DRIVE FOR DIVERSITY: Pioneer Award at 15th Annual Urban Wheel Awards

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Cathy Nedd 313-350-4241 pr@decisivemag.com DECISIVE MULTIMEDIA Inc. 301.850.2858

NASCAR Trailblazer Max Siegel to Receive Pioneer Award at 15th Annual Urban Wheel Awards Held in Conjunction with the North America International Auto Show Detroit - October 4, 2010 - Max Siegel, a groundbreaker for African Americans in the motorsports industry, will receive the Pioneer Award at the 15th Annual Urban Wheel Awards, at 7 pm on Sunday, January 9th at the MotorCity Casino Hotel in Detroit. NASCAR Trailblazer Max Siegel to receive Pioneer Award at 15th Annual Urban Wheel Awards. As NASCAR'S highest-ranking African-American executive, Siegel oversaw the entire DEI organization including competition, marketing, sales, sponsorships and distribution for all DEI's properties including motorsports teams, licensing, promotion, business development and the Dale Earnhardt Foundation. "Siegel embodies all of the attributes of an automotive urban pioneer," said Randi Payton, president and CEO of Decisive Media, the best source for cultural and consumer news, and organizers of the Urban Wheel Awards. "After successfully taking the reins of a major motorsports conglomerate, he is continuing to blaze a trail by reaching out to include more minorities in the sport." In 2009, Siegel formed the 909 Group, a marketing firm catering to companies and individuals in the sports and entertainment industries. NASCAR retained the firm to administer the motorsports industry-wide "Drive for Diversity" initiative, aimed at developing and introducing minority and female drivers and crew members to competitive NASCAR opportunities. Seeking to bring more credibility to NASCAR'S diversity program, Siegel developed the competition reality show, Changing Lanes for BET. The show, chronicles his search for the next generation of women and minority racing drivers. Siegel's Revolution Racing coaches, mentors and develops drivers so they may one day enjoy the same success as the pioneers of the NASCAR industry. "Motorsports have long been my passion and it is indeed an honor to receive such an award for something I truly enjoy doing," said Siegel. "I look forward to being a part of the Urban Wheel Awards and using the platform to advance the goal of including more minorities in the industry. ABOUT THE URBAN WHEEL AWARDS The Urban Wheel Awards brings together celebrities, automotive executives, international media, government representatives and the multi-cultural community to celebrate diversity in the automotive industry. According to RL Polk, consumers in the multicultural market purchase one-quarter of new vehicles annually. The Urban Wheel Awards promotes awareness of their inclusion and honors the companies and individuals who have made progress toward embracing this reality. The day's activities will begin with a multicultural-focused Green Car Show at 10 am to 3 pm, followed by a celebrity Green Carpet and VIP reception at 5 pm. The Urban Wheel Awards, which begins at 7 pm, will honor four companies for leadership in environmental and fuel-efficient technologies. Winners of the Urban Car, Urban Truck and Urban Green Vehicle of the Year will also be honored along with the Minority Supplier and Dealer of the Year, Lifetime Achievement and the Urban Pioneer of the Year. For more information, please contact Cathy Nedd at pr@decisivemag.com or 301-850-2858. Visit www.decisivemagazine.com for more information. Decisive Media is a comprehensive multimedia platform, which produces culturally relevant consumer news and information to minority consumers to help them make informed purchasing decisions on products and services. Decisive also helps companies reach this growing market by employing new media technology through the use of multiple marketing and public relations tools. A 501 (c ) (3) organization that was established in 1988, the Emerging Diversity Education Fund (formerly the Edward Davis Education Fund) provides mentoring, internships and scholarships to youth pursuing careers in communication, engineering, green professions and media. Since the organizations inception, more than 350 students have received scholarships and internships of more than $500,000. The organization also promotes diversity in various industries, including: automotive, entertainment, green and technology, to name a few. # # # www.facebook.com/maxsiegelinc

NASCAR Media Group, Max Siegel and ESPN have combined efforts to produce a documentary on Wendell Scott

Documentary on Wendell Scott will transform it into a 1960s dirt track

By Don Worthington - dworthington@heraldonline.com

CHESTER --

After Saturday's championship race the owners of the I-77 Speedway had plans to make improvements.

But at least for the next week in October, old is good, and older is better.

