Proposal talk:Sponsor a NASCAR Sprint Cup race in 2010 or 2011

Sorry that I have to tell you, but this is a stupid idea. Personally, I don't know anybody who doesn't know wikipedia yet. It is allmost impossible to be online without getting to wikipedia: most searches of simple words in google or other engines lead directly to a wikipedia article within the first five results! And those who don's know it have reason for: Lack of internet, no interest or just no interest. I don't want to see my donations wasted in mass advertisment, espacially a national one. Additionally, there is nothing relating wikipedia to a race event.

--84.159.243.28 21:01, 14 August 2009 (UTC)

The WMF sponsor NASCAR? No thanks. I'm utterly opposed to wasting money on sponsoring any sporting event. The practice is a form of high-level corporate willy-waving. --Brian McNeil 13:42, 15 August 2009 (UTC)

I agree, NASCAR is stupid and we should not be spending money on worthless events. I do think Wikimedia should get a little advertising, but NASCAR is not where it should go. --zeeded 22:31, 26 August 2009 (UTC)

I agree, this is firmly a Bad Idea. And it goes to any form of mass marketing not geared towards donations... Wikipedia has no problem attracting new editors. However, it does have a problem with vandals and trolls, which is what is going mass market will attract. Sorry, but if you a nerd and you don't know what wikipedia is, you are not a nerd. And only nerds should edit. :P--Cerejota 23:08, 15 August 2009 (UTC)

This is not a bad idea at all (in principle, at least). I don't know anybody who doesn't know about Coca Cola, yet it is advertised incessantly. Do you think marketing people in Coca Cola Co. are stupid and waste money for no good reason? Do you think people would buy Coca Cola just the same, by virtue of "knowing about it", even if it wasn't advertised?

Wikipedia has a problem with attracting new editors: number of active users is now less than it was in mid-2007. Number of edits per day is less now then it was in mid-2007. (And all this with double the article count!) Until now, WMF used donation money to buy servers, Internet connection, pay its staff, and the like. This is quite understandable. But all the servers in the world will be useless if there are no editors.

My only objection: NASCAR fans are not our ideal target audience. Chess, perhaps? :-) 194.152.246.2 09:20, 20 August 2009 (UTC)

If you want elitist, why don'y you try IndyCar, Formula One, or American Le Mans Series? I bet you it will be harder to get places like Hockenheimring and Laguna Seca Raceway to promote Wikipedia than Martisville, Talladega, or Darligton. GVnayR 03:10, 21 August 2009 (UTC)

• It would cost way too much money and is very unlikely to give much benefit. I'm a member of WikiProject NASCAR on the English Wikipedia. Royalbroil 04:08, 21 August 2009 (UTC)

• It is not idea, it is commercial nonsense. --Elm 09:06, 27 August 2009 (UTC)

• In this day and age, commercialism equals success. Do you want Wikipedia to be like Autism Speaks or do you want it to be like PBS? GVnayR 02:50, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

Guess what? Here outside the US I've never heard of Autism Speaks, but I have heard of PBS. You don't need to advertise to build brand awareness or a reputation for quality. And NASCAR has no hope in hell of conferring any air of respectability. --Brian McNeil 15:33, 22 September 2009 (UTC)

I live in Canada and I know that Autism Speaks is a non-profit organization that finds research into treating and curing autism? I also know that PBS (channel 54.1 through 54.3 - WQLN) is a great channel to watch shows like Dinosaur Train, Martha Speaks, and Angelina Ballerina. NASCAR is respectable right now with its lack of tobacco advertisement (unlike certain races in Formula One). Heck, NASCAR will be even more respectable once they get the cars running on either ethanol or hydrogen sometime in the near future. GVnayR 14:43, 30 September 2009 (UTC)

beg your pardon ?

I think you should make your proposal clearer, because most people (me included) have no clue what NASCAR, Wikipedia 400, etc. is.

Also, isn't only going for the "american market" (I assume you're actually talking about the USA one, not one the other countrys of this continent) a bit too centered ?

Darkoneko 15:26, 17 August 2009 (UTC)

NASCAR is a stock car automobile league that races 300-500 miles race for 40 weeks of the year. It is almost as important as Major League Baseball and the National Football League in North America. GVnayR 23:03, 19 August 2009 (UTC)

And, thus, like the major league baseball and NFL, little known outside America. This is another nail in this idea's coffin - totally US-centric. --Brian McNeil 15:28, 22 September 2009 (UTC)

I try to go see a Major League Baseball game every year in Toronto. Everybody in Canada knows the Toronto Blue Jays and how we outlasted the Montreal Expos. One billion people around the world watch the Super Bowl every year (NFL). Besides, NASCAR also has leagues in Canada and Mexico. GVnayR 14:45, 30 September 2009 (UTC)

Impact?

Some proposals will have massive impact on end-users, including non-editors. Some will have minimal impact. What will be the impact of this proposal on our end-users? -- Philippe 00:16, 3 September 2009 (UTC)

To make sure that Wikipedia gets the same impact from NASCAR fans as Autism Speaks (another non-profit organization). GVnayR 03:50, 3 September 2009 (UTC)

objecting

Hello,

I have at least two objections :

1. Nascar racing is US centric, I think we need more people from africa, india or china. That is where knowledge need to be spread.
2. The race is helping global warming which is bad to spread knowledge in the long term.

--Hashar 17:06, 22 September 2009 (UTC)

First of all, NASCAR is planting 50 acres of trees in each one of their racing markets to neutralize the carbons from their Sprint Cup races (I read about this in one of my NASCAR magazines). Second of all, NASCAR can also be seen in Canada (Canadian Tire Series) and Mexico (Corona Series - I believe it's called) so NASCAR is present in at least one developing country. I heard that the Olympics and Formula One contribute more to pollution and global warming than a NASCAR race. If you don't want Wikipedia's advertisement to be US-centric, good luck on getting places like Suzuka Speedway and Nurburgring to have their Formula One races sponsored by Wikipedia (or should I say the Wikimedia Foundation)? GVnayR 14:38, 30 September 2009 (UTC)