Federal regulators are taking on Facebook, but bribery of auto writers goes unchecked

DEEP DIVE: On a all-expenses-paid trip to the nation's capital to cover The Washington Auto Show, I loved my lavish seafood dinner at Cedar Restaurant, including this appetizer of Pan Roasted Diver Scallops prepared without butter or cream -- or what the kitchen called "kosher."

WILD BOAR: The auto writer on my left, a freelancer for The New York Times, tucked into Texas Wild Boar Loin Chops in a bacon vinaigrette.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

HACKENSACK, N.J. -- Federal regulators made headlines recently when they hit Facebook with a "record-breaking and history making" $5 billion fine for violations of users' privacy.

The Federal Trade Commission's Bureau of Consumer Protection is keeping the world's largest social network under a microscope.

But regulators have only issued "guidance" to writers, bloggers and other so-called  influencers who promote the global automobile industry.

"We've been directing our guidance to influencers in all industries, not specific industries," FTC spokesman Mitchell J. Katz said, citing this example:

"I'm a blogger and a company wants me to attend the launch of its new product [a car, pickup or SUV, for example]. They will fly me to the launch and put me up in a hotel a couple of nights. They aren't paying me.... If I write a blog sharing my thoughts about the product, should I disclose anything?" 

"Yes," federal regulators say. "Knowing that you received free travel and accommodations could affect how much weight your readers give to your thoughts about the product, so you should disclose that you have a financial relationship with the company."

Guidelines often ignored

Those guidelines are often ignored by members of the International Motor Press Association, Washington Auto Press Association and similar groups, which represent writers for newspapers, magazines, blogs and other social media.

I recall meeting a writer for a men's lifestyle blog during the media dinner for The Washington Auto Show in February 2017.

He cut into a large ribeye steak, ate only a few pieces and wearily put down his fork and knife, noting he's gained 30 pounds going on free media trips.

He described a dizzying schedule of six upcoming junkets, including a flight to Hawaii, to see new and slightly revised car models.

That all-expenses paid trip to the nation's capital to cover the auto show, including fine dining, cocktail parties and even two $25 gift cards, was paid for by the auto dealers who sponsored the show.

RIDING THE RAILS: A special Amtrak rail car was arranged to take about 30 auto writers to the nation's capital from Newark, and return them the following night. Describing some of the writers as journalists is a stretch. 

Bribery of auto writers

One of the biggest reviewers of new car models is Redline Reviews, a YouTube a channel with more than 635,000 subscribers.

You won't find anything in the "About" section about the all-expenses-paid junkets to exotic locations the reviewers receive to prepare their glowing reports.

Similarly, Scotty Reiss, founder of A Girls Guide To Cars and president emeritus of IMPA, doesn't go into any details about the arrangements that allow her and other writers on the site to appraise the newest models or post travel articles.

This week, Reiss' review of the gas-guzzling 2020 Lincoln Aviator notes the monstrous SUV "sets new standards for American luxury" -- echoing the brand's TV commercials.

Blogs, newspapers

Citing agency guidance, the FTC spokesman noted reviewers for newspapers and TV stations have an audience that "probably understands that your job is to provide your personal opinion" on behalf of the paper or station.

"In that situation, it's clear you did not buy the product yourself -- whether it's a book or a car or a movie ticket," he said, adding:

"On a personal blog, a social networking page, or in similar media, the readers might not realize that the reviewer has a relationship with the company whose products are being recommended.

"Disclosure of that relationship helps readers decide how much weight to give the review."

READ: When writers get a free ride, can they be

 objective about the sad state of the auto industry?

READ: President Trump ignored

 invitation to auto show 

READ: IMPA ejects writer who slams
 free trips and cars as bribery

Auto lovers gather in Manhattan for lunch and laughter, but fortunately no hard sell

The main speaker on Tuesday at Sardi's Restaurant was John Nikas (not "Dikas," as I wrote earlier), author of "Rule Britannia: When British Sports Cars Saved a Nation." Nikas noted the miniskirt was named after Mini Cooper cars of the 1960s.

Members' sense of humor drew me

 to the Madison Avenue Sports Car

 Driving & Chowder Society

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

NEW YORK, N.Y. -- I've never owned a sports car, British or otherwise, but that didn't stop me from asking to join the Chowderheads.