The speedway will be a stand-in for the dirt tracks of the 1960s where NASCAR legends traded paint, honing the skills that would be showcased at Darlington, Daytona and "The Rock," Rockingham.

NASCAR Media Group, Max Siegel and ESPN have combined efforts to produce a documentary on Wendell Scott, the only black to win a race in NASCAR's top division. The documentary is scheduled to air in February as part of Black History Month celebrations.

Scott started racing on Virginia dirt tracks in 1947, winning the Virginia state championship in 1959. In 196,1 he moved to NASCAR's top division, competing in more than 500 races before a pileup at Talladega in 1973 ended his career. He finished among the top 10 in 147 races and the top 5 in 20 races.

On Dec. 1, 1963, he won a 100-mile NASCAR feature race in Jacksonville, Fla., defeating Buck Baker by two laps. The trophy went to Baker and NASCAR officials later admitted there was a scoring error. History records that the reason the trophy went to Baker was racial, they didn't want to present the trophy to a black man.

That race and Scott's ride through the tracks of the "Jim Crow" South is the documentary's theme.

The I-77 Speedway's role in the documentary starts Sunday when film crews shoot behind-the-track scenes.

On Monday, the Ford and Chevy cars of the 1960s take to the track. About 25 extras are needed that day starting about 11 a.m.

The biggest day of shooting is Tuesday. There will be about 15 cars on the track and about 150 extras are needed about 5 p.m. Extras should wear clothing without logos. Men should wear button-down shirts, T-shirts and blue jeans, while women should wear printed dresses if possible. The time period the film crew is trying to capture in 1963.

On Wednesday, about 40 extras are needed from 3 to 7 p.m.

Filming concludes on Thursday. No extras are needed that day.

Don Worthington 803-329-4066

Read more: http://www.heraldonline.com/2010/10/01/2495694/chester-speedway-rolls-back-in.html#ixzz117gvoJ8W

Harraka gives NASCAR's diversity program a boost

USA Today

By John Kekis, AP Sports Writer
MONTREAL — NASCAR's Drive for Diversity reaches another milestone Sunday when Paulie Harraka makes his NASCAR Nationwide Series debut at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

"I'm excited. I've definitely been looking forward to this opportunity," said the 20-year-old Harraka, who is of Syrian descent. "It's a good opportunity to learn a lot."

The program, dubbed D4D, seeks to develop minority and female drivers and crew members. Drivers take part in an evaluation combine in the fall for the opportunity to compete with an established NASCAR team at the developmental levels the following race season.

Harraka, who will be a junior engineering student at Duke University this fall, is the first D4D driver to win a race in a NASCAR regional touring division. He won twice and was 2009 rookie of the year in the NASCAR Camping World West Series.

The first test at NASCAR's second level proved somewhat difficult for the driver from Wayne, N.J. He was 36th-fastest in Saturday's first practice in 17 laps around the tricky 14-turn layout in the No. 87 Chevrolet for owner Joe Nemechek. That was nearly 4 seconds behind pace-setters Jacques Villeneuve and defending race winner Carl Edwards, and Harraka followed that with a 37th in only four laps in the final session, more than 5 seconds behind leader Max Papis.

"It's not intimidating, but it's a little frustrating because we don't have the car where I need it," Harraka said "The guys are working really hard just to try and figure out what we need to do. We've made a lot of changes. Hopefully, they're the right ones."

The crew hit on something. Harraka was second-fastest of six cars in his qualifying group and will start 31st.

Harraka and the D4D program will be featured in a documentary series called "Changing Lanes" that's scheduled to debut next week on BET Network. The eight-episode season follows a group of hopefuls vying for a spot on Max Siegel's NASCAR Revolution Racing team.

The diversity program is in its sixth season.

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Pedal to the Metal: BET Speeds Up its Fall Lineup With the Groundbreaking New Series 'Changing Lanes,' Premiering Wednesday, September 1 at 8:00 P.M.*

Start your engines as BET Networks, in partnership with the NASCAR, gears up for the premiere of its new docu-reality competition series, CHANGING LANES, on Wednesday, September 1 at 8:00 p.m.*

"We are thrilled to kick off our fall lineup with this fresh, new docu-series and provide our viewers a window into the often overlooked world of aspiring minority and female NASCAR drivers," said Loretha Jones, President of Original Programming for BET Networks.

