SIRIUS Satellite Radio to Put Listeners in 'The Driver's Seat' with Exclusive Access to NASCAR Drivers on SIRIUS NASCAR Radio
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SIRIUS Satellite Radio to Put Listeners in 'The Driver's Seat' With Exclusive Access to NASCAR Drivers on SIRIUS NASCAR Radio 'The Driver's Seat,' Daily Call-in Show Launching January 1, Will Air Exclusively on SIRIUS Satellite Radio Veteran Broadcaster John Kernan to Co-Host With a Roster of Past and Present Drivers Including Buddy Baker, Ricky Craven, John Andretti and Johnny Benson NEW YORK, Dec 14, 2006 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ -- SIRIUS Satellite Radio (Nasdaq: SIRI), the Official Satellite Radio Partner of NASCAR starting in 2007, announced today that it will debut The Driver's Seat, an exclusive daily talk show hosted by veteran broadcaster John Kernan and a roster of current and former NASCAR drivers, on January 1. (Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19991118/NYTH125 ) The Driver's Seat will air every weekday (11:00am-3:00pm ET) only on SIRIUS NASCAR Radio / channel 128, the new 24/7 year-round radio channel dedicated to NASCAR that launches January 1. The Driver's Seat will feature Kernan and a different driver taking calls from listeners, interviewing special guests and discussing the latest news from the world of NASCAR. Featured co-hosts will include legendary Hall of Famer Buddy Baker; 1995 NASCAR Busch Series champion Johnny Benson; two-time NASCAR Busch Series champion Randy LaJoie; two-time NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion Ron Hornaday; former Busch and Cup Series Rookie of the Year Ricky Craven; former Cup and Busch series driver Phil Parsons, who is now the color commentator for Speed Channel's NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race broadcasts; and John Andretti, one of the sport's most versatile drivers who has made his mark racing USAC Midgets, Indy cars, NHRA Top Fuel dragsters and NASCAR stock cars. The Driver's Seat, produced in conjunction with Performance Racing Network (PRN), will air exclusively on SIRIUS. "We're very pleased to be working closely with PRN, whose quality productions are well known to NASCAR fans, to assemble this superb lineup of hosts that includes some of the most accomplished drivers in NASCAR," said Steve Cohen, SIRIUS' Vice President of Sports Programming. "Together, we will produce the kind of comprehensive programming listeners can't get anywhere else and give SIRIUS listeners from coast to coast access to the people who know the sport best -- the drivers." "Taking listeners inside NASCAR racing has always been Performance Racing Network's primary objective and The Driver's Seat gives us the opportunity to make them feel like they are in the garage area," said Doug Rice, President and General Manager of PRN. "Teaming a veteran broadcaster like John Kernan with a strong and very opinionated lineup of drivers is going to result in informative and entertaining radio. Producing The Driver's Seat exclusively for SIRIUS is a huge opportunity for our network and it is exciting to be part of a team that brings a new element of entertainment to our sport with SIRIUS NASCAR Radio." "John Kernan and I have worked together on several occasions and I look forward to teaming up with him again on SIRIUS," said Buddy Baker. "John brings a lot of experience, and I started racing in 1959, so I have worked with more than three generations of drivers. We know the racing, the drivers and the inside stories you don't always hear about. We're going to give the fans the kind of entertaining and informative show they expect. If it comes out of my mouth it's the truth, and I'm not a 'yes' man for anybody. That's what you'll be hearing on our show." Kernan has covered NASCAR racing since 1983, when he was a reporter for WDBJ-TV in Roanoke, VA. In 1990 he began working for ESPN as a pit reporter and went on to host ESPN's RPM 2Night, the nation's first nightly motorsports news show. From 1998-2003 he hosted RPM Now on ESPN Radio. He is the co-host of PRN's Sunday Drive and has won numerous awards from the National Motorsports Press Association, the Associated Press and UPI. "I really am very thankful to SIRIUS for this wonderful opportunity," said Kernan. "I know the show will be a huge success because of all the great drivers that are lined up with me. Their