Taylor: There is no huge marketing effort directed at a target group. The tracks do their own marketing. We assume that a more diverse group of people in the sport will attract a more diverse audience. We don't want to market the sport to a single group-we want to invite them.
SCR: Dodge has a strong, formalized diversity program, but what are others-including NASCAR-doing?
Taylor: We hold up Dodge as the leader in our effort, but everyone is involved to one degree or another. General Motors has an Urban Youth Race School. Toyota funds scholarships to the NASCAR Technical Institute. NASCAR is in its fourth year of sponsoring paid internships for youth who may not even have considered a career in racing. It gives both parties a chance to try one another on for size.
SCR: Why are there not more minorities involved in stock car racing today? Is it the economy, or society?
Taylor: There are lots of different opinions. Racing is an expensive sport, and it hasn't been until recently that tracks have been built in urban areas, so a lot of people haven't grown up getting any first-hand experience at race tracks and getting excited about it. Unlike stick-and-ball sports, you don't learn auto racing in high school. Many of today's drivers are involved in it because their fathers were. That hasn't been the case for the minority community.
SCR: How has the controversy over the donations to Jesse Jackson's Operation PUSH and his conference affected your efforts?
Taylor: We were concerned that people misunderstood what we were donating to. We support diversity, not political views. His conference had over 70 speakers and has included presentations from presidents. We support it.
SCR: Has the criticism made you realize how much work there is to do?
Taylor: Problems with diversity are not unique to America. It does remind us there is a lot of work to be done-everywhere. It is a global issue.
SCR: When the economy strengthens and the hunt for sponsorship becomes easier, do you think being an African-American or Asian or Hispanic driver may help in getting money to race?
Taylor: Sponsorship follows winners. You need only look at Tiger Woods in golf and the Williams sisters in tennis. If Tiger didn't win, he'd be just an African-American golfer. At the end of the day, sponsors will back drivers who win. It doesn't make a lot of difference if their skin color is black, white, or purple with scales. That said, if our efforts follow a successful path, a diverse owner, driver, and crew will be commonplace, and the only thing sponsors will care about is who is in the Top 10.
SCR: At the end of the season, what will be the yardstick to measure your success?
Taylor: I have no delusions we are going to turn this around overnight. Successful diversity isn't going to happen overnight. It is going to take a while, which is one of the things that makes this job so exciting. At the end of the year, I'd like to see more minorities in the pits, more going over the wall, more driving, and more people working in motorsports at any level. And I want to see more in the pipeline. That will be a successful season.