The juggernaut effect: community resistance and the politics of urban motor-racing events

Using an investigative research method, this paper explores the neo-liberal paradigm of governance used to stage high-octane urban motor racing events. The discussion details the tactics used by Supercars Australia to anticipate and manage resistance from the impacted community through a process we term the ‘juggernaut effect’. This study of the Newcastle 500 Supercar race in Newcastle, NSW found information tightly controlled by a Public/Private Partnership, which swept aside due democratic process to privilege the interests of a private corporation over community. The ‘juggernaut effect’ shows how power was manifested through boosterism, brinkmanship and secrecy. This paper investigates ‘why’ and ‘how’ due process is so frequently absent in event contexts. In so doing, it questions broader assumptions about the touted benefits of these events and challenges the ethics of entrepreneurial governance where government agencies may employ a marketing mandate to corrupt ethical considerations and the public’s expectations of due process.