Mayfield Media Mayhem A Vivid Memory (Updated)

Tuesday AM Update: "We're standing behind (AJ) until we understand the results," said Roger Penske to the SiriusXM Radio's Morning Drive show. Still no timetable on results of "B" sample.

Anthony James Allmendinger is a health conscious professional athlete. He is a feature reporter for ESPN's NASCAR Now TV program. He is a media darling because of his polite manners and infectious smile. Now, he is a poster boy for NASCAR's infamous and secretive substance abuse policy.

On Monday Allmendinger made the move and formally requested that the "B" sample of his Kentucky Speedway urine test be analyzed. This is a big step. Instead of quietly meeting with NASCAR to address the violation, Allmendinger's actions make the statement that he believes the original analysis was wrong.

This move opens the door once again to a reaction from the mainstream media that will put NASCAR's procedures under a microscope. The painful memories of the Jeremy Mayfield fiasco included confusing policies, too many spokesmen and NASCAR shooting itself in the foot time and time again.

These days NASCAR has the new Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) department that handles this type of situation. While not in place for the start of the Mayfield mess, the IMC has quietly handled the announcement and subsequent actions that came from drug policy suspensions of other NASCAR license holders without incident.

SPEED's Danielle Trotta reported on the Race Hub show that Allmendinger left town early Monday in a private plane from the Concord Airport. The most recent statement from Penske Racing again contains nothing but a confirmation that no information will be released anytime soon. NASCAR is silent.

All of this is in stark contrast to the Mayfield situation which quickly turned into a media sideshow. It made that transition because information from all the parties involved was made public in chunks. Just like dominoes, a statement from one party seemed to then require the next party to immediately respond. While it made for great entertainment, it really served no useful purpose for the sport.

At this time, only the motorsports media is chasing this story. Should Allmendinger choose to remain silent until his "B" sample results are in, the next few days should be calm. It will then be up to Allmendinger to set the tone. If those subsequent results cause him to be released from Penske, the situation may become quite different in a hurry. Especially if he feels victimized, the media may become his outlet for that message.

NASCAR's substance abuse policy has been in place since 2009. Click here to review Jayski's page on violations and updates of that policy. The ultimate question raised every time is whether or not the actual violation should be made public. Click here for an opinion on that topic from AP motorsports reporter Jenna Fryer. She believes that information should be announced along with the violation.

Dietary supplements, sleep aids and no alcohol 12 hours before a race are just three of the more interesting items that would cause the same policy violation announcement as sinister drugs like heroin and methamphetamine. The argument for making public the actual violation at the time of the original suspension certainly holds some weight.

Just as we did with Mayfield, we will be keeping an eye on the TV and media coverage of the Allmendinger situation. Monday, both ESPN's NASCAR Now and SPEED's Race Hub passed along timely news using Charlotte area reporters assigned to the story.

The fastest information source to date has been social media text service Twitter. Before stories are written or TV segments recorded, Allmendinger information has been made public as the rush to be first online continues. Both Allmendinger and his wife Lynne have not used their Twitter accounts since the violation was made public.

We will see what Tuesday brings and update those news items right on this post. In the meantime, feel free to offer your opinion about the media coverage of this topic. Comments may be moderated prior to posting.

UPDATED: Sprint Cup Series From Daytona On TNT

Breaking News: AJ Allmendinger has failed a random drug test. AP reporter Jenna Fryer reporting Allmendinger was the random drug test after Kentucky and was informed today he failed. No substance was disclosed. At 6PM, NASCAR confirmed that Allmendinger's "A" sample of urine tested positive for a substance banned by the sport. He has the right to request the "B" sample be tested without question. More as it happens.....

It's a hot day in Daytona. Before the race, NASCAR fans who use Twitter gathered for a pre-race meeting called a "tweet-up." It's an opportunity to speak with many media members and sometimes special guests who attend. This time, rock group Train showed up after flying into town to perform in the pre-race show. Classy move on their part on a very hot day.

