Passion of employees, viewers powered motorsports channel

By Tripp Mickle & John Ourand, Staff Writers

Published August 5, 2013, Page 1

In late July, Speed employee Jessie Morrison scaled the large, red Speed sign outside the broadcast network’s Charlotte headquarters. She stretched out across it on her stomach, turned toward a camera and smiled.

Later, she posted the photo on Instagram with a simple caption: “Going to miss seeing this sign.”

The image and words captured the way that Morrison and many of her fellow Speed employees feel this summer. These are the final days of Speed. In less than two weeks, the 24-hour network no longer will exist in its current form. Many of its employees will be looking for new jobs.

FROM FOX SPORTS
Fox’s statement on the closing of Speed

“Change in the workplace is challenging, and every job lost in a transition of this type is significant. We’ve been as fair and communicative as possible given our plans at each step along the way. Looking at this project as a whole, we’ve placed those displaced in new positions as often as possible, and the net job-gain at Fox Sports in the past six months is significant, including several new departments in Charlotte. We still expect Charlotte to be an integral part of Fox Sports 1 going forward, especially around our expanded NASCAR race package.”

Speed’s owner, Fox Sports, has decided there is more money to be had in a multisport channel. It will shutter the motorsports channel and convert it into Fox Sports 1 on Aug. 17.

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