Story By: DINO OBERTO / EASTERN MOTORSPORT PRESS ASSOCIATION – WILKES-BARRE, PA – When the annual Eastern Motorsport Press Association convention takes place the weekend of January 12-14, at the Holiday Inn in Wilkes-Barre, PA, the organization proudly welcomes legendary motorsports journalist Dave Argabright for a special appearance discussing the media’s role in racing.
Argabright will speak on Saturday morning, January 13.
Following opening remarks by EMPA President Dino Oberto and a select group of guests, Argabright will offer his take on the role and responsibility of media in today’s changing landscape.
Dave Argabright, one of the most prolific and influential motorsports media figures of his generation, has a career that spans more than 40 years. He has written nearly 20 books, bylined over 1,600 published columns and features, and has appeared as on-air talent in 500 network television broadcasts.
A chance meeting with sports editor of the Anderson Herald in his mid-20s led Argabright to having a weekly column, Track Talk, that began in 1983. His magazine career got off to an inauspicious start as Open Wheel’s Dick Berggren rejected Argabright’s first two submissions. Within days, however, Argabright applied Berggren’s input and produced a story about Chuck Amati that ran in the February 1983 issue of Open Wheel.
In 1999 Argabright teamed with Brad Doty to write Doty’s autobiography, Still Wide Open which became an instant classic and was followed by books on Jack Hewitt, Earl Baltes, Doug Wolfgang, Speedy Bill Smith, Rex Robbins and more including his latest release The Newport Nightmare, Jimmy Owens.
In 2014 Argabright was inducted into the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame.
Many television viewers recognize Argabright as a familiar face on racing telecasts. His broadcast work began in 1990, and over the following three-plus decades Argabright has appeared on MAVTV, CBS Sports, NBC Sports, ESPN, The Nashville Network (TNN), and SPEED, among other networks. Argabright also served as a pit reporter with the Indianapolis 500 Radio Network from 2004 to 2010.
Special Guest Bob Stephens will bring a unique perspective when he takes the stage late morning. As a member of the 1981/’82 U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration Team, the Blue Angels, Stephens has been a lifelong fan of auto racing and spent years as a car owner.
The Blue Angels have specific goals of community outreach and recruiting for the Navy. Auto racing’s writers and photographers sometimes walk that gray area between telling it like it is and showing racing’s best side.
Stephens, who knows both sides extremely well, will share his experiences about what representation means with regard to accuracy and presenting an appealing activity.
EMPA invites race promoters and PR persons to attend the Saturday morning portion of the convention.