Filed under: Toyota,Quick Spins,Crossover,SUV,Off-Road
We love the new direction, but the engine and infotainment could be better.
Continue reading 2019 Toyota RAV4 Adventure Drivers' Notes Review | More character, more capability
2019 Toyota RAV4 Adventure Drivers' Notes Review | More character, more capability originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Feb 2019 14:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFiled under: Spy Photos,Ford,SUV,Truck,Off-Road
Ranger-based, short wheelbase, shorter rear overhang ... sure looks like it.
Continue reading Is this the 2020 Ford Bronco?
Is this the 2020 Ford Bronco? originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Feb 2019 14:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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We've created a list of crossovers, hatchbacks, hybrids and sporty cars that should be good for grads, young buyers, or any first-time car buyer.
Continue reading 11 best cars for grads and first-time car buyers
11 best cars for grads and first-time car buyers originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Feb 2019 13:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFiled under: Honda,Hyundai,Subaru,Volkswagen,Sedan,Performance,Comparison
Hot hatches, but not hatches.
Continue reading 2019 Volkswagen Jetta GLI vs. sport compact sedans: How they compare on paper
2019 Volkswagen Jetta GLI vs. sport compact sedans: How they compare on paper originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Feb 2019 13:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFiled under: Etc.,Chevrolet,Automotive History
Complete with screaming yellow paint, big wing ... and automatic transmission.
Continue reading Junkyard Gem: 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt SS
Junkyard Gem: 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt SS originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Feb 2019 12:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFiled under: Recalls,Hyundai,Kia,Safety
Another 3.7 million are subject to a 'product improvement' campaign
Continue reading Hyundai, Kia add to 2.4 million cars recalled in U.S. over fires, engines
Hyundai, Kia add to 2.4 million cars recalled in U.S. over fires, engines originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Feb 2019 12:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFiled under: Etc.,Green,Emerging Technologies,Technology,Autonomous
It'll begin testing in select cities this summer.
Continue reading Watch autonomous FedEx SameDay Bot deliver pizza to Jimmy Fallon on 'Tonight Show'
Watch autonomous FedEx SameDay Bot deliver pizza to Jimmy Fallon on 'Tonight Show' originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Feb 2019 11:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFiled under: Reviews,Ford,Deep Dive,New Car Reviews,Crossover,SUV,Hybrid,Performance
Diving into price, specs, features, fuel economy and photos.
Continue reading 2020 Ford Explorer | Everything we know so far
2020 Ford Explorer | Everything we know so far originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Feb 2019 11:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFiled under: Aftermarket,Ford,Truck,Off-Road,Performance
Optional power upgrade is coming later.
Continue reading 2019 Roush Ford F-150 Raptor gets show and some optional go
2019 Roush Ford F-150 Raptor gets show and some optional go originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Feb 2019 10:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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If you're in the market, this great car safety tool is 20% off on Amazon right now.
Continue reading This great car safety tool is 20% off on Amazon for the next 4 hours
This great car safety tool is 20% off on Amazon for the next 4 hours originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Feb 2019 10:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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More distractions, walkers, SUVs — 'The alarm bells continue to sound'
Continue reading U.S. pedestrian death rate keeps climbing, worst in decades
U.S. pedestrian death rate keeps climbing, worst in decades originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Feb 2019 10:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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When Mark Zuckerberg revealed last week that he was considering crowdsourcing as a way to combat misinformation on Facebook, journalists went on the defensive.
“You can’t apply an open-source model to fact-checking and journalism,” former Snopes managing editor Brooke Binkowski told The Guardian. “You have to have experts.”
“Some obvious problems present themselves with this approach,” Rob Price wrote for Business Insider.
The idea that Zuckerberg floated in a Facebook video — that asking people which outlets they trust could be a way to decrease the reach of false content on the platform — is rooted in the company’s fact-checking program.
Facebook partners with 40 fact-checking projects in more than 25 countries to identify and debunk misinformation on the platform, thereby decreasing its future reach, but Zuckerberg said that there just aren’t enough fact-checkers. (Disclosure: Being a signatory of the International Fact-Checking Network’s code of principles is a necessary condition for joining the project.)
Last week wasn’t the first time Facebook came under fire for proposing crowdsourcing as a misinformation solution. In January last year, the CEO also floated the idea in a Facebook post.
But the idea might not be as crazy as people are making it out to be.