The executives at Turner have decided to simulcast the race tonight on TruTV along with the primary telecast on TNT. Tonight is the "Wide Open" coverage that features all the national commercials run in a side-by-side format that lets TV viewers see the race. The only time full-screen commercials appear is when the local cable TV companies go to break.

It was a tough week in Kentucky. Lots of commercials, long green flag runs and a rather lazy performance from the trio in the TV booth led to a lot of fan feedback. Little of it was good. Tony Stewart will join Adam Alexander, Kyle Petty and Larry McReynolds in the TNT infield stage before the race.

The Countdown to Green show has been solid this season as it uses the pit reporters, a featured interview an several edited features including the new "NASCAR Generations" discussion. Ned Jarrett, Bill Elliott and Jimmie Johnson talk about topics in an informal setting.

Alexander and Petty move upstairs to call the race with Wally Dallenbach Junior. This trio is very different and while Petty continually offers opinions, Alexander does not call the race in the traditional manner and Dallenbach is long since removed from the sport. It's a combination that rarely offers excitement.

The pit reporters have been solid. Chris Neville, Marty Snider, Ralph Sheheen and Matt Yocum are veterans who have worked in many different roles in the TV world. This crew works hard to supply information and excitement but often when Alexander returns the conversation quickly returns to low-key.

If there was ever a combination of ingredients that could get TNT back on the right track, Daytona can provide it. If the racing is sharp then fans can tolerate a lot. If long green flag runs become the order of the day, then expect to hear the groans begin. As much as TV can surround an event, it is the action provided by the athletes that dictates the excitement level.

We are going to be live tweeting the race on Twitter using the #TDP1 hashtag. Please consider joining us. Twittter is easy, most NASCAR personalities are on it and we talk with media members and fans about the TV coverage as it happens. There will be a new post up for your comments after the race, in the meantime please feel free to leave any opinions on this page about the TV coverage today.

Comments may be moderated prior to posting, thanks for dropping by The Daly Planet.

Race Wrap: Sprint Cup Series From Daytona On TNT

Saturday night in Daytona proved to be both a frustrating and exciting experience for TV viewers. Frustrating due to the restrictor plate racing, but exciting due to the "Wide Open" style of coverage.

TNT chose to hold the breaking news of AJ Allmendinger's suspension until ten minutes into the one-hour pre-race show. The arrival of substitute driver Sam Hornish was documented, but no NASCAR or Team Penske spokesperson was interviewed. Instead, a statement was read on-air by the TNT announcers.

The racing involved the typical superspeedway struggle of an outside line of cars trying to get up and pass the lower lane on a track with fresh pavement. Most incidents happened not from real racing, but from blown tires, a pack of cars trying to pit and even on pit road. The big mess happened very late.

Racing aside, TNT's "Wide Open" coverage was perfectly timed. Fans had been screaming about full-screen commercials and the loss of racing action all season long. The final hour of side by side commercials on FOX had turned into a disaster when the director framed the cars being featured in the TV ads. TNT had no side by side commercials in the first four races, but offered the online RaceBuddy as an alternative.

Saturday night's coverage featured commercial messages, many of them custom-made, played in a video box on the screen that let fans continue to see the racing. Only the local commercial breaks from the cable TV companies were still full-screen. It was the type of video presentation that NASCAR needs to adopt quickly.

Adam Alexander's style is not to call the traditional play by play, but to lead Wally Dallenbach Jr. and Kyle Petty in a casual discussion. Perhaps, the call of an experienced lead announcer would have served to establish a level of excitement during the race that Alexander simply cannot build. Petty and Dallenbach are both former drivers, so the vast majority of the race is spent agreeing with each other on opinions.

TNT had a rough night with the graphics and the sync of the show. There were a ton of graphics in the show and the overload probably contributed to the situation. The sync of the pit reporters and commercial elements was not quite right. This is sometimes called "lip flap" in the business because the sound being heard does not match the lips of the person saying it. Tough technical night.