insight and experience will make my job easy and this show an entertaining one for SIRIUS listeners for a long time to come." Launching January 1 on SIRIUS' channel 128, SIRIUS NASCAR Radio will provide the most comprehensive, in-depth radio coverage of NASCAR with 24-hour coverage of the sport all year long. SIRIUS NASCAR Radio will be home to every live NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series, NASCAR Busch Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race plus exclusive original programming providing listeners up-to-the-minute news, expert analysis and exclusive interviews with NASCAR insiders. Other shows on SIRIUS NASCAR Radio will include Tony Stewart Live, hosted by two-time NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Champion Tony Stewart and veteran pit road reporter Matt Yocum (airs Tuesdays, 8-10pm ET), and The Morning Drive, hosted by broadcaster Marty Snider and Charlotte Observer beat reporter and columnist David Poole (airs weekdays, 7-11am ET). In addition to the live race broadcast, SIRIUS will take fans into the cars and pits by devoting up to 10 additional channels that will carry driver-to-crew communications during NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series races. SIRIUS will combine the race broadcast with the driver-to-crew chatter on these channels, allowing fans to follow the overall race call and the in-car audio of a driver on a single channel throughout the race. All NASCAR content is provided to SIRIUS customers at no additional cost over SIRIUS' monthly subscription fee. For more information visit http://www.sirius.com. About SIRIUS SIRIUS, "The Best Radio on Radio," delivers more than 130 channels of the best programming in all of radio. SIRIUS is the original and only home of 100% commercial free music channels in satellite radio, offering 69 music channels. SIRIUS also delivers 65 channels of sports, news, talk, entertainment, traffic, weather and data. SIRIUS is the Official Satellite Radio Partner of the NFL, NBA and NHL and broadcasts live play-by-play games of the NFL, NBA and NHL. All SIRIUS programming is available for a monthly subscription fee of only $12.95. SIRIUS Internet Radio (SIR) is a CD-quality, Internet-only version of the SIRIUS radio service, without the use of a radio, for the monthly subscription fee of $12.95. SIR delivers more than 75 channels of talk, entertainment, sports, and 100% commercial free music. SIRIUS products for the car, truck, home, RV and boat are available in more than 25,000 retail locations, including Best Buy, Circuit City, Crutchfield, Costco, Target, Wal-Mart, Sam's Club, RadioShack and at http://shop.sirius.com. SIRIUS radios are offered in vehicles from Audi, Bentley, BMW, Chrysler, Dodge, Ford, Infiniti, Jaguar, Jeep(R), Land Rover, Lexus, Lincoln-Mercury, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, MINI, Nissan, Rolls Royce, Scion, Toyota, Porsche, Volkswagen, and Volvo. Hertz also offers SIRIUS in its rental cars at major locations around the country. Go to http://www.sirius.com to listen to SIRIUS live, or to purchase a SIRIUS radio and subscription. Any statements that express, or involve discussions as to, expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions, future events or performance with respect to SIRIUS Satellite Radio Inc. are not historical facts and may be forward-looking and, accordingly, such statements involve estimates, assumptions and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements. Accordingly, any such statements are qualified in their entirety by reference to the factors discussed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2005 and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended June 30, 2006 and September 30, 2006 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Among the key factors that have a direct bearing on our operational results are: our dependence upon third parties, including manufacturers of SIRIUS radios, retailers, automakers and programming partners, our competitive position and any events which affect the useful life of our satellites. P - SIRI Media Contact: Andrew FitzPatrick SIRIUS 212.901.6693 [email protected] SOURCE SIRIUS Satellite Radio Andrew FitzPatrick of SIRIUS Satellite Radio, +1-212-901-6693, or [email protected] http://www.sirius.com Copyright (C) 2006 PR Newswire. All rights reserved News Provided by COMTEX.