Before getting too far into the new year I should say a few words to close out 2021. Last year was a good one for Indie Auto. We produced some solid content despite increasing the number of postings to three per week. In addition, readership more than doubled.
I mention that last point with hesitation because Indie Auto wasn’t intended to hit the top of the pop charts. I would rather write for a relatively small and engaged readership that appreciates an analytical approach to automotive history and media.
That said, I also write to be read by more than 10 people. This is why I am thankful that the Society of Automotive Historians gave Indie Auto an important credibility boost in awarding it the E. P. Ingersoll Award for 2020. This clearly led to a boost in readership that stretched into 2021. So did links from other publications such as Hemmings, where Daniel Strohl has kindly linked to a number of Indie Auto stories.
Also see ‘Wheel spinning happens when car buffs and scholarly historians don’t collaborate’
Even readers have gotten in on the act. For example, Stéphane Dumas has linked to relevant stories here when commenting on a number of other auto history websites. That has introduced more people to Indie Auto, which has elevated it on search engines, which has generated still more readers. Meanwhile, Facebook pages have thus far been our single biggest source of referrals. Unlike with referrals from websites, I usually have no idea what Facebook pages are sharing our stories.
Financial donations to Indie Auto also increased in 2021, although not as much as readership. Thus, I would like to express my deep appreciation for those of you who made a donation. It costs money to keep Indie Auto online, and unlike most auto buff media I don’t sell your eyeballs to advertisers in order to generate revenue. This is a strictly reader-supported website. In other words, Indie Auto literally cannot survive without your support (go here for further discussion).
Thank you to everyone who has commented
More important to me than the readership gains in 2021 was an even bigger jump in the number of comments. It’s always good to hear your reactions — positive and negative — about Indie Auto, but I most appreciate those who write longer comments. Robust dialogue is needed to advance the field of automotive history, so I have tried to encourage it by elevating in-depth comments onto the front page as letters to the editor.
I have also appreciated the civility of the comments. My journalism training has led me to err on the side of free speech, so I have thus far censored only a few comments and notes to the editor (which I generally post as letters when they are relevant to readers rather than private messages to me). For example, a year and a half ago a reader used some rather abusive language to disagree with my criticism of the 1974 AMC Ambassador’s styling. I didn’t post his missive but wrote a follow-up article responding to his most substantive point — that the car’s Jimmy Durante nose was a product of 5-mph bumper regulations. After digging into the topic I concluded that this wasn’t actually true (go here for further discussion). This illustrates how I strive to be responsive to your feedback . . . and follow the facts where they lead.
I have also started to not approve comments from people who show minimal engagement, such as by offering an opinion without any facts or logic. An example is the comment, “Not really,” in response to a 4,000-word story (go here for comment policies).
With a growing readership has come an increasing number of people who apparently get offended when I criticize one of their favorite cars, designers or auto executives. Know that there’s nothing personal here. I am attempting to use my research and analytical skills as a retired journalist and scholar to better understand why the U.S. auto industry experienced one of the most spectacular industrial collapses of the last century.
This is not always a pretty story, but I do think it is one that needs to be more deeply explored. Because if we can better understand the past, we can make smarter decisions for the future.
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