Update #1: Being told the HD feed on TNT was in sync. Seems the SD feed was experiencing the problems. Hope to get this updated shortly.

The sprint to the finish started with 13 laps to go. The pit reporters tried to contribute excitement, but going back to the TV booth was like throwing a wet blanket over the coverage. Alexander never raised his voice as the snarling pack came around with 10 laps to go at Daytona in the July night race. 8 laps remained when the first of two big accidents happened in the race.

The final restart resulted in a typical restrictor plate finish of pushing and shoving until a crash happened. Coverage at the line was the standard wideshot while the accident unfolded. The post-race was subdued and moved to the NASCAR website as it normally does with the TNT races.

The positive thing to take away from this telecast is that commercials can be inserted into a live race with only minimum interruption of the racing action. The TNT design of graphics and the commercial video box works well on TV and the screen remaining for the live race keeps viewers watching. It makes sense for NASCAR and the advertisers.

This post serves to host your opinion on the TNT coverage of the Sprint Cup Series race from Daytona. Comments may be moderated prior to posting. Thank you for stopping by The Daly Planet.

The Island Of Brian France Revisited

It was October of 2009 when we offered the original column on the elusive Brian France. "The Island of Brian France" can be read by clicking on the title. Please take note of the reader comments as well.

At that time, France had been poorly advised in terms of talking directly to the media. He strongly assured the media and public multiple times that sexual harassment allegations made by former NASCAR employee Mauricia Grant were completely false. They were not.

France also ranted about the validity of NASCAR's "reasonable suspicion" drug policy. In a subsequent story by ESPN, former Camping World Truck Series driver Aaron Fike admitted to heroin use on race days. A short time later, NASCAR's entire approach to controlled substances, medication and testing was radically changed.

These days France is surrounded not by public relations or media professionals, but by marketing men. The shift in philosophy away from feeding the media and toward controlling it is company-wide. This Friday afternoon in Daytona, France will again speak to the NASCAR press corps.

Marketing folks pick the agenda, control the answers and never get "off message." The topics to be emphasized should include France's continued "Green" agenda, the new 2013 cars for the Sprint Cup Series and the fact that the most popular driver is in the mix. Somewhere, there should also be Hall of Fame and  Danica Patrick mentions. Hopefully, not in the same sentence.

What France did not do is watch the Sprint Cup Series race from Kentucky Speedway on TNT. What he did not see is what his premier product has become on television. He did not see one-third of the racing covered by commercial breaks. He did not have the pleasure of watching Junior and Pop Pop wrestle over Kentucky Fried Chicken side dishes for three solid hours.

This is the island of Brian France. Informed on agendas that serve him, but seemingly oblivious to the real fan issues of the sport. In November of 2010, France was asked in another media session what he would say to fans who do not like his Chase for the Championship points system. "You met somebody who's telling you that?" was his response to the reporter.

Last year the teams not in the Chase were excluded from ESPN's TV coverage. Unless leading the race, the non-Chasers were sentenced to ten races without TV exposure. Once again the vast majority of the field suddenly became field fillers. Regardless of the actual story of the race, the Chase coverage has skewed the final ten races into a hybrid television presentation that serves no one.

The Chase was created by France to counteract the NFL season. It was intended to draw fans away from regional NFL games because of its play-off nature. Instead, it gave fans of drivers not in the Chase a reason to watch football. How to solve the problem of making TV cover the actual races and simply update the Chase has been an issue France has continually avoided. The annual Chase hype begins with ESPN's Brickyard 400 coverage later this month.

Social media has been embraced by NASCAR and promoted as a wonderful information platform for fans. Now, real time text service Twitter has become both a blessing and a curse. Rich with information directly from NASCAR sources, use of Twitter during live Sprint Cup Series races by fans has boomed.

The curse has come from allowing fans to see just how much race information and on-track action is actually being missed by television. Instead of being a location for fans to simply congregate, Twitter has become a digital complaint board about the sport's television woes. This is a key issue for the sport.