Narrated by award-winning rapper and actor Ludacris, CHANGING LANES chronicles the search for the next generation of minority and female racecar drivers in America's most-watched form of motorsports. The eight episode season follows a group of hopefuls vying for a spot on Max Siegel's NASCAR Revolution Racing team.

"This has been an historic year on-track from Revolution Racing and NASCAR's Drive for Diversity program. CHANGING LANES positions viewers to experience the road which led to this landmark success," noted Max Siegel, CEO of Revolution Racing and Creator/Executive Producer of CHANGING LANES. "We knew when creating this show that there was nothing like it on television because NASCAR is a unique and specialized world."

The contestants are part of NASCAR's leading driver development program, Drive for Diversity, which provides opportunities for minority and female drivers to compete in one of NASCAR's highest levels of professional racing.

"The partnership between BET and NASCAR is unique and exciting and breaks new ground for both properties," said Marcus Jadotte, Managing Director of Public Affairs for NASCAR, who oversees the sanctioning body's diversity programs. "We believe the stories of these aspiring young drivers captured in the show will resonate with the NASCAR audience and BET viewers alike."

"One of NASCAR Media Group's main objectives is to expose the wonderful sport of NASCAR to new and diverse audiences," added Jay Abraham, COO of NASCAR Media Group. "Working on a project like CHANGING LANES with a top-notch organization like BET has been a great experience and we're excited about bringing the enthusiasm and passion of racing to the Network's loyal viewers."

While there have been other reality series to delve into motorsports, CHANGING LANES is the first show to focus exclusively on minority and female drivers. The series kicks off at NASCAR's Drive for Diversity Program Testing and Evaluation Combine, where thirty drivers experience a rigorous application process. The ten drivers selected for the team compete through several elimination style contests with four finalists winning the opportunity to qualify for the Toyota All Star Showdown in Irwindale, CA.

CHANGING LANES is executive produced by Jay Abraham, Jim Jorden, Ken Mok and Max Siegel along with BET Networks, NASCAR, NASCAR Media Group, 10 x 10 Entertainment and The 909 Group.

For more information on CHANGING LANES, please visit www.bet.com. Also, follow CHANGING LANES on twitter, http://twitter.com/changinglanesTV and http://www.twitter.com/max_siegel

*All times ET/PT

About BET Networks

BET Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), is the nation's leading provider of quality entertainment, music, news and public affairs television programming for the African-American audience. The primary BET channel reaches more than 90 million households and can be seen in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, the United Kingdom and sub-Saharan Africa. BET is the dominant African-American consumer brand with a diverse group of business extensions: BET.com, a leading Internet destination for Black entertainment, music, culture, and news; CENTRIC, a 24-hour entertainment network targeting the 25- to 54-year-old African-American audience; BET Digital Networks - BET Gospel and BET Hip Hop, attractive alternatives for cutting-edge entertainment tastes; BET Home Entertainment, a collection of BET-branded offerings for the home environment including DVDs and video-on-demand; BET Event Productions, a full-scale event management and production company with festivals and live events spanning the globe; BET Mobile, which provides ringtones, games and video content for wireless devices; and BET International, which operates BET in the United Kingdom and oversees the extension of BET network programming for global distribution.

Read more: Breaking News - Pedal to the Metal: BET Speeds Up its Fall Lineup With the Groundbreaking New Series 'Changing Lanes,' Premiering Wednesday, September 1 at 8:00 P.M.* | TheFutonCritic.com http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news/2010/08/18/pedal-to-the-metal-bet-speeds-up-its-fall-lineup-with-the-groundbreaking-new-series-changing-lanes-premiering-wednesday-september-1-at-800-pm/20100818bet01/#ixzz0x7Oawf6y

6th Annual Barristers’ Banquet and Awards Program

Atty. Max L. Siegel

NASHVILLE, TN --The Napier-Looby Bar Foundation (“NLBF”) is hosting its 6th Annual Barristers’ Banquet and Awards Program, in celebration of Black History Month. The NLBF is a 501(c)(3) which serves as the philanthropic arm of the Napier-Looby Bar Association, an affiliate of the National Bar Association, the oldest and largest association of black attorneys with more than 10,000 members. The Nashville legal community and larger community convene each year at the Barristers’ Banquet and Awards Program, in celebration of black history month, for an evening of great food, music and conversation. The purpose of the banquet is to recognize outstanding achievements in the legal community and, more importantly, to raise money to award scholarships to deserving students and fund the charitable efforts of the organization throughout the year.