They describe themselves as "a cheerful gathering of people with one main interest in common -- sports cars and automotive competition" -- and their full name is the Madison Avenue Sports Car Driving & Chowder Society (MASCDCS).

So, my lifelong love affair with auto racing -- from vintage sports cars to Formula 1 -- prompted me to ask a member to sponsor me, and I attended my first luncheon meeting at Sardi's in the heart of the Theater District on Tuesday.

I'm a VP

Upon paying the $50 membership fee, I immediately was elevated to vice president, as explained on the club's website, MASCDCS.ORG:

"The Society had its first meeting March 12th, 1957, with 93 members who, at that time became Members of the Board. Everyone else, since that time, became only Vice Presidents.

"The club is based on three principles:

1. We have no known purpose.
2. We have accomplished nothing.
3. We ain't mad at nobody.

The membership card notes club officials won't assume "liability for any claims, including bar bills, arising from the actions of the holder, ... put up bail for him, or ... even, when in decent company, recognize him on the street.

"Cash value of this card is 1/10 of a cent."

The annual $50 membership fee "permits you to hobnob with lively, witty, charming, famous and talented people -- like yourself" -- and on Tuesday, when I looked around the upstairs dining room at Sardi's, I saw older people like myself, the vast majority of them retired.

IMPA

Late last year, I was bounced from the International Motor Press Association, a group of auto writers and journalists, as well as public relations professionals, after I called all the free stuff writers accept from carmakers "bribes."

Read: Writer slams free cars, trips

 and meals as 'bribes'

I first joined IMPA in the late 1980s, when I was a business reporter for The Record of Hackensack, covering Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Volvo and other importers based in northern New Jersey and writing monthly road tests of new vehicles.

Unlike most newspapers, IMPA doesn't have an ethics policy, and writers rarely, if ever, acknowledge the free stuff they receive in their upbeat evaluations of new cars, trucks and SUVs.

So, that's how A Girls Guide To Cars can publish a rave review of a Volvo SUV, even though Consumer Reports' readers rated their Volvos unreliable.

Read: Volvo called least reliable of 29 auto brands

In 2015, seven years after I retired, I bought a Tesla Model S and started a third blog, Shocking Car News, which focused on Tesla and the transition to all-electric cars, and rejoined IMPA, which also holds monthly lunches in Manhattan.

No free lunch

Chowderheads pay $50 for their lunch at Sardi's, but Cadillac, Lincoln and Subaru and other companies provide a multi-course buffet lunch, as well as cocktails and wine, free of charge to IMPA members, as well as cater meals during that group's two-day driving event at the Monticello Motor Club. 

Along with fresh fruit and other desserts at IMPA lunches, auto executives extol the virtues of their products or explain why they are making more high-profit SUVs and pickup trucks, and in some cases eliminating sedans altogether, to take advantage of low gas prices.

That fits perfectly with the failure of IMPA and most of its members to acknowledge climate change or how gas- and diesel-powered vehicles aggravate global warming and cause the premature deaths of 58,000 people in the United States every year. 

The caricatures that make Sardi's famous line the walls of the upstairs dining room. 

The caricature of Lily Tomlin, who has us laughing on the Netflix series, "Grace and Frankie." She also may be the only character currently on TV who drives an all-electric car (Nissan Leaf).

My lunch included an entree of Orange Teriyaki Glazed Broiled Salmon with Caramelized Ginger, Sweet Potato Puree, Sauteed Spinach, Sesame Seeds and Sweet Lime Soy Sauce. The fish, cooked medium, was moist and delicious. On the other hand, the appetizer of Homemade Mozzarella and Tomato came with pale, tasteless tomatoes, not the "vine-ripened" slices listed on the menu. A small glass of Cabernet Sauvignon was $11.50, plus tax.

The bonus speaker on Tuesday was Casey Putsch, director and founder of Genius Garage in Ohio, where professional mentors guide college students as they build and then race vintage sports cars. They also are involved in both the aerospace and automotive-design industries.

Motor press association ejects writer after he slams free cars, meals, trips as 'bribes'

Members of the International Motor Press Association on the buffet line last November, when Subaru sponsored a free, multi-course lunch at the 3 West Club to mark the subsidiary's 50th anniversary in America. This afternoon, BMW paid for the free lunch to celebrate Mini entering its 60th year in 2019.

