As much as we web-based types like to smirk at the slow death of the traditional media, the real truth seems to be that, more often than not, the internet is more of a training ground than a final destination. So it is with former TTAC reviewer Jonny Lieberman. Jonny has worked at a number of automotive blogs, including a stint at TTAC that stretched from February of 2006 to January of 2009. After TTAC, Jonny went on to become the Associate Editor at Autoblog, where he primarily focused on road test reviews. Having worked his way to the biggest car blog out there, Jonny’s ambition has taken him beyond the internet to the world of print journalism, and the halls of Motor Trend where he will become Senior Editor. In his farewell piece at Autoblog, Jonny looks back at his time in the autoblogosphere, and notes
I’ve worked at some sites filled with mega-friendly people that weren’t capable of pouring piss from a boot. Other places were hyper-competent and staffed almost totally with assholes.
Anyone want to bet that the second sentence wasn’t written with TTAC at least partially in mind? And though Jonny was never the most confrontational writer at TTAC, we certainly hope that he will bring at least a tiny bit of TTAC’s take-no-prisoners ethos to Motor Trend. Or at least the raw enthusiasm embodied in such TTAC pieces as his Audi RS4 review. Either way, his hiring helps prove that even the buff books are looking to the internet for fresh blood. The autoblogosphere may not replace the print magazines, but it cant help but have a profound effect on it. Hopefully for the better.
Will he celebrate his new post by purchasing (and federalizing) a FAW Red Flag CA7600L?
DAF vs. FAF on Motor Trend? One can hope!
Motor Trend, eh? During the “Maximim Bob” CTS-V race challenge, MT referred to TTAC as “that most arrogant website”…this should be interesting…
In fairness, the tone of this site has changed considerably in the last year. The editorial tone is far more sedate – less cynical and, yes, less arrogant. It’s also much more broadly informative, which is a Very Good Thing, but to me it’s not quite as much fun to read as it used to be, in a popcorn-munching “do you like movies about gladiators” sort of way. TTAC is still the best auto blog I’ve run across.
At any rate, good luck, Mr. Lieberman. From what I recall about MT the last time I picked one up, you’ll need it.
I loved the “arrogance” that ttac has. If the car was a pos they weren’t afraid to say it. Of course magazines like c/d and mt have a lot of ad revenue from automakers like chevy so they would probably think twice before releasing an article on how much a pos the cobalt etc is.
I always liked Jonny. I hope he enjoys the new gig.
Yep, I’ve really enjoyed reading his work the past few years. On Autoblog, you could read an article and immediately tell that it was his because the humor and interesting point of view immediately stood out (much of their writing seems to be focused on tired stereotypes of a given brand or vehicle). Best of luck to JL at the new gig!
Loverman’s got the chops, no question. But will he be allowed to use them? Hmmmm.
I give it three months.
When he’s banging out his third absolutely predictable comparo (Huzzah! And the winner is the BMW 335i! Again. Still.), and he’s not allowed to do anything remotely interesting, new, or witty, he’ll decide that he cannot be another cliche auto journalist run by the advertising department and go back to being a full-time judge of beer and LeMons racers.
Good luck JL. Where you’re going, you shall need some.
Any chance his first assignment will be to punch that smug prick Angus Mackenzie in the mouth?
Here’s my first “sell out” piece.
http://bit.ly/bGI1SX
Now, what to do with this briefcase full of cash from BMW?
Hookers and blow. Cliche, I know, but you gotta maintain the standards.
MT sucks biz-alls and Jonny is crazy to leave Autoblog to go there. It’s like quitting IBM to take a job on the White Star Lines’ newest luxury liner, “Titanic”.
JB…
I agree.
I have two sights I watch and read throughout the day; TTAC and Autoblog.
I read one for the constant update on headlines and news, the other for in-depth writing and reviews.
But don’t read the MT sight often. Just about enough to reinforce my opinion.
It is like reading Time or Newsweek. Rags for the toilet.
You put them down and shake your head.
But you know, it is all about the money some times. I must admit I have often done things I preach against…for money.
And having spent a professional life in sales, I fully understand how one sells one’s soul for the good life.
And the older, the more we need to compromise.
+1. Who in their right mind would join a bunch of editors that just crowned the Toyota Camry as the best family sedan in America. The same editors that published this: “[The Camry] Seemingly excels at nothing, yet it really excels at everything.”
I mean, seriously.
Omg, totally agree. I hardly ever visit Motor trend! I was asking myself why the hell did he made that move?
