Saddest part of the toyota thing

They're on the news 24-7 and.....

We got men and women over in Afghanistan and Iraq dieing for us with little to no coverage...

Freaking hit me last night. What a shame.

Makes you wonder what will happen when those of us with a correct moral compass decide to go off grid, doesn't it?

There was a senator bitching everyone out for that last night. Patrick Kennedy i think.

And rightly so. The media makes me berkeleying sick.

Can they just say Toyota eats babies and move on?

John Brown wrote: Makes you wonder what will happen when those of us with a correct moral compass decide to go off grid, doesn't it?

Hear Hear!

When A- they steal the 401ks from us, B- they outlaw private education or C- they restrict some unknown moral issue we're gone - seriously - I have the wife convinced.

I don't really like any modern Toyotas, never considered any of them to really live up to their reputation, but this is sad - and it goes to show you how quickly cheapo schoolhouse fame can turn into a good old fashioned lynching. I shudder to think of what this would look like if it happened to GM or Chrysler, because this thing could have happened to ANYONE.

And to the OPs point, yes, there are far more terribly tragic ACTUAL NEWS ITEMS being passed over for the 62nd interview with the guy who basically made the whole thing up.

ignorant wrote: They're on the news 24-7 and..... We got men and women over in Afghanistan and Iraq dieing for us with little to no coverage... Freaking hit me last night. What a shame.

And there was a massive earthquake in Chilie that we've not heard much recent news about, either.

The Toyota story has much more entertainment value than the war. And we know, the "news" is all about shock them and keep them watching to keep the viewership up which keeps the advertising dollars up which makes more money for the news machine.

Haven't you heard? Once The O was elected, all the wars stopped.

Nobody told the journalists about that one.

ignorant wrote: They're on the news 24-7 and..... We got men and women over in Afghanistan and Iraq dieing for us with little to no coverage... Freaking hit me last night. What a shame.

At least it hit you. Most don't get it.

I gave up on them 25 years ago, and they've only gotten worse since. I can't believe that people still take the news media seriously.

I think there is something wrong with my compass... it seems to only point at race tracks, seedy bars and women half my age.

Wait, what were we talking about?

Unfortunately, the reason that it's getting more coverage is b/c it hits closer to home for most folks then the war does.

ignorant wrote: They're on the news 24-7 and..... We got men and women over in Afghanistan and Iraq dieing for us with little to no coverage... Freaking hit me last night. What a shame.

No. That is the saddest part about the media coverage, the saddest part about the whole situation is that people have died in these cars.

Joey

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote: I think there is something wrong with my compass... it seems to only point at race tracks, seedy bars and women half my age.

Service tech, he say "Calibration seems to be fine"

I'd say the endless coverage given to the private lives of celebrities is a much bigger indication of a problem than the Toyota coverage. Millions of people in this country drive Toyotas, I'm sure they want to know what's going on.

But in either case, modern media is not about what someone thinks is the more important story, it's about ratings. So from that perspective, I don't blame the media so much as the general public. The media is just giving people what they want.

The media doesn't report news, it creates news.

Dr. Hess wrote: Haven't you heard? Once The O was elected, all the wars stopped.

Give me a break, what was the point of that and what does it have to do with anything? Can't we talk about anything on here with out some lame ass jab at the administration? That's why I just gave up on Corner-carvers

Adrian_Thompson wrote: The media doesn't report news, it creates news.

Dr. Hess wrote: Haven't you heard? Once The O was elected, all the wars stopped.

Give me a break, what was the point of that and what does it have to do with anything? Can't we talk about anything on here with out some lame ass jab at the administration? That's why I just gave up on Corner-carvers

Well, you might consider media war coverage from 2003-2008 to 2008-2010 and that there has been a tangible change in quantity and tone.

Is it just a coincidence that it corresponds with some personnel changes in key government positions?

I don't see a change. Make that I don't hear a change as I get 99% of my news from NPR. For every 'Bush is screwing up the war' story I heard I now hear one criticizing the Obama for the same, or criticism from the left for him not being out. There's lot's of coverage about the elections, the surge, when to pull troops back, promises made and broken etc. I don't see it.

the reason that the Toyota stuff is getting so much coverage in the media is because the media spent the last 10 years drinking the Toyota flavored Kool Aid and saying how much more awesome and safe they are than the American brands- and how they are saving the planet. now comes the revelation that not only are they not better, but that people may be dying because they are driving them. the media feels personally betrayed and is trying to distance themselves from the company they spent the last decade in bed with.

novaderrik wrote: the reason that the Toyota stuff is getting so much coverage in the media is because the media spent the last 10 years drinking the Toyota flavored Kool Aid and saying how much more awesome and safe they are than the American brands- and how they are saving the planet. now comes the revelation that not only are they not better, but that people may be dying because they are driving them. the media feels personally betrayed and is trying to distance themselves from the company they spent the last decade in bed with.

umm wait... what? wait...im not sure whats happening here...is that satire I hear or just jibberish..I cant tell. Im not sure you can feel betrayed when you yourself are a soulless betrayer.

