Auto Journalists.....Good and Bad?
#46
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
Originally Posted by bitkahuna
you can watch motorweek instead, but i now find their reviews to be AWFUL, seemingly comparing EVERYTHING to some 'practical' benchmark they have, although they do test exotics once in a while, but you see them driving them at 50mph down a road, or still sensibly on a track, and john davis just sounds like a school teacher.
#47
Lexus Fanatic
iTrader: (20)
The show's biggest problem (and there doesn't seem to be much they can do about it), is that MPT (Maryland Public Television) only gives them 30 minutes for the show, and in that 30 minutes, they have to fit in in a couple of reviews, Latest Auto-News, Announcements, Pat Goss's service-tips, and sometimes other features as well. That doesn't leave a heck of a lot of time to concentrate on each vehicle.
i'm sure the ratings are tiny. thank god for a dvr - i can watch the show in 5 minutes.
#48
I'm sorry that the real literary lions of automotive journalism are gone. Generations of automotive enthusiasts to come will miss those like Purdy, D.E. Davis, Setright, McCluggage, even Brock Yates. Just reading their columns you got the distinct whiff of Castrol and rubber, your hair ruffled by the breeze over the windshield as your ears were assaulted by the particular yowl of a twin-cam on the overrun. A writer who can put YOU in the driver's seat and let you experience the sensations of a sporting drive through the damp chill of a summer morning on country lanes dappled with light and shade - that's a journalist in my book. The rest are copywriters.
There are car-enthusiast readers, which include many of those who are posting on this thread, who are well-informed and may be entertained by the works of some of the quality writers mentioned. But, the needs of gear heads and the views of great magazine writers aren’t always in sync with those of the general public.
As mentioned by a previous poster, the average reader may only want to be informed about solid point-A-to-B vehicles, styling, comfort, fuel economy, etc. So maybe simple bullet-point information – truthful writing in a condensed brochure-ish format is the real-world ticket.
The writer who best combined "real" with entertainment was Denise McCluggage. Her genuine personality and old-school journalism newspaper background helped her relate to the general reader. One thing I used to be amused by was her love for the Suzuki Samurai, which she owned.
#49
Pole Position
I'm a big fan of Chris Harris and also like Dan Neill's work. Both are excellent writers and I really like their reviews and commentary. As a general rule I agree that the UK mags set the standard. The writing is generally excellent and the mags seem to take more care over the quality of their output. I still get all the U.S. mags too though and generally like them too.
#50
I've also talked with him at an auto show, and he is nice to visit with . While the need-for-speed guys are fun, I appreciate his Average Joe approach.
Last edited by PROV8; 06-04-15 at 10:03 AM.
#51
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
Originally Posted by bitkahuna
no, the problem with the show is they waste so much time with fluff like talking about trash trucks in some city now running on natural gas
and pat goss' 'tips' which are WORTHLESS to 99.999% of the viewers who will never have the gizmos to do what he suggests, or want to. get rid of those two and you've added 10 minutes back. then they usually have a segment about something weird like a guy with a home made go-kart or some obscure ancient motorcycle or vehicle...
#52
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
Yeah, John's not exactly Grandpa behind the wheel, but he's a long way from guys like Brock Yates and their idiotic Cannonball runs.
#53
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
Originally Posted by swajames
As a general rule I agree that the UK mags set the standard. The writing is generally excellent and the mags seem to take more care over the quality of their output. I still get all the U.S. mags too though and generally like them too.
#54
Pole Position
Yes Sir. I get Top Gear, Evo and Car every month. All very good mags. Totally agree on the Top Gear mag, it does have proper car reviews as you say and some great articles. I'd highly recommend Evo and Car too, but note that Car is much more geared towards the mainstream car buyer/enthusiast. Evo is a bit more hardcore and performance-oriented.
#55
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
Originally Posted by PROV8
The writer who best combined "real" with entertainment was Denise McCluggage. Her genuine personality and old-school journalism newspaper background helped her relate to the general reader. One thing I used to be amused by was her love for the Suzuki Samurai, which she owned.[/SIZE][/FONT]
Here's an American-spec Rocky. Note the bulged-out, wider fenders...they are there to accommodate the wider track, compared to the home-market Asian version.
#56
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
Originally Posted by Lil4X
I'm sorry that the real literary lions of automotive journalism are gone. Generations of automotive enthusiasts to come will miss those like Purdy, D.E. Davis, Setright, McCluggage, even Brock Yates.
Last edited by mmarshall; 06-04-15 at 12:47 PM.