In a study published in February last year, researchers David Rand and Gordon Pennycook found that Facebook users rate mainstream news sources as far more trustworthy than hyperpartisan or fake news sources. Nearly 2,000 participants were asked to rate 60 news sources into three categories: mainstream media, hyperpartisan websites and fake news sites.
Rand and Pennycook observed that every mainstream news source was labeled as more trustworthy than hyperpartisan or bogus news, with one exception. Those findings held across ideological lines — and the ratings of political moderates even correlated with the verdicts of fact-checking organizations.
“What we found is that, while there are real disagreements among Democrats and Republicans concerning mainstream news outlets, basically everybody — Democrats, Republicans and professional fact-checkers — agree that the fake and hyperpartisan sites are not to be trusted,” said Rand, an associate professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in a press release at the end of January.
That paints a pretty rosy picture of Zuckerberg’s proposal — and it wasn’t very widely covered at the time. But, as Laura Hazard Owen noted for Nieman Lab last year, there are other considerations at play here.
How would Facebook actually use signals from readers to demote hyperpartisan and fake news content? Would the reach of the most trusted sites be prioritized over those that are less trusted, but still in the mainstream? Would people only rate news sources if they had a motivated reason to do so? And how would Facebook collect and store data about users’ ratings?
Those are the questions journalists should be asking about crowdsourcing credibility on Facebook — not whether or not it’s ludicrous on its face. Because, for now, academia shows that the idea should be at the very least considered.
“If the goal is to remove really bad content, this actually seems quite promising,” Rand said.
Each week, we analyze five of the top-performing fact checks on Facebook to see how their reach compares to the hoaxes they debunked. Here are this week’s numbers.
Factcheck.org had two nerdy-but-important fact checks in the past week that took the air out of some hyperbole the president commonly uses to justify his policy stances: one on the U.S. budget deficit and one on the trade deficit.
In the first, Factcheck.org’s Robert Farley explained why the president should not be able to get away with his recent casual suggestion that “deficits seem to be coming down.” Farley walks the reader through the reasons that a monthly snapshot of the deficit can be misleading, especially in December. Second, Lori Robertson explained how Trump once again has exaggerated the trade deficit by apparently using only the figure that applies to goods, excluding services. As Robertson explains, a true trade picture generally includes both.
What we liked: These fact-checks are not sexy but they have the virtue of setting the record straight on a couple of economic statistics — and explaining why the president is using the misleading figures in the first place. The first is a way to justify policies, like his tax cut, that add to the deficit. The second is to justify his tariffs on imports, which have encountered some resistance on Capitol Hill.
That’s it for this week. Send feedback or ideas to us at factchecknet@poynter.org. And if this email was forwarded to you, you can sign up here.Daniel and Susan
The post Factually: What research says about crowdsourcing on Facebook appeared first on American Press Institute.
Filed under: Tesla,Sedan,Electric,Luxury
Model S driver died; how other automakers do latches, and the unusual Model 3 setup.
Continue reading After fiery Tesla crash, a closer look at how door locks work in emergencies
After fiery Tesla crash, a closer look at how door locks work in emergencies originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Feb 2019 09:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFiled under: Audi,Coupe,Luxury,Performance,Specialty
611-horsepower coupe will be limited to 222 units.
Continue reading Audi R8 V10 Decennium celebrates 10 years of 10 cylinders
Audi R8 V10 Decennium celebrates 10 years of 10 cylinders originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Feb 2019 09:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFiled under: Geneva Motor Show,Kia,Crossover,Hybrid
And we're eager to get a look at the Plum interior.
Continue reading Kia Niro hybrid and PHEV refreshed with Niro EV's looks and tech for Geneva
Kia Niro hybrid and PHEV refreshed with Niro EV's looks and tech for Geneva originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Feb 2019 08:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFiled under: Geneva Motor Show,Ferrari,Coupe,Luxury,Performance,Supercars
88 pounds lighter than the 488 GTB, with 710 hp and a 211-mph top speed.