The whole Toyota debacle is caused by this mentality, posted by someone I know on Facebook:

"I just realized I drive a Toyota."

Adrian_Thompson wrote: I don't see a change. Make that I don't hear a change as I get 99% of my news from NPR. For every 'Bush is screwing up the war' story I heard I now hear one criticizing the Obama for the same, or criticism from the left for him not being out. There's lot's of coverage about the elections, the surge, when to pull troops back, promises made and broken etc. I don't see it.

You talking about the "News" news. Were just talking about the news.

From the MONEY section of todays USAToday:

http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2010-03-11-toyota11_ST_N.htm said: Minnesota prisoner says '96 Camry caused his fatal crash By Sharon Silke Carty, USA TODAY A Minnesota man serving eight years in prison for a crash of his 1996 Toyota Camry that killed three people is seeking a new trial in light of Toyota's recent recalls. And he now has some unlikely supporters: Some of the jurors who helped put him away. Kuoa Fong Lee, 32, was convicted of vehicular manslaughter in the 2006 crash. Lee, a Hmong immigrant who came to the U.S. in 2004 from Thailand, was exiting a highway on his way home from church. He says that when he tried to slow down, the car accelerated. Police estimate he was going between 72 mph and 92 mph when he struck an Oldsmobile carrying five people. Two people in the car died at the scene — a father and his 9-year-old son. A 6-year-old relative's neck was broken, and she died a year and a half later. Lee, who had been driving for just one year when the accident occurred, said he tried to step on the brakes but nothing happened. An expert found nothing wrong with the brakes, so prosecutors argued he must have been pressing on the accelerator instead. Lee's attorney, Brent Schafer, says he hopes to be in court arguing for a new trial as soon as April. While his case may be the first such Toyota-based appeal to be heard, it is unlikely to be the last. Schafer says he's already been contacted by lawyers in two other similar cases — one in Oregon, and one in New Jersey. "I can't believe there'd be a jury who would believe (Fong) accidentally hit the accelerator over there being a Toyota defect," Schafer says. "Now, it's almost insulting to think these cases are caused by the drivers. ... If there's something good from all of this, it's that an innocent guy could be released." This week, three jurors, speaking to news outlets in the Minneapolis area, seemed to agree, saying that if they had known there was a possible defect in the car, their verdict would have changed. "People need to be aware that if we were presented with evidence back then that there could have been an issue, I believe things would have been different," a juror told Minneapolis TV station KARE. The juror asked to be identified only as Juror Number Six. Toyota did not return a call for comment. A relative of the victims also would not comment, but some have spoken publicly in support of a retrial for Lee. Lee's car was not equipped with electronic throttle controls that have been a focus in Toyota acceleration discussions. His Camry had a traditional gas pedal that controlled the throttle mechanically with a cable. But some 1996 Camrys also were recalled for acceleration issues. Shortly after the new models hit the market, Toyota recalled 5,145 of them for cruise control equipment that failed "to hold the speed set by the driver, and can accelerate above the intended set speed." Sean Kane, president of Safety Research & Strategies, a company which does research for trial lawyers, says he's struggled for a long time to get the public to believe that sudden acceleration is a real problem. "People have been uniformly dismissed by law enforcement, government, the automakers," he says. "The consumer voice has been tamped down by everybody. But for the first time now, it's being taken seriously."

New paper to boycott.

In reply to John Brown:

...why's that? other than this doesn't belong in the money section?

4cylndrfury wrote:

novaderrik wrote: the reason that the Toyota stuff is getting so much coverage in the media is because the media spent the last 10 years drinking the Toyota flavored Kool Aid and saying how much more awesome and safe they are than the American brands- and how they are saving the planet. now comes the revelation that not only are they not better, but that people may be dying because they are driving them. the media feels personally betrayed and is trying to distance themselves from the company they spent the last decade in bed with.

umm wait... what? wait...im not sure whats happening here...is that satire I hear or just jibberish..I cant tell. Im not sure you can feel betrayed when you yourself are a soulless betrayer.

I agree with his point. The only thing the media likes better than building something up is tearing it down. It's how they exercise their power as the arbiters of perception. In fact, they've become so enthusiastic about tearing down Toyota that you have stuff like the ABC thing where they tampered with the electronics.

A lot of people like to demonize the media, but I think if you understand their motivation (ratings, money, money, and oh yeah, money), you can take them for what they are. Take the good and leave the bad, so to speak. it takes a bit of effort to weed out the senationalism and bias, but it's worth it. I don't think it's a good idea to get all your news from one source, as much as that source may agree with your worldview. That leads to closed-off thinking and a lack of new ideas.