After cocktails, multi-course lunches usually include chicken, fish, pasta, steamed vegetables, salads and dessert. Oysters on the half shell also have been served occasionally. Lincoln will sponsor the annual holiday meeting in December.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

HACKENSACK, N.J. -- Word that I am no longer a member of the International Motor Press Association came in a telephone call from Bill Howard, an auto editor and president of the group.

My use of the word "bribe" in a headline over a recent post prompted the board of the country's oldest organization of automotive journalists and public relations professionals to vote to terminate my membership, Howard said on Monday.

READ: Automakers bribe writers with yet another

 play date at a private race track in the Catskills

I told Howard I felt the word was justified in view of all of the free stuff, travel and dining automakers shower on writers in the expectation they will praise the vehicle they are evaluating.

Only Consumer Reports actually buys all of the cars they test for the magazine, which doesn't accept advertising from manufacturers or anyone else.

'Bribe' is justified

What I didn't tell Howard is that the word "bribe" was suggested by another member who objected to no longer getting the royal treatment from auto companies, and hoped for a return to "equal opportunity bribery."

Here is an excerpt from my post on the October event at Monticello Motor Club, a private racetrack for the wealthy:

"In an email, IMPA President Bill Howard reminded members:

"'Sponsors make the event affordable: $100 for the ticket, not $400. Say thank you as you relieve them of their coffee, bottled water, doughnuts and candy in the paddock.'

 "Tesla doesn't advertise or provide cars for IMPA events [or reviews], and that may be one factor behind all of the negative stories about the premier maker of all-electric cars.

"And in recent years, traditional automakers like the ones that sponsor IMPA events have restricted loans of new vehicles to writers whose reports have such a large exposure that there is a good likelihood they will translate into sales.

"That prompted one long-time IMPA member to say he'd like to see a return to 'equal opportunity bribery.'" 

The definition of bribe fits: "Persuade (someone) to act in one's favor, typically illegally or dishonestly, by a gift of money or other inducement."


I can attend lunches

After our phone conversation, Howard said that although I am no longer a member, I can still attend automaker-sponsored lunches at the 3 West Club in Manhattan as a guest.

I first joined IMPA in the late 1980s, when I covered Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Jaguar, Volvo and other importers based in Bergen County, N.J., as a business reporter for The Record of Hackensack.

I also wrote monthly reviews of new car models. I retired from daily journalism in 2008.

I rejoined the group about three years ago after I purchased a Tesla Model S, and started a blog on EVs and hybrids called Shocking Car News. 

More than 550 journalists, writers, bloggers, photographers, videographers and public relations professionals belong to IMPA, according to a member database I was sent three years ago. 

In July, Scotty Reiss, president emeritus of IMPA and founder of A Girls Guide To Cars, asked members to submit ideas for an ethics policy, but no such policy has been proposed or implemented.

READ: Auto press group solicits ideas
 for an ethics policy

 READ: At spring fling for auto writers, 

you could hear the death rattle of the big gas engine

Automakers bribe writers with yet another play date at a private race track in Catskills

ONLY EV AT TEST DAYS: GM improved the Chevy Bolt EV for the 2019 model year, but sent a 2018 model to Test Days, the year's premier event for auto writers and publicists who belong to the International Motor Press Association. 

EDITOR'S NOTE: Scotty Reiss, president emeritus of the International Motor Press Association, reacted strongly to this post, claiming "your story was negative, biased and factually incorrect." Her complete email appears in the comments section at the end of the post.

By VICTOR E. SASSON

EDITOR

MONTICELLO, N.Y. -- If you doubt traditional carmakers like Nissan are trying to slow the transition to electric cars, consider the vehicles the Japanese company brought to the year's premier event for the automotive press.

Most prominent was a monstrous, gas-guzzling SUV from Nissan's luxury division, Infiniti, with a sticker price north of $91,000.

The owner of this ungainly Infiniti QX80 Limited would spend $8,000 more on gasoline over 5 years than someone who drives the average new vehicle, according to the government-mandated sticker.

