GM showers talk-radio hosts with gifts

I'm not surprised - they do worse to our congressmen and it's perfectly legal. But, I'm just as disgusted.

Just when one guesses that the standards and practices of national talk radio could go no lower, General Motors comes along to show the way to new lows.

Automotive News (August 6, 2007), the leading trade journal for the industry, reports that GM is wooing the radio stars. Its article led with the headline: “Puff Piece. Rush Limbaugh is one of the radio personalities GM is working with to talk up its vehicles.”

Reporter Mary Connelly writes that “GM says it doesn’t pay the stars directly for their endorsements, although it advertises on their shows. It gives them new GM cars and trucks to drive for two weeks each month. The company also invites the celebrities to Detroit for private meetings with top executives and VIP tours of GM facilities. The attention is paying off.”

Sam Mancuso, GM’s director of brand marketing alliances, told Ms. Connelly that his company made contact with 17 national radio hosts along with numerous local talk show personalities in cities such as Dallas and Los Angeles.

Mr. Mancuso is pleased with the results. The talkers are talking up GM vehicles on their programs—no doubt encouraged by GM’s ample advertising budget on those same stations.

He emphasized that GM does not give these radio celebrities any scripts. Which allows for the kind of impromptu creativity that he said reflects a “real emotional connection” with an audience that “knows they are being genuine.”

Yeah - right from the bottom of their greedy little hearts.

This is just what you need to know about a company’s engineered vehicles—words which flow from an emotional connection garnished with free use of vehicles and other freebies!

Take Rush Limbaugh’s effusions to his dittoheads: “GM has a ton of momentum,” he exhaled, “GM cars and trucks have never been better.” This assertion doesn’t tell his followers much, however, inasmuch as GM’s cars have never been hard acts to follow.

But the Rush doesn’t stop there. He waxes further: “They [GM] are working hard and they are thinking smart. Believe in General Motors, folks.”

Before you can aspire to do that, you have to believe in Limbaugh and all the other talkers – takers of GM’s largess. Atom Smasher, a modestly named Dallas disc jockey, was positively oozing on the air: “I am driving around in this Cadillac, and I am not going to want to give it back – the Cadillac SRX…. To all the guys at GM: Good job.”[snip]

Appalling.

Ralph Nader (the author) thinks the FCC should investigate. I agree.

But, don't wait for the feds before taking action yourself.

Spread the word and turn the dial.

These craven bootlickers don't deserve your attention.