#57
Yep, that vehicle is no problem with the right person behind the wheel. It definitely had its advantages on a tight off-road course.
#58
Lexus Champion
The thing with John Davis and MW is that he's fairly consistent. I've watched that program for over 30 years. As the show likes to brag, they're television's original motoring show.
C&D tried to compete with them and did a weird over the top show with a gravelly voiced host sporting a "stache" and driving the test vehicles like he was on a race track. It went off the air pretty quickly. Thank god.
And then there's Jeremy Clarkson. I tried to watch the show and did so for a couple of seasons. But do I want the racist buffoonish rantings of the Clarkson's of this world? Only if I'm in the mood to hear about how much better the Briddish must be at everything.
In fact insulting the U.S., Argentina and several other countries was the main sport of its hosts. No thanks. It may be entertaining but as others have pointed out, it's narrowly focused.
It just shows you that television is a very shallow and stupid medium when it wants to be. What next? Kim Kardashian reviews one of her Bentleys or BMW's to see if it matches her shoes?
C&D tried to compete with them and did a weird over the top show with a gravelly voiced host sporting a "stache" and driving the test vehicles like he was on a race track. It went off the air pretty quickly. Thank god.
And then there's Jeremy Clarkson. I tried to watch the show and did so for a couple of seasons. But do I want the racist buffoonish rantings of the Clarkson's of this world? Only if I'm in the mood to hear about how much better the Briddish must be at everything.
In fact insulting the U.S., Argentina and several other countries was the main sport of its hosts. No thanks. It may be entertaining but as others have pointed out, it's narrowly focused.
It just shows you that television is a very shallow and stupid medium when it wants to be. What next? Kim Kardashian reviews one of her Bentleys or BMW's to see if it matches her shoes?
Last edited by MattyG; 06-04-15 at 03:14 PM.
#59
Lexus Fanatic
Thread Starter
The thing with John Davis and MW is that he's fairly consistent. I've watched that program for over 30 years. As the show likes to brag, they're television's original motoring show.
C&D tried to compete with them and did a weird over the top show with a gravelly voiced host sporting a "stache" and driving the test vehicles like he was on a race track. It went off the air pretty quickly. Thank god.
And then there's Jeremy Clarkson. I tried to watch the show and did so for a couple of seasons. But do I want the racist buffoonish rantings of the Clarkson's of this world? Only if I'm in the mood to hear about how much better the Briddish must be at everything.
C&D tried to compete with them and did a weird over the top show with a gravelly voiced host sporting a "stache" and driving the test vehicles like he was on a race track. It went off the air pretty quickly. Thank god.
And then there's Jeremy Clarkson. I tried to watch the show and did so for a couple of seasons. But do I want the racist buffoonish rantings of the Clarkson's of this world? Only if I'm in the mood to hear about how much better the Briddish must be at everything.
In fact insulting the U.S., Argentina and several other countries was the main sport of its hosts. No thanks. It may be entertaining but as others have pointed out, it's narrowly focused.
What next? Kim Kardashian reviews one of her Bentleys or BMW's to see if it matches her shoes?
#60
Lexus Champion
You will never hear the kind of rantings from John Davis that Clarkson routinely does (or, rather, did). That kind of stuff is just not in his nature.
One thing, though, that TOP GEAR does give us Americans credit for is the development of large-engined muscle-cars......and especially the Corvette.
.............just like Paris Hilton showing off the yellow LF-A her boyfriend gave her?
One thing, though, that TOP GEAR does give us Americans credit for is the development of large-engined muscle-cars......and especially the Corvette.
.............just like Paris Hilton showing off the yellow LF-A her boyfriend gave her?
I do agree that Top Gear liked the Corvette but even there, they did the typical Brit/Canadian back handed complement thing - "we really don't want to like it but we'll pretend to".
They pushed on the back fiberglass panel and told you how cheap the Vette was without noticing that it cost about a third less than their Astons, Jags or Land Rovers. How Clarkson ended up with a Ford GT40 is beyond me. Maybe he had a secret love of some American cars.
But ultimately he put himself out of business with his ranting diva personality. I won't miss him, that's for sure. Hammond wasn't that much better. Loving American muscle cars from a Hemi Chrysler to a modern Mustang but calling them crude just to remind the audience they weren't British and sophisticated, ie. prone to ridiculously absurd quality control and reliability.
I guess I like the more balanced approach of MW/CR and they're not necessarily shy about testing high end cars either. It just doesn't include the Hollywood melodrama and theatrics.