NOTE: This also appears today on our sister site, Leblanguage. Please visit it regularly for coverage of media, sports, politics and life.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve honestly gotten over a good deal of the curiosity about those damn Epstein files, no matter who might or might not be incriminated by them. I suspect we’ve pretty much already accurately guessed a good deal of what it contains, I’m damn sick of the half-truths and innuendo being blathered on and in front of planes by one fat schmuck we all surmise is in them and I’m honestly of the mindset that unless there is photographic evidence that corroborates the sworn testimony of Tiffany Doe, almost no one on anything close to a fence will be moved enough to empirically be able to say that democracy will be any closer to being reinstated come next November.
So I look elsewhere for some sort of intriguing news, and the item that emerged from the heartland of America on Friday, as reported by the INDIANAPOLIS STAR’s Nathan Brown, definitely provided some welcome relief from that other drivel:
Fox Corp has purchased a 1/3 stake in Penske Entertainment, the owner of the IndyCar series, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and IMS productions, Penske Entertainment confirmed Thursday morning. The news was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.
According to sources the Journal spoke to, the transaction was believed to be valued between $125 million and $135 million. The deal also comes with a multi-year extension of what was already a three-year exclusive media rights deal between Fox Sports and IndyCar, set to expire at the end of the 2027 season. The length of that extension was not immediately clear, but it would appear to lengthen and deepen the pair’s relationship from a media rights perspective through at least 2029.
It’s a nice feather in FOX’s cap and during a week where we got a lot closer to the official announcement that NFL Media–linear network, digital media, regular season game rights and, most significantly, the Red Zone channel–was going to be absorbed for a nine-figure price by ESPN–it was at least some sign that arguably their most ardent and determined competitor in sports isn’t completely folding its hand. IndyCar provides FOX an ardent fan base, has improved its own ratings with a more dedicated and broader-reaching platform that the Worldwide Leader had allowed them and, most significantly, a slate of live events during summer months when a lot of consequence isn’t readily available elsewhere. The fact that they felt that had to go out and buy a piece of what they were attempting to license in order to seal the deal–similar to what Disney did–should give you a clue how cutthroat and competitive the world of live sports–seen more than ever by analysts and experts as the holy grail of content- has become.
It’s a marriage apparently steeped both in legacy and opportunity. Back in May when FOX Sports schlepped to Indianapolis for their first-ever 500 broadcast, Brown’s colleague Aaron Ferguson went out of his way to cite the degree of passion their czar was bringing to the task:
Eric Shanks, a Brazil, Ind. native, began attending the Indianapolis 500 as a young kid long before he joined Fox Sports more than 30 years ago. He was named president of Fox Sports in 2010, and now 15 years later, he’s helped the network land IndyCar’s media rights and have the chance to shape an Indy 500 broadcast.
And in a far more extensive analysis dropped Friday Brown detailed that for as badly as Shanks may want and need IndyCar, IndyCar needs him and FOX Sports a lot more:
Thursday’s deal with Fox Sports CEO Eric Shanks, Fox Corp., Lachlan Murdoch and the Murdoch family gives IndyCar a platform. It comes at a time when the motorsports and greater sports and media landscape has never been more crowded and competitive and where it’s as difficult as ever to reach, attract and win-over the young fans and potential casual ones whom IndyCar needs to add in order to reach its potential. Penske has spent more than $60 million on investments and upgrades to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway – not to mention millions more to keep the series afloat during the pandemic; to purchase (and therefore save on the calendar) the Long Beach Grand Prix; to help fund the final development stages of IndyCar’s hybrid technology alongside Chevy and Honda; and to promote or co-promote new or altered races at venues that have (or will) also include Iowa Speedway, the Milwaukee Mile, Nashville Superspeedway, the Detroit Grand Prix and the Grand Prix of Arlington.
As someone who was an intricate part of the team that saw how dedicated and determined FOX Sports was to update and broaden NASCAR when it became its third major sports tentacle after the NFL and MLB and made a shrewd buy-low investment in an otherwise obscure motorsports network Speedvision that eventually became Speed Channel, then Speed, and finally FS1, I know first-hand how much they can bring to Penske’s quixotic quest for relevance and expansion. It’s clear Penske acknowledges it as well. But I submit there may be still more reasons why an 88-year-old patriach might be choosing to give a piece of his action at this time to an entity ultimately run by a 94-year-old naned Rupert Murdoch.
Especially when one considers that Roger Penske has been running in some of the same circles as said 94-year-old, as CNN’s Meagan Vasquez reminded us back in June 2019:
President Donald Trump said Thursday that he will award the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Roger Penske, a race car team owner, former professional race car driver and entrepreneur. Trump told reporters about the decision to award Penske – known by his nickname, “The Captain” – with the nation’s highest civilian honor during a meeting alongside Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Trump called Penske “a great gentleman who has won 18 Indianapolis 500s” and said Penske is “very thrilled to be getting it.” “He’s very deserving, he’s a great gentleman. I’ve known him a long time and a very brilliant guy,” Trump added.
And the bromance apparently has continued into this decade. Per Leo Kamin’s exhaustive look at Trump 2024 donors published by FORBES nearly a year ago, Penske just happens to be 22nd on the list of billionaire donors– to the tune of a cool $1.1 million. And Kamin’s piece points out that that medal just happened to be awarded shortly after a similarly-sized check was cut for his first re-election campaign.
Now further consider that Penske has a rebellious heir of own whose name our Leblanguage fans might recognize. That would be Jay Penske, who runs Penske Media which includes the print and digital holdings of just about every Hollywood legacy trade of consequence–VARIETY!, THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER and DEADLINE, to name a few. Oh, and the Golden Globes and Dick Clark Productions to boot.
Lachlan Murdoch isn’t much of a fan of journalism, and he is apparently going to have some ‘splaining to do to his siblings once Rupes finally gives in to the inevitable about what Pops demanded he do to gain the lead in this real-life playing out of SUCCESSION.
Maybe bringing in someone like Jay Penske and the many talented writers he still employs might reinvigorate the celebrity and gossip-infused NEW YORK POST? Perhaps create a silo that would satisfy Elisabeth, James and the step-bros/sistas?
You think Pops Penske might be happy to have a somewhat deeper connection to FOX News? After all, there’s more than a small overlap between that audience and his.
Now maybe I’m simply connecting dots willy-nilly and maybe Jay and Roger Penske have literally nothing to do with each other’s worlds. It’s not like Jay bops around Beverly Hills in his asbestos suit.
Or maybe there’s a connection after all. A special bond, one might say.
I’ll bet there’s a Penske File somewhere that might have such details. Even if it’s merely the one I’ve recently set up on my hard drive. Sorry, without a subpoena you’re not getting it.
On the other hand, I can’t be the first and only pundit to ask this question. Or perhaps even create their own Penske file.
And if that’s the case, I’ve got exactly the man for the job of digging into it.
Maybe it’s the Summer of George after all.
Courage…