Most
children who are compelled to watch Channel One know Jeff Gordon
from his Pepsi commercials on the show. Now NASCAR needs help in
getting younger viewers to watch their car racing on the FOX network.
NASCAR is big in Alabama and other parts of the country but the
West Coast isn’t falling in line as planned. California TV ratings
for NASCAR racing have fallen for the past two years according to
a Virginia newspaper. NASCAR is getting aggressive in their marketing.
From the Roanoke Times "NASCAR’S L.A. Story One To Watch" (April
266, 2003):
"So, NASCAR is trying many things. Wheel
of Fortune" recently
had a NASCAR week, helping promote the sport to those who might not
be familiar with stock-car racing. IMAX is filming a movie about
NASCAR to be released next year. This week, Cup drivers traveled
throughout the area, promoting the sport. Stewart threw out the first
pitch at the Angels’ baseball game Friday. Points leader Matt Kenseth
had appearances at a couple of local businesses. NASCAR asked four-time
series champ Jeff Gordon to anchor Channel One News, a nationwide
news program shown in public and private schools with an estimated
8.5 million students daily."
Is it that simple? A company wants to
increase sales (in this case "ratings")
and they just have to hand Channel One News some money and Bingo!
your sales rep is now a Guest News Anchor on the show? Yes, it is
that easy. Below is part of the script from Friday, April 25 (the
day before NASCAR weekend racing). Young people might think Gordon
was on to promote his foundation, but that was secondary to pushing
NASCAR.
[TALENT=ALEXANDRA & JEFF]
ALEXANDRA: THE MAN IN THIS RACE CAR IS NO STRANGER TO THE WINNER’S PLATFORM —
HE’S A FOUR-TIME NASCAR SERIES CHAMPION WHO HAS WON MORE THAN 60 RACES OVERALL.
IT’S JEFF GORDON AND HE’S STEPPING OUT FROM BEHIND THE WHEEL TO TRY HIS HAND
AS A GUEST ANCHOR – WELCOME.
JEFF GORDON: WELL, IT’S GREAT TO BE HERE, THANK YOU.
ALEXANDRA: ALRIGHT JEFF, YOU’VE GOT THE GREEN FLAG, WHY DON’T YOU GET US STARTED
ON THIS SPORTS DAY.
JEFF: WELL, IT’S FRIDAY, APRIL 25TH AND YOU’RE WATCHING CHANNEL ONE NEWS.
AT THE END OF THE SHOW…
ALEXANDRA: SO
YOU’VE GOT A BIG RACE COMING UP THIS WEEKEND.
JEFF: YEAH WE’RE RACING IN UH, FONTANA, CALIFORNIA, WE JUST CAME OFF OF A BIG
WIN IN MARTINSVILLE, VIRGINIA, SO TWO IN A ROW, HOPEFULLY.
ALEXANDRA: THAT’S GREAT, AND WHY DON’T YOU TELL US ABOUT THE JEFF GORDON FOUNDATION.
JEFF: YEAH UM, I’M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT IT. I STARTED THIS FOUNDATION TWO OR
THREE YEARS AGO. WE’RE TARGETING TOWARDS KIDS AND FAMILIES WHO ARE, UH, IN
NEED OF TREATMENTS OR CURES FOR THESE CHILDHOOD DISEASES THAT ARE OUT THERE.
ALEXANDRA: WELL THAT’S GREAT. WELL GOOD LUCK THIS WEEKEND. WE HOPE YOU WIN.
JEFF: APPRECIATE IT.
ALEXANDRA: AND THAT DOES IT FOR US BUT DON’T MISS OUT ON OUR EXCLUSIVE ONLINE
Q&A WITH JEFF. THERE YOU WILL HAVE A CHANCE TO WIN PRIZES AUTOGRAPHED BY
HIM. JUST GO TO CHANNELONE.COM AND CLICK ON SPORTS.
AND THAT DOES IT FOR US. WE’VE GOT TO SAY BYE TO JEFF.
JEFF: AWW, I ENJOYED IT, THANK YOU.
ALEXANDRA: IT WAS FUN HAVING YOU HERE.
JEFF: THANKS, I APPRECIATE IT.
ALEXANDRA: SEE YOU GUYS.
JEFF: BYE BYE.
ALEXANDRA: HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND.
Gordon appeared throughout the show.
He also did the Gatorade "Play
of the Week" which means Gordon, on the show to plug one product
(NASCAR) also plugged another product (PepsiCo’s Gatorade). Nothing
Gordon said was considered by Channel One News as "commercial
content." However, every second Gordon was on the screen was
a commercial for NASCAR. That was the whole purpose of getting him
in the studio. There were two minutes of ads on this show in addition
to Gordon. People who continue to believe Channel One News has "only" two
minutes of ads have never taken the time to see the program.