Not to mention all of the extra tailpipe emissions, said to cause a total of 58,000 premature deaths in the United States every year.

QX80 Limited

The word "Limited" in the model number is undoubtedly a reference to the intelligence of anyone who would spend so much on such a wasteful vehicle, which appears to seat only 6.

If that vehicle wasn't bad enough -- representing as it does Nissan's royal F.U. to the environment -- the company's Northeast Region public relations chief didn't bother to provide the vastly improved second-generation Nissan Leaf or the longer-range version of the EV with active battery cooling.

"Just didn't bring it," shrugged Steven Oldham, when asked why he wasn't providing an all-electric Leaf for members of the International Motor Press Association to drive silently over beautiful two-lane country roads around the Monticello Motor Club, the private race track for the wealthy that was one of the sponsors.

TRICK OR TREAT: Total MSRP for the Infiniti QX80 Limited is $91,450, including an all-season package for $355 and destination charges of $1,295.

Sponsors cut back

In response to an email, Dan Bedore, director of Nissan Division Communications in Franklin, Tenn., said:

"We generally bring our newest in-launch products to these events as well as crowd pleasers like GT-R [a high-performance sports car with 565 horsepower to 600 horsepower that starts at $99,990].

"Placing vehicles [at events like IMPA's Test Days] includes a per-vehicle cost from the organizers and a shipping cost and we have budgets to operate within."

If Nissan withheld the Leaf for budgetary reasons, that was only one of the cutbacks evident this week to IMPA members like me who have attended Test Days stretching back decades, when they were held at two other tracks, Pocono Raceway and Lime Rock Park in Connecticut.

Fewer food choices

At lunch on Tuesday at the Monticello Motor Club, I asked a server if there were veggie burgers available like the ones I enjoyed last year.

"Not today," he said, so as a non-meat eater I had a choice of three salads -- tuna, edamame and couscous.

The main items on the buffet were hamburgers and chicken with pesto.

Pastas and salads -- but no fish -- were available to non-meat eaters at Tuesday night's banquet in the Resorts World Casino.

Test Days coordinator Paul Licata said in response to an email that cost doesn't allow "us to have every option for everyone."

Track time

This year, in another cost-cutting move, the Monticello Motor Club also declined to provide the race instructors who were available on the first morning of the two-day event.

An instructor would sit in the front passenger seat, and give IMPA members like me tips as they drove the 469-horsepower Mercedes-Benz AMG C 63 and other performance cars around the challenging 3.5-mile track.

On Wednesday, IMPA members had a wide choice of vehicles from among the 70-plus in the paddock to drive unaccompanied on the track, and pretend they are Lewis Hamilton, who is on the cusp of his 5th Formula 1 World Championship.  

Test Days sponsors included Fiat Chrysler, Ford, Mazda, Nissan, Toyota/Lexus, Acura, BMW, Cadillac, Mercedes-Benz and Subaru, among other automakers; American Ethanol, a tire company and a public relations firm.

No ethics policy

IMPA is the nation's oldest organization of automotive journalists and public relations professionals, but the group is only now starting to discuss adopting an ethics policy to govern members' relationship with automakers and dealers.

That has allowed carmakers to essentially bribe members with all-expenses-paid travel to see the unveiling of new models; free loans of new vehicles for up to a week to write road-test reports or just to provide them with a ride during their vacations; and free trips to the big auto shows in New York, Detroit, Washington, D.C., and elsewhere.

Revenue from dealer advertising, meanwhile, keeps many of the writers' publications, websites, blogs and YouTube channels afloat. 

Thank sponsors

In an email, IMPA President Bill Howard reminded members:

"Sponsors make the event affordable: $100 for the ticket, not $400. Say thank you as you relieve them of their coffee, bottled water, doughnuts and candy in the paddock."

Tesla doesn't advertise or provide cars for IMPA events, and that may be one factor behind all of the negative stories about the world's premier maker of all-electric cars.

And in recent years, traditional automakers like the ones that sponsor IMPA events have restricted loans of new vehicles to writers whose reports have such a large exposure that there is a good likelihood they will translate into sales.

That prompted one long-time IMPA member to say he'd like to see a return to "equal opportunity bribery." 

