#also back when i used to watch twitch streams for nascar races...

[citrisz]

What is your favorite NASCAR race that you've watched?

HMMMMMMM sadly i cant watch many races till the end live bcs i live in ireland the times sometimes can get crazy (im p sure some have gone on till like. 4 am even) but i very clearly remember watching ryan blaney win his championship! I cried i was so happy tbh. He is one of the guys i rooted for since i got into nascar last year and seeing him win the championship that very same year was amazing

[bad268]

F1 Asks

I saw one of my favorites (@astonmartinii) do this, and I wanted to join lol Not tagging anyone else, but if you want to, do it!

Who is your favourite driver?

It may not look like it on my blog, but Max is my #1 lol

Do you have other favourite drivers?

Of the current grid, Max Oscar, and Logan have been my top three. I love them with a passion and it hurts to see that hate Logan gets. He was promoted too soon in my opinion. And a side note, while I love Kimi Antonelli, even promoting him in 2025 could be too soon.

Of all time, Kimi, Seb, and Lewis (honorable mention Jenson) are my boys. Honestly GOATS <3

Who is your least favourite driver?

I have passionate dislikes for Carlos Sainz and Daniel Ricciardo I'm sorry girlies. I tried writing for Daniel once and I cannot bring myself to even try it again.

Do you pull for drivers or do you like teams as well?

Drivers mostly. I used to consider myself a Red Bull and McLaren fan, but I can't stand behind a team's actions. I'd rather say I'm a Max, Checo, Lando, and Oscar fan.

If you like teams, who do you pull for?

If I had to, Red Bull and McLaren. Next year, I might add Ferarri to this list because that Charles-Lewis lineup is gonna be insane if Ferarri can back it up.

How long have you been into F1?

Actively watching, since 2022. Of handily, since 2020.

What got you into F1?

Something stupid lol... I was on twitch during lockdown and Lando was streaming I can't remember, it was either Among Us or CS:GO. Quarantine was a dark time for me, and his content made me laugh. I did some digging and found out he was in F1. I closely followed until I was able to afford F1TV.

Also, My dad was a big NASCAR guy, and we would go to NASCAR races every year. I met so many drivers (Jeff Gordin, Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick, and Dale Earnheart Jr. I can remember) because we would get to go down to the paddock. My dad built the communications in the stadium where the track was, so they hooked us up every time. I was used to race cars from a young age, so when I started watching F1 more, it was reminiscent.

do you enjoy fanfic/RPF?

I mean, I write for it now so yeah lol. Honestly though, it's draining sometimes, and I have to take breaks. That; 's why I usually limit it to 2 posts a week, so I can line it up for weeks straight. I used to not post for months at a time, but I'm getting better.

how do you view new fans?

I don't think new fans deserve the hate for liking something, especially girls. Like girls get hated for liking anything, and it's not like they should get hated for living. Coming from a girl who likes a lot of sports, the hate I get is fucking draining. New fans are just as eager about the sport as we are. If you're new and want to ask questions or fan with me, PLEASE! MY INBOX AND MESSAGES ARE ALWAYS OPEN.

If you could take over as any team principal for any team who would it be and why?

Don't get me wrong, I love Toto, but wtf is happening to Mercedes? It's like every year, it's getting worse. So that would be an option for me. Also, Christian, I'm sorry but wtf. Not only the mistreatment of your junior drivers but the mistreatment of your female employees? Nah, man. Get out, and I'll take over.

Are your friends and family into F1 as well?

Not exactly. As I said earlier, my dad is a NASCAR guy. He doesn't like open-wheel racing, but I'm slowly converting him to Indy at least. I'll get him on the F1 train eventually.

Are you open to talking to other fans/making friends?

Always! My inbox and messages are always open and I am the President of Yappsville and will not shut up.

[junker-town]

How esports is revolutionizing sports broadcasting

E-sports streaming platforms like Twitch are reaching new and younger audiences who are more engaged with what they’re watching.

We didn’t know if there would be live sports this year. The coronavirus pandemic kept the world in limbo for months. It was shocking when the NCAA announced the cancellation of March Madness, which feels like a decade ago — and in its wake we’ve seen hundreds of events cancelled, altered or modified to try and make sports return as safely as possible, with mixed results.

Whether through simulated crowds or altered camera shots to direct attention away from the lack of fans, sports broadcasts are evolving during the crisis. Leagues are turning online to engage fans in real time as they look to make them feel closer to sport, even when they can’t be there in person.

