John Dahl, an ESPN veteran who helped produce the much-lauded Michael Jordan documentary “The Last Dance,” is getting into gear at NASCAR, where he will lead new efforts to connect to fans with content.
Dahl has been named senior vice president of content, and will start in his new role on May 1. Dahl is tasked with overseeing work at NASCAR Studios and NASCAR Digital Media, including programing, production and operations. He will supervise everything from documentaries and branded content to social media, as well as content created for the auto-racing body’s web operations and mobile app.
Dahl will report to Tim Clark, senior vice president and chief digital officer of NASCAR, and will split his time between New York City and NASCAR’s productions facility in Concord, N.C.
“NASCAR has an incredible opportunity to continue fueling its positive momentum with powerful storytelling that brings fans closer to everything that makes this sport so compelling, and there’s no one more proven or better equipped to deliver on that potential than John Dahl,” said Clark, in a statement. “We’re thrilled to welcome John aboard and can’t wait for fans to experience everything he and his extremely talented NASCAR teammates have to offer.”
The racing league recently signed with CAA for representation in a bid to develop content and alliances to create and distribute it.
Dahl had been a longtime producer and content executive at ESPN, which laid off several senior staffers last year under a cost-cutting plan mandated by corporate parent Disney. Dahl last held the role of vice president and executive producer for special projects, films and original content. During his time at ESPN, Dahl led film and documentary projects that included the NBA’s 75th anniversary, the 150th anniversary of College Football, the SEC Storied franchise, ESPN’s Fifty/50 initiative commemorating the 50th anniversary of Title IX, and others. He was one of the original executive producers on ESPN’s renowned “30 for 30” documentary series.
“Over the course of my career, I’ve been fortunate to experience firsthand NASCAR’s rich reservoir of characters and storylines, from the people behind the wheel all the way to the tracks and fans themselves,” said Dahl, in a statement. “I’m excited to help build on the foundation of extraordinary content being created in and around NASCAR to give fans more reasons to engage, whether that comes in a TikTok video, a documentary project or anything in between.”
Early in his career, Dahl served as a reporter at the Coca-Cola 600 for WBT Radio in Charlotte before going on to produce several documentary projects around the sport.