MSRP of $166,795: The 2019 BMW i8 Roadster is a plug-in hybrid with a total of 369 horsepower from a turbo 3-cylinder gasoline engine and an electric motor. The easiest way to get into the low-slung sports car is to plant your tush on the wide sill and swing your legs in, below.

EVs, hybrids

As the owner of a Tesla Model S, I tried to drive only EVs and hybrids on Tuesday.

I had a lot of fun in a 2018 Chevy Bolt EV, which is everything you'd want in a small car and more. 

By shifting the transmission into "L," you can operate the all-electric hatchback with one pedal: 

When you take your foot off of the accelerator, the Bolt EV will come to a stop at a light or stop sign, and lifting off partially slows the car for corners.

That same one-pedal operation is available in another all-electric car, the BMW i3, which wasn't brought to the event.

Instead, BMW provided a 2019 i8 Roadster, a low-slung gas-electric hybrid that is the open-top version of the 2018 BMW i8.

The sports car was fast and fun to drive, but noisy and impractical. Total suggested retail price is $166,795.

Toyota and Lexus brought no gas-electric hybrids to the event, and Jaguar's first all-electric car, the 2019 I-Pace, also was missing.

Read: When writers get a free ride,

 can they be objective?

Read: Feds may question cozy relationship among writers, automakers and dealers

ONE OF FORD'S LAST SEDANS: The 2018 Fusion Platinum Energi is a 5-passenger gas-electric hybrid, one of only 3 sedans the company still sells.

DESTINATION CHARGER: I was able to plug in my Model S at a Tesla Destination Charger in front of the clubhouse at the Monticello Motor Club in Monticello, N.Y.

Auto press group solicits ideas for ethics policy, but at least one member is skeptical

This week, President Emeritus Scotty Reiss asked members of the International Motor Press Association to submit ideas for the group's first ethics policy.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

NEW YORK, N.Y. -- Members of the International Motor Press Association and Washington Automotive Press Association met this week for a free technical conference to improve their content and hone their social-media skills.

Five automakers sponsored the event, held at Volvo Cars Manhattan, including a light breakfast and lunch, and an evening cocktail party on the roof of a hotel called Ink 48.

The party, featuring $29 glasses of French champagne and light snacks, was paid for by Drive Shop, which manages new press and marketing vehicles many members can borrow free for "test drives."

In fact, many IMPA members have such a cozy relationship with auto companies and dealers I was surprised to hear President Emeritus Scotty Reiss solicit ideas for the press group's first ethics policy. 

I didn't get a chance to ask her at the conference on Tuesday why she thought the group needed an ethics policy, and she hasn't responded to my emails.

Freebies galore

I'm not sure IMPA is ready for an ethics policy.

"Free" is the operative word at IMPA, which calls itself the country's "oldest organization of automotive journalists and public relations professionals."

Members come from all media -- print, broadcast and Internet -- and include public relations representatives of all the world's automotive manufacturers and suppliers.

In addition to free cars and SUVs to borrow for a weekend or a week, some members have all their expenses paid when they travel to auto shows to report on new models or attend a "reveal" of a new car or SUV.

Few IMPA members disclose these freebies -- including airfare, hotel rooms and fine dining -- and many of their reports are indistinguishable from the advertising and promotion paid for by the automakers and dealers themselves.

Convivial lunches

I joined IMPA in the 1980s, when I wrote a monthly road-test column on new cars for The Record, then in Hackensack, N.J.

After I left the paper in 2008, I let my membership lapse, but rejoined when I began writing a blog, Shocking Car News, which focused on all-electric and hybrid cars, including my 2015 Tesla Model S.

Later, I folded that blog into The Sasson Report, which covers EVs, food, politics, news of Hackensack, where I live, and other topics.

I enjoy the free monthly IMPA lunches in Manhattan, convivial gatherings of writers, public relations people and auto company executives.

But given IMPA's emphasis on members monetizing their content, and the group's distaste for criticizing the industry and dealers, I can't imagine an ethics policy with any teeth.

Climate change 

For example, I don't see IMPA acknowledging how the auto industry damaged the environment in the past century or how auto emissions cause tens of thousands of premature deaths every year.

Few auto writers in the group focus exclusively on all-electric cars and gas-electric hybrids or ever discuss the environmental advantages of owning such a vehicle.

