NASCAR drivers testing new mass-marketed Ford vehicles and TNT analyst Larry McReynolds "making a pit stop" for a Subway sandwich.
Turner's Levy says the "real difference" between this and past attempts at uninterrupted race coverage is that the marketing messages will be "less intrusive."
TNT will use a wide-screen format. Action normally filling the top and bottom of a TV screen will be eliminated, leaving space for graphics and the "vignettes." But viewers, says Turner's Storms, will still see everything happening on the track: "We're producing everything in wide screen and shoving it into a standard format. We'll have space left at the bottom without losing anything — fans just won't see Row 35."
Spice rack:
NBC's Mary Carillo, talking about the rain delays at Wimbledon and the roof being built to cover Centre Court, offered a practical suggestion: "I think the whole country should be covered."
Wimbledon Ratings P.S.: Even though virtually all live action was rained out Saturday, NBC's coverage drew a 1.6 overnight rating — down just 6% from last year's rating. …
During Fox's New York Mets-Philadelphia game coverage, Fox's Tim McCarver noted Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard's long home run could have been recycled: "What a shot! You could slice that up and make about three (home runs) out of it." …
Minnesota Twins outfielder Torii Hunter, during an ESPN special on Hank Aaron on Sunday, had a line that probably won't come up to describe Barry Bonds, even if Bonds breaks Aaron's career home run record: "What's higher than a god? Hank Aaron."
Zzzzz:
TBS' baseball All-Star Selection Show Sunday, despite perkiness from host Ernie Johnson, didn't offer much energy or originality from analysts Cal Ripken and Tony Gwynn. One hopes they'll be more awake for TBS' first-ever playoff coverage this season.
On tap:
Longtime NBC tennis reporter Bud Collins will leave the network when Wimbledon action ends this week, say two people with knowledge of the move. Collins, working his 35th Wimbledon for NBC, has had his role sharply reduced in recent years. Perhaps his best-known trait has been creating colorful nicknames for players, such as "Basel Dazzle" (Roger Federer) and "Fraulein Forehand" (Steffi Graf). …
For its Home Run Derby coverage July 9 in San Francisco, ESPN will put reporter Kenny Mayne in a kayak in McCovey Cove, behind the right-field wall, and have a diver-operated "scuba cam" that has been used on America's Cup coverage. Up periscope! …
Watch out, Paula Abdul: Fox Sports Chairman David Hill will be a judge on TV Guide Network's reality series America's Next Producer— as in TV production.
Multi-taskers:
Among 12- to 34-year-old U.S. viewers of the recent NBA Finals, 72% were instant messaging, e-mailing, text messaging or talking on the phone while watching.
A Solutions Research Group survey also found viewers over 35 were three times more likely than younger viewers to not do those things as they watched.
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