The five sites I visit for cars is:
thetruthaboutcars.com <– for the graphs (lol) and some car news
autoblog.com/green.autoblog.com <— most of the car news
leftlanenews.com <— sometime just in case other site miss out on something
insideline.com <– they have very early reviews of cars. They've reviewed the Nissan Juke already! Sheesh, that was posted like 2 months ago.
edmunds.com <– just for their long term tests
I hate Jalopnik.com, they bash on green cars for no reason (serious they do) lul some car blog.
@JB: I concur. He’s good and I wish him well, but my first thought was that The Man is going to absolutely crush our poor little <3erman. I got the feeling that it’s just one of those things he needs to do, regardless of how counterintuitive. Maybe something like a ‘Bull-Durham’ moment; “Yeah, kid; I was in The Show once…”
But I hope he invests what they pay him for a rainy day, because JL at any of the big Marketing-Department-Reacharound mags is like hiring Jimi Hendrix as the 3rd backup guitarist for the Olsen Twins' touring company, 'The My Little Pony Real Fashion for Real Girls Live Music Jamboree'.
I actually remember Jonny from a beer enthusiast website as well and I still remember his relentless mocking of a beer that I homebrewed and to me, now that he’s working for Motor Trend, I consider that criticism a badge of honor.
It’s gotta be thrilling to work for Motor Trend though. Much of luck to him.
The lad has a good face for radio :)
I hope that this works out better than his stint over at Edmunds…
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Jonny’s RS4 review was awesome and he always seemed like a good guy, but him at Motor Trend makes about as much sense as Brock Yates writing for TTAC.
Best of luck to him nonetheless.
the RS4 review may have been what enamoured me to TTAC. “forget violence, you are now driving war.”
“…valves open in the mufflers changing the sound from Howard Dean’s scream to Gunnery Sgt. Hartman showing Joker his war face.”
Big mistake. Print is dead. And MT is one of the most corrupt of a corrupt breed. They don’t tell the truth about cars. My advise: if you sell out, make sure you get a LOT of money.
Good advi[c]e, but the way I see it, MT is just trying to buy some TTAC cred, and Jonny has that. His SX4 review is still burned into my brain. It’s just sad that the chaos of today’s “interesting times” has led to this turn of events. This, too, shall pass. And even then, Jonny will no doubt land on his feet.
MT isn’t my favorite, but print will never truly die. Yes, the blogs get the news out faster, and yes the internet forums have more in depth discussion about what’s going on in the industry, but at the end of the day, I can’t unfold a copy of TTAC to read while I’m taking a dump. For that, my subscription to Automobile, which is about $9 per year with the specials they have running, is worth it.
Good luck Jonny. Revel in the fact that you are now going to get paid to go on vacations to exotic locales and drive vehicles than most people lust over but will never have the chance to get behind the wheel of. If, at the end of the day, it means that you have to jerry-rig a way for a Camry to win a comparo to keep the advertising dollars flowing we’ll forgive you, after all, most of us would do the same thing to get a gig like that.
My advise: if you sell out, make sure you get a LOT of money.
IIRC, it was PJ O’Rourke who quipped that “Principles don’t make car payments.”
I’ve done so myself for a check (or ten). Lieberman is talented, best of luck to him. Maybe he can make MT work. I rarely read it – but I’ll visit more now that he’s there…
Surf the wave correctly and you can earn the chips necessary to do what you really want to do. The hard part is to not succumb to the comforts of the sold-out lifestyle. It’s easy to lull yourself into believing that you’ll only do the sell-out job for another year or so . . . and then you’re surprised when five or 10 years pass and your fat as* is glued to the chair.
It’s always easy to criticize others as sell outs but much harder to stay true to oneself. Being true to oneself isn’t always the same thing as following the conventional wisdom, even if pronounced by God Himself.
Good luck, Jonny. Have fun and collect some good stories, printable and not so much.
If Edmunds didn’t suit you, Johnny, I doubt MT would suit you more… but good luck turning around the worst of the buff books single-handedly. ;)
MT is the most hack-tastic of the big 3 car mags. I suspect you’ll get swallowed up by the corporate PR culture there.
Jonny was kind of a brat and Farago was a rational thinking man…Conflict there.
Motor Trend is for the unthinking chumps just like all of the MSM.
A Johnny and Farago comment all on one article? For a moment there, the glory days almost seemed to be back.
Brilliant!
I like Jonny’s writing. I think he is the Henry N. Manney III of these times.
Likely, nothing will change at MT. The 3er will win, the CTS will be a very close second “but, just lacking that Teutonic polish” and the Infinity will be the bang for the buck choice.
Jonny’s prose will make getting there more enjoyable, though.
For Jonny’s sake, I hope MT is bringing back C. Van Tune as Editor-in-Chief. Those were MT’s salad days.
This is about as radical as changing sex. :O
Hmmm! Is that beyond Jonny? Perhaps not! He IS crazy, I think!