Good luck, Scotty. I sent you my ideas for an ethics policy. But I'm not holding my breath.

See: World automakers try to improve

 mileage of deadly gas engines

See: Writers just want to have fun

 at annual track event

See: Years late, Consumer Reports

 puts EV on Top 10 list

See: Maserati says 'vaffanculo'

 to climate regulators 

At Tuesday's tech conference, IMPA members heard from representatives of Facebook, Volvo and Drive Shop on how they can increase their presence on social media.

Katz's Deli delivered a light lunch, but servers didn't know what was in some of the sandwiches, which is how I ended up eating a chicken-salad sandwich, below, when I thought I was getting tuna fish. (I don't eat poultry or meat).

During the cocktail party atop Ink 48, I asked for a glass of French champagne, which was listed on the bar menu for $29. Delicious.

Choking on internal-combustion engines, but yearning for simplicity, quiet of EVs

A NEW LEAF: Inside the second-generation, all-electric Nissan Leaf. Switching on "e-Pedal" brings the four-door hatchback to a stop at red lights and in traffic when the driver lifts off of the accelerator pedal.

IT'S COMPLICATED: The pricy, all-electric BMW i3s also has a busy interior that emphasizes style over function. Can you find the shift lever?

TESLA MODEL 3: The interior of Tesla's affordable Model 3 is even simpler and less cluttered than the bigger Model S and Model X, with most controls accessible from a 15-inch touch screen.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

BEAR MOUNTAIN, N.Y. -- The annual spring driving event staged by the country's oldest organization of auto writers and publicists still is dominated by noisy, polluting internal-combustion engines.

As the owner of an all-electric Tesla Model S, I'm struck by the contradiction of inviting lead-footed members of the International Motor Press Association to foul the air of the beautiful, 5,025-acre Bear Mountain State Park.

The event is dubbed "Spring Brake" -- despite all the high-speed driving on public roads, and a cat-and-mouse game with park police.

Among dozens of luxury and performance vehicles available last Thursday, I found three zero-emission EVs -- a second-generation Nissan Leaf SL, Chevrolet Bolt and BMW i3s -- and a handful of plug-in and other gas-electric hybrids.

I got a chance to drive the Leaf and i3s over winding park roads overlooking the Hudson River, and on the highway, and both delivered strong acceleration and the quiet, calming experience battery electric cars are known for.

I also drove luxury performance cars from Lexus, Mercedes-Benz and Cadillac, but no boring Volvos, and came away still believing they are an incredible waste of money.

With every purchase, owners are buying into further destruction of the environment, premature deaths from tailpipe emissions, and noise pollution in our already noisy world.

Click on the following link: 

Driving the new Nissan Leaf 

FOUR-DOOR HATCHBACK: The redesigned Nissan Leaf is a vast improvement over the original, but this all-electric vehicle could be mistaken for any manufacturers' four-door hatchback with a gasoline engine.

ZERO EMISSION OR EMISSIONS? Should this badge say "Zero Emissions"? TV ads for the new Leaf don't even mention the all-electric powertrain.

QUIRKY: The interior and exterior design of the BMW i3s, a sportier version of the all-electric i3 with a range of 114 miles on a full charge, certainly stands out, but with models starting at $44,450, sales of the i3 have lagged.

DASHBOARD FOR TREE HUGGERS: A wood dashboard is one of the interior options on the i3.

HYUNDAI THREE WAYS: The Hyundai Ioniq is available as a gas-electric hybrid, a plug-in hybrid, below; and with an all-electric powertrain and a range of 124 miles (sold only in California).

PLUG IN, FILL UP: On the way home to northern New Jersey, me and my son stopped at Cosimo's Ristorante & Bar on Route 300 in Newburgh, N.Y.; plugged in my Model S at a free Tesla Supercharger; and stuffed ourselves with a couple of oversized slices of wood-fired pizza and a salad, both made with plenty of great cheese.

SHRIMP SCAMPI: A slice of the Shrimp Scampi Pizza with large shrimp, baby arugula, sun-dried tomatoes, roasted garlic and three cheeses -- provolone, mozzarella and shaved parmigiano ($15 for the pie).

HAIL CAESAR: We also split a large Caesar Salad covered with shaved Parmesan ($10).