France faces the creation of a new NASCAR TV contract this year. This time, NASCAR owns the digital rights to all of its own product. The question is whether France is negotiating for a new package that includes NASCAR streaming races to laptops, tablets and smart phones. The lack of easily available online content has been one of the most significant NASCAR issues in the last decade.

The last media availability of the NASCAR chairman in January was quite structured. The issues he never addressed were significant. He covered fuel injection, the wild cards in the Chase and suggested the sport had momentum. Those were the highlights. Here is the reality.

Any human being who tried to watch the Kentucky Speedway race on TNT knows what the sport has is trouble. Any fan who followed NASCAR's advice and got on Twitter can see the problems. What the sport needs is fixing right now. If ESPN walks in with full-screen commercials, endless Chase hype and focuses on twelve teams only, the result is not going to be pretty when the football season starts.

We will update the remarks by France and his answers to media questions regarding TV and digital topics on Friday afternoon. If you would like to suggest a topic or question that you feel should be brought to his attention, please feel free to add it below and we will see what happens.

Our comment rules are simple. No hateful speech, no profanity and no derogatory comments. Thank you for taking the time to stop by The Daly Planet.

TruTV Daytona Simulcast Aimed At New Fans

Of course Lizard Lick Towing is fake. Ronnie Shirley and his wife Amy were originally cast on the reality TV show Wife Swap. Once the TV producers saw the interesting elements in their lives, the shift was on to build a reality show around these colorful characters. TruTV calls the mixing of real people with scripted action "actuality." That is an admission that acting is at the core of the series.

This approach of blurring reality has been a gold mine for TruTV and the parent Turner organization. A significant number of TV viewers could care less about what is real and what is not. They just want to be entertained.

Now, a new programming element is on the way to the loyal viewers of "actuality" series like Operation Repo, South Beach Tow and Hardcore Pawn. It's NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series.

Saturday night TruTV will simulcast sister network TNT's live presentation of the Coke Zero 400 from Daytona. The simulcast will include the pre-race show that features the musical group Train. Also, Turner-owned HLN will have morning anchor Robin Meade hosting interviews and then singing the National Anthem.

Veteran fans may remember it was an appearance by Carl Edwards on HLN's Morning Express program weeks ago when he "asked" if Meade could come to Daytona and sing the anthem. It seemed ironic that ESPN's rising on-air star Edwards was on a Turner network participating in his own "actuality" moment.

The Daytona race brings the annual "Wide Open" coverage that replaces the vast majority of the commercials with side-by-side style commercial messages, additional advertising logos and graphics within the race itself. This change comes on the heels of perhaps the worst NASCAR commercial disaster in the past five years.

The memories of Pop Pop and Junior wrestling over the side-order menu from Kentucky Fried Chicken is permanently burned into the brains of many NASCAR fans. One-third of the actual time of the race was covered by commercials. What made it worse was the exact same commercials repeated endlessly.

Throw in one of the tracks on the "cookie cutter" list and a less than inspired effort from the TV booth and the result was a fan backlash that spread through social media and NASCAR websites. The TNT package is just six races and the results have always been mixed. This time, the mixture has been rather potent.

Daytona offers the network an opportunity to use the holiday, the setting and the racing to escape the past few weeks. Meade is a well-known on-air presence and has a great relationship with the armed forces through her HLN features. Daytona is the right place for the sport to put on a good show and all signs point to the most popular driver being in the mix. A more race-focused effort from the booth would be a topper.

There are no different production elements in the TruTV simulcast. What the folks are Turner are doing is just exposing a live sport to a new audience. Those loyal TruTV viewers who do not watch sports get an exciting race in primetime on a Saturday night. TNT's regular programming is very different from TruTV and this is a positive move.

Tony Stewart will be the special guest on the TNT set. Adam Alexander and Kyle Petty will once again do double-duty working on the pre-race show and then moving upstairs to call the action. Larry McReynolds will remain in the infield as Wally Dallenbach Jr. joins Petty and Alexander in the booth.