This year’s banquet promises to be a memorable and inspiring occasion. The theme for this year’s banquet is “A New Generation of Leadership.” The speaker, Max L. Siegel, is the epitome of a new generation leader.

Max L. Siegel is a man of many talents. A graduate of the University of Notre Dame Law School, Siegel initially planned for a conventional career in corporate law. His Jewish father, William Siegel and African American mother, Delores Frazier, were part of the demanding music industry, but he longed for something traditional.

After his law school graduation, Siegel launched a successful career as a corporate lawyer, presiding over legal affairs for Fortune 500 companies, as well as professional sports, entertainment individuals and organizations. Today, the life of this 44-year-old Indianapolis native is far from conventional.

Siegel is an accomplished music and sports executive, attorney, speaker and one of the most sought-after persons in the entertainment industry. He has appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show and has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The New York Times, Crain’s New York Business, ESPN and Billboard among others.

In January 2009, Siegel added to his list of accomplishments when he partnered with John Story and Tina DeVeaux to form The 909 Group, a marketing firm catering to companies and individuals in the sports and entertainment industries. The firm’s focus is sponsorship development and representation, event management, television production, public relations, online marketing and lifestyle marketing. The 909 Group’s first clients include the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing Inc.

(NASCAR), the sanctioning body for one of North America’s most popular sports. NASCAR executives retained the firm to administer the motorsport industrywide Drive for Diversity initiative aimed at developing and introducing minority and female drivers and crew members to competitive opportunities in NASCAR. It was a much-needed move on NASCAR’s part. Just last December, it settled a $225 million lawsuit filed by a former African-American official who said she was subjected to racial discrimination and sexual harassment when she worked for the organization as a technical inspector from January 2005 until she was terminated in October 2007.
Serving as CEO of the new firm, Siegel has taken a hands-on approach to the day-to-day operations of Drive for Diversity. Charged with taking the diversity initiative to the next level, his goals include increasing Drive for Diversity’s reach inside and outside the motorsports industry; creating mainstream marketing programs for the initiative; and gaining buy-in from the various NASCAR constituents, particularly top-tier racing teams like Hendrick Motorsports, home to Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr., as well as from other sponsors.
At first glance, successfully reaching his new objectives might seem like a nearly impossible task to many spectators. NASCAR celebrated its 60-year anniversary in 2008, but since its inception there has only been one African-American, Wendell Scott, to succeed at the elite level of racing. Scott won the NASCAR Grand National race (now part of the Sprint Cup series) in 1963.
For Siegel, however, the role presents a new opportunity. He explains, “The role allows me to have a broad impact on the sport and continue to grow my skill set to one day become involved in franchise ownership.”

First exposed to racing as a child in Indianapolis, Siegel’s professional interest in racing began years ago when he planned to establish the first African American-owned NASCAR team with NFL Hall of Famer Reggie White and former San Diego Padres player Tony Gwynn. That effort failed after the death of White in 2004, but Siegel remained interested in NASCAR. That interest led to his recent role as president of global operations for Dale Earnhardt Inc., a top motorsport franchise in NASCAR, which made him the highest-ranking African-American in NASCAR.

It was an unprecedented move for Teresa Earnhardt, CEO of Dale Earnhardt, to bring in someone from outside of the motorsport industry. At the time, Siegel held dual positions as senior vice president of Sony/BMG’s Zomba Label Group and president of Zomba Gospel.

Taking on seemingly impossible tasks is not foreign to Max Siegel. His talent and extensive experience brokering deals and managing various projects enabled him to successfully oversee marketing, promotion, sales, sponsorship and distribution for all Dale Earnhardt properties, including its top-rated motorsports teams, airlines, licensing and auto dealership, as well as the Dale Earnhardt Foundation.
The world renowned Fisk Jubilee Singers will also be performing.

For more information or to serve as a sponsor or purchase ticket(s) or a table, please contact Andrea P. Perry at aperry@bonelaw.com or purchase online at www.napierlooby.com.