Well said. I agree with what you said.

there is much less “independent” commentary on the “sport” than there was before, say, 2000. i would point to speed tv as the most obvious dependency, its existence being entirely due to nascar content and advertising.

I don’t think NASCAR is going down the drain. It is struggling, but with the way things are going what sport isn’t struggling? Even the NFL is struggling, so NASCAR’s problems are not unique.

In their defense, they’ve also done a lot to improve the quality of racing and to show that they are listening to fan complaints and criticisms.

I also disagree that NASCAR is headed to an obscure channel. I think the sport is in a tough spot right now, but the situation is not as bleak as some would make it out to be. Fans aren’t coming to the track, you can’t deny that. Viewership on TV is also down, and you can’t deny that. But, they are working to remedy that.

And by fining drivers, they are trying to minimize the damage they can actually control. There isn’t anything wrong with that. Drivers as ambassadors for the sport, and therefore have to consider what they say because their comments carry more weight than the media.

With all of that said, however, you’re entitled to your opinion, and I sincerely appreciate that you took the time to share it.

Thanks again for commenting.

The one thing people tend to forget is that NASCAR press credentials are not only issued by NASCAR, but they are a privilege granted by NASCAR to allow media members to cover the sport. Because NASCAR issues the credentials, they can also revoke them. So, theoretically, they could revoke the credentials of a reporter if they don’t like what s/he’s saying. Has that happened? If it has, I haven’t heard of it.

I do recall (and this is secondhand so take it for what it’s worth) that NASCAR got really strict about issuing press credentials a few years back after someone sold theirs to a fan. Whether or not that’s true, I don’t know. But, I’ve never heard of someone having them revoked for being critical of the sport.

If they did/do, however, it wouldn’t make them unique. The Kansas City Royals revoked the credentials of two reports after they asked Royals GM Dayton Moore confrontational questions in 2006. Also, UFC revoked the credentials of Sherdog.com in 2005 and they were re-issued last year. Why? No reason was given other than an “executive decision.”

The reason credentials are issued is because an organization sees value in having press coverage. In most cases, they think of it as a de facto PR arm for the promotion of their product, and there’s nothing wrong with that. They can and will credential whomever they want and no one can tell them otherwise. Likewise, they can pull the credentials of a reporter if they desire. It’s their world.

The main problem (which is what probably keeps them from doing it) is if they selectively grant, withhold, or withdraw credentials so critique is not allowed, then people will view all coverage with skepticism and will simply view it as propaganda.

With the level of access fans have with the press through Facebook, Twitter and blogs, I don’t think NASCAR would pull the credentials of a reporter just because they were critical of NASCAR because of all the bad exposure that would bring. 20 or 30 years ago, they might have been able to without much flak because it would be easier to “bury” the story. But now, not so much.

Again, thanks for reading.

Can NASCAR pull the credintials of a reporter if they don’t like what he is saying?

This seems to be a bigger question among fans. Because this is why we don’t see the criticism of some of the moves that may be obvious to the fans from the reporters. Such as, why do cautions for the mysterious debris always come out when Junior goes a lap down? Or why are driver like Denny Hamlin pointing our that these cautions are thrown soley for the purpose of bunching the field up?

These subjects seem to be taboo for the reporters and really should be addressed, but yet they never are. So can NASCAR pull the press pass of writers, and if so have they?