NASCAR Hits PR Pothole, Toyota Shifts Into Image Repair, Sen. Bayh Retires
Words of the Day
“The act of putting pen to paper encourages pause for thought, this in turn makes us think more deeply about life, which helps us regain our equilibrium.” – Norbet Platt, author
NASCAR Hits Pothole at Daytona 500
NASCAR really hit a PR pothole with the Daytona 500, the Super Bowl of stock car racing. The signature race – and the leadoff event of the 2010 schedule, had a major publicity blowout when a crater opened in the hallowed track between turns 1 and 2 on Sunday. An initial patch took nearly two hours – and still didn’t work – and another attempt added 45 minutes of stalled agony as NASCAR officials scrambled to get the race back on track.
More than two hours of delays had more than half the fans heading for home – and the TV audience switching channels to more entertaining sports, like the Olympics, faster than you can say “gentlemen, start your engines.” The stoppage came at a critical time for NASCAR, which began the season by making several on-track changes to boost sagging TV ratings.
This PR pit-stop not only happened in the first race of the season, but in the front yard of NASCAR’s headquarters. To add to the image crash, the last time the track was paved was 1978. “This is not supposed to happen,” Daytona International Speedway President Robin Bragg told reporters. “We can come back from this.”
It’s time for NASCAR to shift into high PR gear … while there are many races, and many miles of track left in the season. WordSmith hopes they get back on the road to success soon.
Toyota Accelerates Image Repair
Toyota – one of the world’s iconic auto manufacturers that has had major PR crashes with its sticky gas pedal and brake glitch recalls – is hitting the accelerator on image repair.
The company may offer incentives or increase the length of its warranties to try and regain the luster on its sterling reputation in the wake of a worldwide recall of more than eight million vehicles. Other measures the company is taking to restore the faith in its brand includes offering zero percent financing in some regions, as well as cash to dealers.
Sen. Bayh Cured Of Potomac Fever
Sen. Evan Bayh, a strong bi-partisan voice inside the Beltway, has been cured of Potomac Fever, and has announced his retirement from Congress – to the surprise of many on both sides of the aisle, who admired his experienced leadership and vision in a gridlocked, bureaucratic, stodgy land of red tape.
The stalwart senator attributed the move to the inner workings of a Congress he no longer tolerates in a roiling atmosphere of voter discontent. “I love helping our citizens … I do not love Congress,” Bayh said in making the announcement earlier this week.
The decision by the Indiana Democrat, who was a shoe-in for winning a third term in November, gives Republicans a formidable chance to capture the seat in a GOP-leaning state.
Bayh joins a growing roll of recent Democrat retirements that includes Reps. Bart Gordon and John Tanner of Tennessee, Rep. Patrick Kennedy of Rhode Island and Sens. Christopher Dodd of Connecticut and Byron Dorgan of North Dakota.
Baylor Gets Starr As President
A new Starr is rising in the Lone Star State.
Baylor University has named Kenneth Starr – the former investigator of the Whitewater land deal and Monica Lewinski scandal that led to President Bill Clinton’s impeachment in the 1990s – as its new president this week.
Starr, who served as the one-time independent prosecutor of the former Clinton White House, had been dean of the Pepperdine University law school in Malibu, Calif.
Baylor is WordSmith’s alma mater. Sic ‘em Bears … Sic ‘em Starr!
Golden Mic
Each week, Wordsmith will bestow a Golden Mic Award to the person, group or company in the court of public opinion that best exemplifies the tenets of solid PR, marketing and advertising – and those who don’t. Stay tuned … and step-up to the mic!
The WordSmith News Bureau is based at Deane Smith Media Innovations, a full-service PR, marketing and advertising agency. Got PR? Need marketing strategy? Ad consulting? Message Wordsmithing? Creative & online initiatives? Reach the WordSmith at wordsmith@deanesmithmedia.com