By Peter M. DeLorenzo
Detroit. This issue marks the 21st Anniversary of Autoextremist.com. To say it has been a long, strange trip doesn’t even begin to describe the roller-coaster ride it has been creating this publication every week. It has been at times grueling, at times immensely gratifying, but always a relentless grind. When you endeavor to create this kind of publication every week and do it at a very high level to our own exceedingly high standards, there’s just no getting around that fact.
But then again, we wouldn’t have it any other way. June 1, 1999, was a very long time ago. I could say that it has gone by in a blink of an eye, but that wouldn’t be accurate in the least. I am often reminded of Cameron Crowe’s brilliant script for the film Jerry McGuire, when Tom Cruise’s sports agent character screams in frustration at how difficult it is to represent his client, played by Cuba Gooding Jr.: “It’s an up-at-dawn, pride swallowing siege!"
And yes, sometimes it has felt that way. The day-in, day-out of Autoextremist.com can be intimidating, because there’s no “phoning it in” around here. When I open to a blank screen at my usual 3:00 a.m. to begin a new week of AE, sometimes it is just daunting and overwhelming. But make no mistake, creating AE has been moments of flat-out fun too. And that’s a good thing because if it wasn’t fun or worthwhile, WordGirl and I would have packed it in years ago.
And speaking of years ago, this is how I opened my column in our very first issue of Autoextremist.com:
You've come here for a reason. You're either curious, bored, or in some internet-fueled haze that's taken over your body and turned you into a quivering jellyfish that has lost all concept of time and space. Well, for whatever the reason, welcome. I'm not going to sit here and make promises about what Autoextremist.com will or won't do for you. I will say, however, that you will not read anything like it when it comes to the weird world of automobiles, because the people here are the most committed automotive enthusiasts in the world. So much so, that we operate in a dimension that other so-called "car people" find bewildering and even frightening. The Truth will do that to people. Especially in Detroit, which is one of the strangest places on earth...
I came out with guns blazing, of course. Was there really any other way? Thus, began the editorial adventure of Autoextremist.com. I realize I’m now considered “ancient” because we only update the site once a week (we were never interested in the drill of posting content 24/7 -WG), but there’s no denying that the influence of Autoextremist.com still resonates throughout the industry as much, if not more, than ever.
And let’s not forget that before AE arrived on the scene the coverage of this industry was a rote dance of PR minion regurgitation combined with a few salient quotes from executives dutifully covered by acquiescing reporters. It was done this way because everything was based on reporters gaining “access” to said executives, which was the lifeblood of their jobs. Whether they were believable quotes or not, editors demanded quotes to flesh out the stories, and if the reporters played ball with the PR minions, access – and interviews – were granted. This all went well as long as the reporters didn’t rock the boat and write a “tough” story. If that happened, the offending reporter would be called on the carpet by the Chief PR Minion and placed in “jail” with access denied until further notice.
That pretty much ended with the first issue of Autoextremist.com. Before AE came along PR minions and reporters would have conversations that were for “deep background only” or completely “off the record.” We changed all of that. I laid bare those deep background conversations and exposed the inner workings of this business in my columns. I even named names in a business that wasn’t big on accountability. After all, it was easy to hide behind the bureaucracy and play “duck and cover” when the blame could be placed in the hopper of mediocrity and covered up with those dreaded words: “It was a corporate decision.”
From the moment Autoextremist.com arrived on the scene there was no denying that the automotive journalistic landscape was inexorably altered. We watched as the tone and tenor of other publications got grittier and more combative, and observed as reporters wrote more “tough” stories.
Needless to say, the dawn of Autoextremist.com admittedly caused much consternation and hand-wringing in this business. PR minions of all stripes were not happy if their charges were singled out, even if they quietly chuckled with glee when I nailed an executive who was known for serial incompetence. And the executives were beside themselves because I knew too much; it was like I saw deep into their souls and was reading their minds with uncanny accuracy. And they didn’t like it. At all.
The fact that I used a nom de plume for the first three months of the site just added more fuel to the fire. Soon enough, “the green car” on our masthead started showing up on auto company computers, as well as at suppliers and ad agencies. Autoextremist.com was the talk of the town. As the CEO at my last ad agency (Campbell-Ewald) wondered out loud at the end of a meeting, “Hey, have you guys read this Autoextremist guy? He’s gotta be in advertising; he just knows too damn much.” I left that ad agency not too long afterward.
We talk about the influence of Autoextremist.com because its reach has spread throughout the industry, and throughout the motorsports industry as well. And it has been extremely gratifying to see. Just one example of the influence of Autoextremist.com? At the height of Sergio’s reign my columns struck such terror in the hearts of the executives out in Auburn Hills – and were so deadly accurate – that everyone out there raced to their computers the moment my column was posted as they spread like wildfire throughout FCA headquarters. I can’t tell you how many FCA executives confided to me after the fact that my columns were so chillingly accurate, that they were convinced I had moles at the very top of the company. I didn’t. I must admit that I do have an uncanny ability to capture the inner depths of the auto executive mindset, however.
Autoextremist.com has been quite the trip. When we started the site 21 years ago, I had no plan beyond the fact that I had something to say and I needed a forum to say it. It turns out that after having grown up immersed in the heyday of this business in a decidedly privileged automotive childhood – and combining that with my own experiences in marketing, advertising and motorsports – I had plenty to say. And I still do.
After all, how many pursuits allow you to make a mark… and leave a mark?
WordGirl and I would like to thank everyone for coming along for the ride all of these years.
And that’s the High-Octane Truth, 21 years on.
The original - and still our favorite - Autoextremist logo.