Practiced by middle-aged skeptical, powerful, influential journalists with an agenda to damage plugins' reputation as much as possible
http://www.thegreencarwebsite.co.uk/blog/index.php/2013/04/15/its-ev-baiting-time-again-isnt-it-time-to-fight-it/ [images] It’s EV Baiting time again. Isn’t it time to fight it? Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield Apr 15 2013 [images http://www.thegreencarwebsite.co.uk/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Nissan-LEAF-with-Cameron.jpg Prime Minister, David Cameron with the Nissan LEAF as production of the electric car gets underway in Sunderland http://www.thegreencarwebsite.co.uk/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Production-of-the-Nissan-LEAF-in-Sunderland.jpg Production of the Nissan LEAF in Sunderland-something that should be welcomed http://www.thegreencarwebsite.co.uk/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Zoe-charging-plugged-in.jpg Zoe charging plugged in http://www.thegreencarwebsite.co.uk/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Electric-car-car-park-2.jpg A car park in Oslo full of electric cars-owners of these vehicles need to stick up for EVs ] If you’ve been a fan of electric cars for any length of time, you’re probably familiar with the ancient and ultimately cruel sport of EV Baiting. The sport-generally practiced by middle-aged sceptical journalists with nothing better to do-is to cause as much damage to the reputation of electric and plug in cars as is possible. All by spreading fear and misinformation, loosely disguised as editorial authority, quasi-scientific fact, or worse still, financial doom. Writing wrongs What is perhaps most disturbing about EV Baiters is not the claims they make. After all, we live in a democracy where everyone has the right to his or her own opinion. No, what makes EV Baiters so dangerous is the position they hold within society. They aren’t just local hacks from the evening paper. These are powerful, influential writers at national newspapers, blogs and news sites. What they say and do is absorbed by tens or even hundreds of thousands of people every single day. Take the news that Nissan recently started UK production of its all-electric LEAF hatchback at its Sunderland plant. The start of vehicle production at any UK car plant is normally met with joy by the press, keen to highlight the increased prosperity it will bring to an area, the families affected by the increase in jobs, or even the knock-on effect to related industries. Not so in the case of the LEAF. Jumping on the back of the news that the Prime Minister himself had visited the Sunderland Plant to praise Nissan’s electric car, the Telegraph’s Christopher Booker wrote a scathing piece in which he warned of the wrong kind of Leafs on the road. From his article it’s quite clear that Booker doesn’t like EVs. To him, they are pathetic, expensive toys which are responsible for swallowing billions of Euros in EU funding. A side note: having pooh-poohed everything in the past from the dangers of breathing in asbestos dust to the link between lung cancer and passive smoking, Booker’s paycheck relies on him being counter-consensus. Not everyone who reads his articles will be aware of that. Booker’s rant throws in some figures which could easily be mistaken for fact by someone without the wherewithal to corroborate them. For those who have been in the EV world a while, they’re old hat: the claim that EV battery packs only last ‘a few years’ and need to be replaced at a cost of ‘up to £20,000’; that travelling by stagecoach is faster than making a trip by electric car; and of course the old favourite, that electric cars are no better for the environment than petrol ones. Pseudo-scientific argument As someone used to fact checking, both as a reader and a motoring journalist, I always look for the source of information when reading an article. I’m not sure everyone is the same. Sadly, Booker isn’t alone. Even our supposedly unbiased national broadcaster — the BBC– is playing the EV Baiting game. In its latest item on electric cars, the BBC Radio 4’s PM Programme asks How Environmentally Friendly Are Electric Cars? Worse still, unlike Booker, the BBC uses an old scientific report from a peer-reviewed journal to give its story some credence. The report in question claimed that in some cases, electric cars have more impact on global warming than traditional fossil-fuelled cars. The report was published by a university with strong links to Statoil, a Norwegian oil company. Although the report has been debunked numerous times already, in part using real scientific means to counter its claims, the BBC seems happy to only portray one side of the argument. It also links to an article from 2001, leading the reader to believe that electric cars really haven’t changed much in the past 12 years. Fighting back It’s obvious that the mainstream media still doesn’t get electric vehicles, but what’s my point? Just like any other prejudice, the irrational fear of electric cars can be spread by an angry person and a keyboard. Thankfully most prejudices, like homophobia or racism, are considered socially unacceptable after decades of social injustice, tireless campaigning, and steadfast resolve. We can’t stop the misinformation and prejudice simply by crying foul. Instead, it’s time for us — EV owners and fans — to stand up to the belligerent fear-mongers and miscommunication about EVs. That means fighting misinformation with honest, realistic testimony on how EVs can and will make our lives better. It means taking time to talk to the person in the carpark who is asking you about your LEAF, quizzing you on your Twizy, or asking why you’re spending your hard earned cash on the new ZOE. Just like beating those other prejudices, overcoming EV Baiting requires education, and lots of it. What are you waiting for? [© 2013 Really Good Domains] For all EVLN posts use: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/template/NamlServlet.jtp?macro=search_page&node=413529&query=evln&sort=date Here are today's archive-only EV posts: EVLN: Enorm V3 Bullet Electric custom cruiser & crotch rocket (video) EVent: EVs @Mt. Lebanon, PA Arbor Day/Tree City celebration 4/26 2:30p EVLN: $124 WA ice'd-spot-fine to deter ice-schmucks EVLN: Norwegians Embrace Nissan Leaf EV, 13th Best Selling 2012 car EVLN: Automakers Stick With Li-ion Batteries + EVLN: Zoe's particularly smooth, comfortable ride while pootling about {brucedp.150m.com} -- View this message in context: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/EVLN-EV-Baiting-an-ancient-and-cruel-sport-tp4662489.html Sent from the Electric Vehicle Discussion List mailing list archive at Nabble.com. _______________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org For EV drag racing discussion, please use NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
