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Racing

The 'business of moments' drives TNT Sports' NASCAR coverage

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HAMPTON, GA. -- One race into its return to NASCAR, TNT Sports is on a mission. The broadcaster wants to use its multi-platform approach to deliver the biggest moments to the racing fans.

It just has to balance the difficult realities of media while doing so.

"We're in the business of moments, and moments can happen at any time," said Craig Barry, executive vice president and chief content officer for Warner Bros. Discovery Sports, during a sitdown with AltDriver. 

"They don't happen every time, right? Like, it is the pass. It is the crash. It is the pit. It is the finish. It is the start. It is something really interesting that happens on the set in pregame, and we need to be there for that."

These moments are not solely tied to the action on the track. They also extend to the garage area, the grandstands, and wherever else the cameras can find them.

The advantage for TNT Sports is that it has a separate platform built for some of these extra storylines -- Bleacher Report. This site focuses on the culture surrounding all sports, and it utilizes social media platforms to showcase it.

Did a former NBA player get dunked on by his son, or did a NASCAR driver do one of the biggest burnouts in racing history? Those clips can go on the House of Highlights pages. Did Ty Dillon call out Denny Hamlin's fans after advancing in the in-season challenge? That can go on the B/R Racing pages.

"Suddenly we have this funnel -- honestly, it doesn't really matter what sport -- as long as we have talent helping us drive the narrative," Barry said. "We have this -- and it's creative ideas -- we have this funnel to this whole new generation of NASCAR fans.

"And, look, we don't think it's going to grow the audience 25 or 50 or 100%. What we want to do is make it more interesting and create a higher degree of awareness."

As Barry explained, there is a noticeable difference between the type of content for the respective platforms. He used Tiger Woods as an example. If the 11-time PGA Player of the Year winner puts the ball five inches from the pin, TNT wants to highlight that accomplishment. If he bounces the ball dozens of times off of his club head, Bleacher Report wants to highlight that.

"This is going to be no different," Barry said. "They're going to find the way, obviously, with (reporter Mamba Smith), all the drivers getting involved, probably the younger drivers kind of saying, like, 'Oh, we're figuring out a way to connect.'

"What are some really interesting things we can do to find ways to connect with the NASCAR fan and the younger Bleacher Report audience?"

Of course, TNT Sports has a tough task ahead of it for the remaining four Cup Series races on its schedule. It has to deliver a broadcast that NASCAR fans enjoy. This is by no means a small feat considering all of the factors in play.

TNT Sports has to have the right camera angles highlighting the battles throughout the pack. It has to have on-air talent that can work seamlessly together without forcing canned jokes or awkward interactions. It has to balance what the fan wants with what is required by the existing business deals with sponsors.

Finding the on-air talent was the simpler part of the process. TNT Sports brought in respected industry veterans to fill numerous roles. This includes Parker Kligerman, Shannon Spake, and Jamie McMurray at the desk while Marty Snider, Danielle Trotta, and Alan Cavanna roam pit road getting in-race updates.

The booth makeup is the same as Prime Video's season stretch. Adam Alexander is the play-by-play man while Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Steve Letarte are the analysts. In this case, Alexander is the point guard who sets up Earnhardt Jr. and Letarte "to make plays" while highlighting race strategy or race craft.

And TNT Sports has made it clear to the on-air talent that there aren't specific directives. The broadcaster doesn't want rehearsed jokes, nor does it want to force the group to fit specific storylines into specific 90-second sequences.

The goal is to have a fluid broadcast that doesn't simply talk at the fans like it's a college lecture.

"The thought process is go and give them the space to tell us the stories of NASCAR through the lens that they have based on who they are, the culture and style of who they are," Barry explained. "That's why we hired them."

Unfortunately for TNT Sports, fulfilling sponsor agreements is a more difficult process. After all, TNT is a traditional channel. Unlike Prime Sports, it can't have 100 laps of uninterrupted green flag action.

Commercials are a requirement, so how does the production team handle in-race breaks without angering the viewers? Will the broadcast miss major moments while advertising Burger King or the latest blockbuster movie?

According to Caws and Jaws, last weekend's race at EchoPark Speedway had 214 minutes of race broadcast (out of 249) and 117 total commercials. Eighty-four commercials (35 minutes) were in the traditional, full-screen model. Thirty-three of the commercials (16 minutes) were in the side-by-side model featuring race action playing silently.

"We do it in a way that we think is going to be passive, that we think is acceptable to the fan," Barry said. "People try two boxes. Sure, that's fine.

"But that's just as disruptive as going to break if you take the audio away, and maybe even more distracting if you have a box of racing and then a full commercial with audio. I'd almost rather go away and come back."

While the full-screen commercials return, Barry also notes that TNT Sports will continue to work with advertisers to see if other "innovative" opportunities exist for highlighting them. This could lead to changes in future races and seasons as TNT Sports rebuilds its presence in NASCAR.

"We live in a very, very fragmented media landscape where there's a lot of cynicism around where the value is," Barry said. "Is the value on streaming? Is the value on digital or social? Is the value on linear? Is the value on linear broadcast or linear cable? And I think there's just too many choices for there to be one right answer.

"So I think the short answer for you is we know the last 20 laps are sacred, and we're going to try to be present for those biggest moments. We're going to serve our advertisers like we need to serve our advertisers, but we work for the fan."