Continue reading Ferrari F8 Tributo brings the best of the 488 Pista to the masses
Ferrari F8 Tributo brings the best of the 488 Pista to the masses originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Feb 2019 08:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFresh useful insights for people advancing quality, innovative and sustainable journalism
OFF THE TOP
You might have heard: “What independent journalism needs more than ever from Silicon Valley is a significant transfer of wealth.” (Columbia Journalism Review)
But did you know: A tax on digital ad spend (*cough* Facebook and Google) could bring in $2 billion for journalism (Nieman Lab)
A new paper from the advocacy group Free Press argues that tax revenue devoted to quality journalism could be a silver lining of targeted advertising. The group is advocating for a tax that would be levied against targeted ads “to fund the kind of diverse, local, independent and noncommercial journalism that’s gone missing, and to support new news-distribution models, especially those that don’t rely on data harvesting for revenue,” write Timothy Karr and Craig Aaron, Free Press’s senior director of strategy and communications and the organization’s president/CEO. This year, most of the $129 billion forecast for digital advertising budgets will go to Facebook, Google and Amazon. But the tech companies frequently skate by without paying much tax on those revenues. A 2 percent targeted-ad tax on all online enterprises that earn more than $200 million in annual digital-ad revenues would yield more than $1.8 billion for the news industry, Free Press calculates. “Think of it like a carbon tax, which many countries impose on the oil industry to help clean up pollution. The United States should impose a similar mechanism on targeted advertising to counteract how the platforms amplify content that’s polluting our civic discourse.”
+ Noted: White House bans four journalists from covering Trump-Kim dinner because of shouted questions (Washington Post); Medium is tearing down its paywall for readers who visit the site through Twitter (TechCrunch); The National Review’s Jonah Goldberg and Steve Hayes, former editor-in-chief of The Weekly Standard, which shuttered in December, plan to launch a new conservative media company (Axios)
TRY THIS AT HOME
What you need to know before starting your crowdfunding campaign (Medium, European Journalism Centre)
It’s the year of crowdfunding for journalism: Recent examples like The Correspondent or Tortoise show how it has increasingly become a tool for journalists and newsrooms to finance their ventures. But would it be a fruitful strategy for your newsroom? Four news innovators who have successfully navigated the crowdfunding route weigh in with advice: Crowdfunding “is not a business model,” warns Sebastian Esser of Krautreporter. “Once you’ve spent all the money, it’ll be gone. So what’s your plan for after you’ve spent the money?” “I would say you should try a membership or subscription model since you’re aspiring to get funded by a community you need to take care of,” adds Clara Jiménez Cruz, co-founder of Maldita.es. Working to build a dedicated audience before launching a crowdfunding campaign is a theme the four touched on again and again. “We … starting priming our established audience for the crowdfunding campaign a few months before launch,” says Sean Dagan Wood of Positive News. “Hitting the ground running with our core audience piling in to buy shares created a crucial start.”
OFFSHORE
How Voxe.org used a chatbot to crowdsource 15,000 questions (Engaged Journalism Accelerator)
Voxe, a civic technology company based in Paris, wanted to encourage more young people to participate in political discussion and debates. In 2015, it launched What The Voxe?!, a newsletter that analyzes a particular law going through the French Parliament and breaks down the arguments for and against it. It got 5,000 subscribers in six months. It also created a chatbot as a way to gather questions from Facebook users which would then be taken to the politicians to answer. The French primaries and citizen primaries were taking place in 2016 so the candidates were incentivized to work with Voxe. Users interact with the bot to pick the candidate they want to ask a question to, then write down their question and send it to the Voxe team. Over six months, 9,500 users asked 15,000 questions of the candidates. The Voxe team also created a series of voluntary questions for users to gain a sense of the stories they’re interested in. “We found out some people who use the chatbot want a simple take on politics but others are in high school or working but don’t have people they can discuss the news with,” said Léonore de Roquefeuil, CEO and co-founder.
+ Jorge Ramos: “The dictator of Venezuela earns his title” (The New York Times); BBC and ITV team up to launch Netflix rival BritBox (The Guardian)
OFFBEAT
The advice column renaissance (Columbia Journalism Review)
When John Paul Brammer started writing ¡Hola Papi!, a column he originally intended as a spoof on advice columns, he was surprised at the number of earnest letters from readers that began piling up. And then he looked around and realized that, despite growing discontent and vanishing trust in the media, advice columns are flourishing. “This advice renaissance might seem paradoxical: Why hasn’t distrust in the media as a whole negatively affected advice columns, where you would think that trust is paramount?” Brammer’s theory: “Maybe it’s because, following the election of Donald Trump to the White House, readers have landed on a truth that many within the profession refuse to grapple with: objective, neutral journalism doesn’t really exist; media is inherently biased. The rise of advice columnists, we might conclude, is consistent with a growing desire among the public for members of the media to express moral clarity.”
