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Brad Niemcek
Brad Niemcek is a Milwaukee, Wis., native and -- it must be admitted -- an auto racing fan since the age of 13. First, it was the dirt modifieds at Hales Corners Speedway. Then, USAC champ cars at what is now called The Milwaukee Mile and sports cars at Road America.
Niemcek (on left in photo, with Oscar Koveleski) earned a journalism degree at Marquette University and cut his teeth at the Milwaukee Sentinel and WTMJ-TV in his home town.
After a brief stint into politics, Niemcek joined the public relations firm of Carl Byoir & Associates, first in Chicago and then in New York. When the SCCA's Can-Am road racing series expanded in 1969, Niemcek was recruited to the agency's Johnson Wax account to manage Johnson's nearly year-round effort to promote its Can-Am sponsorship. Niemcek worked for three years with Johnson's spokesman, Stirling Moss, to help make the Can-Am the best-publicized racing series of the era.
On alternate weekends, he raced with little distinction as an SCCA amateur.
When the J/Wax sponsorship effort ended, Niemcek was forced to choose between another account assignment at Carl Byoir or strike out on his own and remain in racing. He chose the later, and over the next ten years he:
- Did racing public relations work for UOP, Steed Industries, Porsche-Audi USA, Ford Special Vehicle Operations and the Detroit Grand Prix.
- Produced SponsorWorld, a monthly newsletter on the business of racing. See this sample issue, the first, from August, 1979.
- Conducted the first comparative studies of auto racing enthusiasts, analyzing the trackside audiences at Can-Am, Trans-Am, IMSA GT, NHRA drag racing and NASCAR Cup events.
- Developed sponsor sales campaigns for racing teams, including UOP Shadow, and individual drivers, including Danny Sullivan, in road racing, Champ Car and NASCAR.
- Joined with Oscar Koveleski and Tony Adamowicz in founding the Polish Racing Drivers of America.
Niemcek's gradual drift away from racing began in 1982 when he and Dallas-based road racer, Rob McFarlin, founded Newslink, Inc., a firm designed to harness satellite television technology for use by the public relations industry. One of the firm's first projects was to produce TV news coverage of Budweiser Trans-Am races for same day satellite transmission to stations around the country.
Newslink grew, but its involvement in racing did not. In 1985, with offices in New York and Washington, D.C., Newslink expanded into the TV technical services business and CNN became its largest client.
Since selling his interest in Newslink in 1988, Niemcek has:
- Founded TV People, Inc., another TV technical services firm, whose largest client was The New York Yankees.
- Co-founded Heartland Communications and Management, Inc., now known as
AIMSWorldWide, Inc. (OTC BB:AMWW.OB)
- Completed work on his Master's degree in telecommunications at George Mason University.
- Began teaching public relations and media writing courses, part time, at Bradley University.
Niemcek and his wife, Sharon Murphy, live in southwestern Wisconsin.
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