#Journalismism
The Current Version of Autoblog Goes Dark Later This Week
Autoblog, one of the foundational and most influential car blogs on the Web, goes dark later this week. Sort of.
QOTD: Influenced by the Automotive Press?
After last week's story on how Consumer Reports slapped the "avoid" label on the popular Ford F-150, I was going to ask you how much CR shapes your purchase decisions. The magazine is popular, and I know a lot of people, both car enthusiasts and not, who trust it.
Yet sometimes CR says not to buy a car and it sells well. Or vice versa.
After some reflection, I figured opening this QOTD to the larger automotive press would generate a more robust discussion.
Opinion: NYT Pundits Finally See Tesla As It Is
As I wrote a week or two ago, the outside world is finally catching on to what automotive journalists, industry analysts, and car enthusiasts have long known about Tesla. This week, two columns in The New York Times showed that well-known pundits like Farhad Manjoo and Paul Krugman are catching on/catching up.
Remember That Boris Johnson Was Once a Car Reviewer
One of the bigger pieces of geopolitical news this week involves Boris Johnson. The U.K. prime minister is stepping down.
Opinion: The New York Times Needs to Get Autonomous Driving Terminology Right
The New York Times often gets unfairly criticized, usually by readers who have their own political biases (right and left), but sometimes the criticism lobbed its way is not only very fair, but accurate.
And when it comes to autonomous driving, the vaunted Times has stepped in it, big time.
Opinion: Tesla and Elon Musk Need to Hold Themselves Accountable
Tesla and its boss, Elon Musk, stepped in it again this week.
As we reported the other day, Tesla faced a recall of 54,000 vehicles because the company had programmed its Full-Self Driving software to allow rolling stops.
When the Associated Press’s Tom Krisher wrote a pretty straightforward news story describing the recall, Elon Musk called him a “lobbyist” while replying to a tweet.
Chip Shortage Claims an Unusual Victim: DriveTribe
DriveTribe, a social-media site that was focused on the automotive industry and car enthusiasm, has shut down.
The cause: The semiconductor chip shortage.
Automotive News To End Article Comments Dec. 1
In a sign of the times, Automotive News will be killing comments on its articles, starting tomorrow.
Don’t worry, we have no plans to follow suit.
CarBuzz Forgets to Mention Why Tanner Foust Would Praise Volkswagen
If Tanner Foust was given the keys to a Volkswagen GTI or Golf R, and told to track it at Willow Springs, all while being filmed by Volkswagen, what do you think the VW-sponsored professional driver would say about it?
Yeah, exactly. Seems CarBuzz either didn’t know or flat-out forgot to mention that Foust is sponsored by VW when it wrote a quick piece on how Foust was touting the virtues of the two cars. A piece that appears to be based on a Volkswagen media release.
That Tesla Model S Plaid 0-60 Time is Bunk
Continuing a theme from earlier today, we need to remind you to read beyond the headline.
Especially when someone like Tesla boss Elon Musk makes a claim that seems too good to be true.
Stop the Porsche Panic: The Stop-Sale of Manual GT3s in California is No Big Deal
It’s a headline that sounds ready-made for outrage-clicks from both the #savethemanuals crowd and those who dislike too much regulation of autos: “Porsche 911 GT3 Manual Can’t be Sold in California.”
Some outlets used some variation of that wording when reporting the story. A story that sounds like a case of overbearing regulators killing the fun by meddling in the free market. Add in the California factor — remember, it’s the only state that can set its own emissions standards — and feel the blood boil.
Truth is, the story is a bit more mundane than all that.
Housekeeping: There Are Gonna Be Some Changes Around Here
Hi there. Your friendly Managing Editor here. I am checking in with you out there in B and B land to give you a quick update on what’s going on over here on this side of the computer/phone/tablet screen, over here in TTAC country.
There's Even More to the Voltswagen/Volkswagen Story [UPDATED]
While giving my opinion last week on the Volkswagen April Fool’s Day scandal, I wrote that I hope it would be the last time I posted about it.
Cue Ron White voice: “I was wrong.”
Beware the Secret Guest Post
Every day my inbox fills with scammy, scummy come-ons from folks who are trying to sell TTAC on allowing them to guest post.
They usually work like this – the “person” (emails could be coming from someone operating under a pseudonym, or even a bot) behind the email is either offering to pay us to run a guest post, written by them, that would create a bunch of links back to whatever product they’re hawking.
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