The idea of fan involvement beyond cheers and waves may be new to traditional sports, but it’s a technique that has been honed and cultivated for over a decade in esports. Broadcasters are innately aware of their online audience, legions of fans are accustomed to chatting in real-time, and it’s all happening on a platform where the same people calling the action can see what those fans are saying. Involving the crowd in the action has become a critical part of the esports experience, and now traditional leagues are trying to mimic the experience for a new generation of consumers.

Jeff Eisenband began his career in traditional sports broadcasting, now he’s working with the NBA as a commentator for the NBA 2K League. He’s worked with crowds live and online, seeing the differences in both sides of broadcasting. He believes there’s going to be a greater shift into esports-style announcing in the future.

“Twitch is very Gen Z-centric,” Eisenband says, “I think that one thing you learn in media is that people react very highly to feeling like their voice is heard.” When Eisenband is calling a game in the 2K League he keeps an eye on Twitch chat during the event, because much is added to the experience by involving fans. “If there’s something interesting, or a fan made a good point, then I’m going to say something to make those fans feel like they’re being heard, that they’re being seen by the broadcasters.”

“You used to have two traditional broadcasters with a sideline reporter. They had no way to follow what the pulse of what fans were talking about.”

That level of engagement hasn’t existed before, and for younger generations the feedback loop of feeling like they’re part of the broadcast is critical. It’s one of the reasons why, at a time where traditional TV viewership is in decline, Twitch continues to thrive. As of July the platform boasted 55 million active monthly viewers, as more and more people get their entertainment from individual content creators and online broadcasts rather than traditional media.

“You used to have two traditional broadcasters with a sideline reporter,” Eisenband says, “they had no way to follow what the pulse of what fans were talking about.”

He believes the proliferation of Twitch will “keep traditional broadcasters on their toes,” forcing them to adapt to the new medium. Tearing down the wall between broadcast and viewer may be scary, but it’s also critical to how sports are received moving forward. With this comes a necessary evolution, should current broadcasters want to excel in the new landscape.

“[They] have to get snappier, and we’re seeing — whether it’s the NBA with specific ‘follow LeBron James’ broadcasts or anything like that, but we’re going to see microtargeted programming in traditional sports.”

This “microtargeting” may sound like a buzzword, but it’s really just a way to get fans the content they want, in the way they want. College Football has embraced this with its playoff format, offering fans a variety of different broadcasters to choose the announce team they want. In a lot of ways, it’s a throwback to days of silencing the TV and simulcasting announcing over the radio, with fans choosing to listen to their local announcers over national voices.

It makes the product feel more personal, which in turn is more engaging — and that includes leaning on Twitter to make everything more fun.

“Adam Silver has been saying with the NBA for the last three or four years that he envisions the Twitch product being what you see in regular traditional sports,” Eisenband says, “ On Monday Night Football they put in front of Steve Levy that Patrick Mahomes’ mom was saying “Don’t call my son Pat.” That’s a variation on a broadcast that engages with Twitch chat.”

The first step in making the transition needs to be having networks embrace the shifting nature of modern broadcasting, and train its talent in it. This doesn’t need to be a case of getting rid of the old guard, but rather better educating them on how to carry a crowd in new ways. Eisenband says that one of the major differences in dealing with an online game without a live crowd is adapting to not having thousands of people as a crutch.

“It’s the broadcaster’s job to carry that energy to the viewer at home, because you don’t have that chance to sit back and let the crowd tell the story with your reactions,” he says. For too long broadcasters have allowed a stadium audience to convey the emotion, but without fans in attendance the move has been to simulate crowd noise, rather than train announcers to engage in new ways.

Regardless what happens with traditional broadcast sports it’s clear that the online shift for viewers wont go away. More people than ever are electing to spend their money solely on streaming services, or by giving to individual content creators. The pandemic didn’t alter this trajectory, but perhaps opened the minds of those who were otherwise against the idea of watching sports online. NASCAR played around with the format at the beginning of the pandemic by announcing virtual simulated races, and while that level of integration between virtual and traditional sports, we will see a shift. Eisenband sees this coming too.

“When esports are on linear television now, people aren’t going to be as inclined to say ‘why would I watch that?’ they’re going to be like ‘this is part of the culture now.’”

The next move is on traditional sports to adapt. In the end, the forced adaptation caused by the Covid pandemic could be what saves traditional sports broadcasting. It’s better to evolve early and find new audiences than wait too long and try to find revenue when audiences have left. This isn’t a moment of peril, but an opportunity for salvation — assuming broadcasters are smart enough to see it.