This is the big one for the NASCAR on TNT package. While the Lizard Lick gang showed up for the first TNT race, there is nothing to indicate that they are headed for Daytona. But as we all know, anything can happen because it's actuality, not reality.

We welcome your opinion on this topic. Comments may be moderated prior to posting.

Race Wrap: TNT From Kentucky Speedway (Updated)

Update: Kyle Petty returned to Twitter and the social media world on Monday. Just taking a short break I was told by the TNT PR staff. Glad to have him back for the Daytona race.

The TV night started with fans asking about Kyle Petty. Known for his Twitter use before and during the live TNT races, Petty's Twitter account was gone. As this is written, the Turner PR folks are working on a statement about why this happened. Being Twitter-friendly and interactive is the cornerstone of the TNT coverage.

There was no bad weather in Kentucky, but plenty of commercials raining down on TV viewers. The commercial total will be posted at the CawsnJaws.com website as soon as possible for you to view. This was the central theme of the fans watching on TV as it was tough to view the race in short segments between commercial breaks.

Adam Alexander hosted the pre-race show with Petty and Larry McReynolds. Kasey Kahne made a very polished appearance on the infield set for an interview. One feature followed Denny Hamlin on a sponsor-related trip to Alaska. Kevin Harvick's crew provided the pre-race audio feature. Another "NASCAR Generations" segment also aired featuring Jimmie Johnson, Bill Elliott and Ned Jarrett.

Alexander then moved upstairs with Wally Dallenbach Jr. and Petty. Matt Yocum, Chris Neville, Marty Snider and Ralph Sheheen were the pit reporters. McReynolds stayed in the infield with his cutaway car and strategy updates.

The race had long green flag runs, lots of pit strategy and track position as the key. This style of racing is familiar to fans. The style of TNT is casual with lots of conversation and almost no traditional play by play coverage. It is a style they have used for years. The pit reporters hustled, but often they provided the most excited commentary. The final few laps once again had conversation about everything but the race itself.

This post is intended to allow you to offer a wrap-up of the TNT coverage of the Sprint Cup Series race from the Kentucky Speedway. Comments may be moderated prior to posting. Thank you for stopping by.

Race Wrap: TNT From Kentucky Speedway

The TV night started with fans asking about Kyle Petty. Known for his Twitter use before and during the live TNT races, Petty's Twitter account was gone. As this is written, the Turner PR folks are working on a statement about why this happened. Being Twitter-friendly and interactive is the cornerstone of the TNT coverage.

There was no bad weather in Kentucky, but plenty of commercials raining down on TV viewers. The commercial total will be posted at the CawsnJaws.com website as soon as possible for you to view. This was the central theme of the fans watching on TV as it was tough to view the race in short segments between commercial breaks.

Adam Alexander hosted the pre-race show with Petty and Larry McReynolds. Kasey Kahne made a very polished appearance on the infield set for an interview. One feature followed Denny Hamlin on a sponsor-related trip to Alaska. Kevin Harvick's crew provided the pre-race audio feature. Another "NASCAR Generations" segment also aired featuring Jimmie Johnson, Bill Elliott and Ned Jarrett.

Alexander then moved upstairs with Wally Dallenbach Jr. and Petty. Matt Yocum, Chris Neville, Marty Snider and Ralph Sheheen were the pit reporters. McReynolds stayed in the infield with his cutaway car and strategy updates.

The race had long green flag runs, lots of pit strategy and track position as the key. This style of racing is familiar to fans. The style of TNT is casual with lots of conversation and almost no traditional play by play coverage. It is a style they have used for years. The pit reporters hustled, but often they provided the most excited commentary. The final few laps once again had conversation about everything but the race itself.

This post is intended to allow you to offer a wrap-up of the TNT coverage of the Sprint Cup Series race from the Kentucky Speedway. Comments may be moderated prior to posting. Thank you for stopping by.