UP FOR DEBATE
Now is the time for equity journalism (LitHub)
There has been a long-held disregard for “advocacy journalism” in the news industry — but does that keep marginalized and disadvantaged groups from telling their stories? “With parity comes a freedom to choose our own narrative,” writes Melissa Chadburn. “A freedom to shape the bigger story. There’ve been times when my pitches have been passed up because how could I possibly report on the child welfare system when I am the product of the child welfare system? I must have some inherent bias, right?” Last year Chadburn managed a communications fellowship for the Economic Hardship Reporting Project, which helps publish work from writers, filmmakers, artists and other storytellers who have experienced economic hardship, with the aim of humanizing inequality. While traditional media outlets may peg this approach as advocacy, Chadburn calls it equity — a chance for those living on the margins to be heard.
SHAREABLE
‘Value over volume’: The Economist tightens its paywall (Digiday)
The Economist has tightened its paywall so readers have access to five articles a month — rather than three a week — in order to nudge more registered users over into subscribing. At the end of January, the publisher changed its metered access after reader research found that on average people either read five articles before subscribing or they sign up right away. A high content threshold would allow potential subscribers to slip through the net and never hit the paywall. The Economist has been pretty generous with content, erring on the side of publishing more in front of the paywall and sharing through social platforms to drive people back to subscribe, believing its journalism is its best asset. But now that its priority is retaining subscribers (which is cheaper than acquiring them), the strategy is “value over volume,” says Marina Haydn, managing director of global circulation. “Retention is the biggest strategic priority for us. To be ambitious you need to improve, we want to improve retention on our first-year customers. Retention of those who are with us for one year is very strong.”
+ Decades of investigative reporting couldn’t touch R. Kelly. It took a Lifetime TV series and a hashtag. (Washington Post); The Rocky Mountain News closed a decade ago this week. Poynter’s Tom Jones takes a look back at the death of an American publishing powerhouse and the city it left behind (Poynter)
The post Need to Know: February 28, 2019 appeared first on American Press Institute.
Filed under: RAM,First Drives,Truck,Off-Road
Ram's biggest pickups get quieter, more refined and even more capable.
Continue reading Ram HD Pickup Lineup First Drive Review | The torque king cometh
Ram HD Pickup Lineup First Drive Review | The torque king cometh originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Feb 2019 00:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFiled under: Government/Legal,Green,Emissions,Ethanol,Fuel Efficiency
Several other Republican senators might also vote against confirming him.
Continue reading Republican senator opposes Trump EPA pick over climate change policies
Republican senator opposes Trump EPA pick over climate change policies originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 27 Feb 2019 19:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFiled under: Etc.,Weird Car News,Safety
Snowed in, battery dead, windows sealed, and she was unconcerned.
Continue reading Snowplow bumps into snow-buried car, finds woman living inside
Snowplow bumps into snow-buried car, finds woman living inside originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 27 Feb 2019 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFiled under: Mercedes-Benz,Crossover,Luxury
Believe it or not, the styling changed, too.
Continue reading 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class crossover gets new tech, new engine
2020 Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class crossover gets new tech, new engine originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 27 Feb 2019 18:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFiled under: Motorsports,Videos,Ford,Hatchback,Performance,Racing,Specialty
With the help of his Hoonigan squad, Ken Block is building an empire. After his Ford Escort RS Cosworth rally race car burned to the ground in 2018, Block unveiled a back-from-the-dead Escort version 2.0 this week, and he plans to take it on a world tour. Since he gained fame through his racing and his Gymkhana video series, Block has done nothing but expand his reach, grow his team, and built bigger and more ambitious projects. And when his modernized Escort RS Cosworth was incinerated, Block
Continue reading Watch Ken Block's Ford Escort RS Cosworth V2 come to life
Watch Ken Block's Ford Escort RS Cosworth V2 come to life originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 27 Feb 2019 16:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFiled under: Etc.,Ferrari,Coupe,Performance,Supercars
It appears to have a V8 under the hood.
Continue reading Ferrari is debuting a new car Thursday
Ferrari is debuting a new car Thursday originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 27 Feb 2019 16:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFiled under: Reviews,Kia,First Drives,Crossover,Hatchback,Budget
A good value with one exception
Continue reading 2020 Kia Soul First Drive Review | FUNky
2020 Kia Soul First Drive Review | FUNky originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 27 Feb 2019 15:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFiled under: Spy Photos,Bentley,Sedan,Luxury
It's basically a four-door Bentley Continental
Continue reading 2020 Bentley Flying Spur spied winter testing in Europe
2020 Bentley Flying Spur spied winter testing in Europe originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 27 Feb 2019 14:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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