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Video: Fox News Criticizes DOE Loans to Fisker and Tesla

 
2,341 views Oct 2, 2009

Fox News

Fox News

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While discussing two upstart electric car companies, contributors to the self proclaimed "fair and balanced" Fox News Channel (FNC) have proven that they are not smarter than a fifth grader. Jeff Foxworthy didn't even have to ask a single question.

In reports criticizing recent Department of Energy (DOE) loans offered to Fisker Automotive and Tesla Motors, FNC managed to murder the truth so brutally that hosts, Martha MacCallum and Neil Cavuto should appear on an episode of Cops.

To their credit, Fox correctly reported that the DOE has committed $529 million to Fisker. Beyond that, accuracy was laid to rest, as the segments chided the government for supporting a company with ties to former Democratic Vice President, Al Gore. MacCallum neglected to mention that former Republican Secretary of State, Colin Powell, is a strategic limited partner for the same venture capital firm that Gore represents: KPCB. KPCB has already invested in Fisker, so it's no surprise that they'd lobby the government to do so.

MacCallum also insinuated that all of Fisker's loan money would be spent to create jobs in Finland, mentioning the Nordic country three times in five minutes. In a related report on Your World with Neil Cavuto, FNC contributor, Stephen Moore repeatedly referred to Fisker as "this Finland company." Moore's apparent misunderstanding of when to use the word "Finnish" wasn't his only mistake. While Fisker does plan to assemble their high-profile Karma sedan in Finland, the company is based in Irvine, California and has an engineering office in Pontiac, Michigan.

Moore also mentioned a British company. He seemed to be referring to Tesla Motors, which is based in San Carlos, California and has already produced America's first highway legal all-electric car. The Tesla Roadster is assembled in the U.K.

The following tidbits were among the other convenient omissions in FNC's coverage of the DOE loans:

  • MacCallum questioned how the $89,000 Fisker Karma would "make any impact on people who are just trying to buy a good car that's fuel efficient? They cannot afford to buy these." Less than one third of Fisker's loan money will be spent to finalize the design of the Karma. 65% of the vehicle's parts will come from U.S. suppliers. The remainder of the loan money will be applied to "Project Nina," Fisker's effort to produce a plug-in hybrid priced at $39,000 after tax credits.
  • MacCallum stated that "There's another company, Tesla Motors, and they got $465 million from the same program. They're building a car that costs $109,000." While these two statements taken independently are true, none of the $465 million will finance the $109,000 U.K.-built Roadster. The loan is intended to help fund the development and production of the future, Model S sedan which will sell for $49,900 after tax credits. The Model S will be built in Southern California.
  • MacCallum mentioned that "There are lots of other companies who applied for this money and didn't get it." In fact, one very American automaker received loan commitments of $5.9 billion - more than ten times the amount of Fisker's loans. They're called Ford Motor Company and they also assemble cars overseas, with foreign-made parts.

In response to the FNC reports, Fisker issued a statement of their own, available in full at their website. Likewise, Tesla offered a blog post earlier this week to clarify how they intend to use the DOE loans.

Check out the FNC segments in full below.

Sources: Fox News, U.S. Department of Energy, Hybrid Cars, Autoblog Green, Media Matters, Fisker Automotive, Tesla Motors





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Comments (14)

  1. rob_s avatar Robert Scardino Posted: 10/2/2009 11:21pm PDT

    Special thanks to Sebastian Blanco with Autoblog Green who highlighted this story today.
     
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  2. rob_s avatar Robert Scardino Posted: 10/2/2009 11:23pm PDT

    Special thanks to Sebastian Blanco with Autoblog Green who highlighted this story today.
     
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  3. By  Eric E Posted: 10/3/2009 1:09am PDT

    Excellent reporting Rob and Sebastian!
    I finally had to quit watching FNC about a year ago. They are anything BUT "fair and balanced".
     
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  4. By russ Posted: 10/3/2009 5:25am PDT

    That is quite a compliment for Fox News! I had never placed their reporting on much past the second grade level - and I am conservative!
     
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  5. By  Chris O Posted: 10/3/2009 5:48am PDT

    There seems to be a pattern of Fisker/Tesla bashing going on in US media (click the link associated with my screen name for a Businessweek article with the same general drift). It seems that after their bailout and sucking up most of the funds Fox is referring to Detroit is confident again and up to it's old tricks i.e mobilising it's allies to destroy innovative newcomers on the auto market. Remember Tucker and Delorean!
     
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  6. By Jason M. Hendler Posted: 10/3/2009 6:24am PDT

    If Fox News and Business Week came up short on facts regarding Tesla Motors and Fisker Automotive, then Tesla and Fisker are to blame. Without their recent postings presenting all the facts, one would be hard pressed to find that information about American content, etc. on their websites. I was aware of the facts only because I've read every scrap of new on Tesla and Fisker for the past several years.
     
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  7. rob_s avatar Robert Scardino Posted: 10/3/2009 7:54am PDT

    That's bologna Jason. A single visit to the DOE website makes most of the pertinent information available: http://www.energy.gov/news2009/8050.htm
    That's the least of the research FNC could have done in preparation for their stories. If they're going to call themselves Fox NEWS CHANNEL, then they have a responsibility to research and present the NEWS. What they gave us instead was propaganda.
     
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  8. By Tim Posted: 10/3/2009 11:04am PDT

    It's ONLY a "loan" if there is sufficient collateral and sufficient credit rating for a high chance of repayment. If these existed at Fisker and Tesla, the Banks would be jumping through FIRE to give them a loan and investors would be climbing over each other to buy a part of the company.
    The US Gov't should NOT be "loaning" OUR tax money when WE are in over $10 TRILLION debt. THIS is central planning and GAMBLING with other people's debt!
    The IDIOT Progressive Keynesians thinks that MORE Gov't Central Planning is "change". We’ve been under assault by Progressive-Corporatists since 1913 with the Fed using fiat currency and artificial interest rates to create & pop bubbles yet Progressives (liberals without a brain) wonder why American is in trouble.
    Learn REAL economics at (mises.org) & Rediscover Liberty!
     
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  9. By Jason M. Hendler Posted: 10/3/2009 1:12pm PDT

    Rob, with all due respect, most is not all. On the surface, it does appear that these are foreign built, as the Tesla Roadster comes from Lotus with everything but a battery and the Fisker Karma being built in Finland.
    True, Fox News need an alternative fuel vehicle expert to call to check their facts, so I happily volunteer. Else I nominate Lyle Dennis.
     
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  10. By Rich Posted: 10/3/2009 4:36pm PDT

    To Jason, If you refer to the site listed by Rob it gives factual information about the loans. This information was not reported by Fox News. Instead, they came up with a story to report. Read the site listed, it breaks down the loan correctly, Fox did not refer to this site, ignoring the DOE who issues the loan. How is this reporting? Tesla may present some misleading info, but Fisker is typically upfront. More upfront than most automakers.
     
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  11. By Jason M. Hendler Posted: 10/4/2009 5:33am PDT

    Rich,
    I don't deny that Fox News was short on the facts that could be found through the DOE or numerous other articles that could be found on the web.
    My point is that Tesla and Fisker should have made certain facts, like the American content of their currently foreign built vehicles, clear to an casual reader of their website. When you receive such large loans from the US, you must anticipate exactly those questions raised by Fox News.
     
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  12. By Roger Klee Posted: 10/4/2009 9:10am PDT

    “(Please freely repost this)
    This funding for the car companies was all "pay to play", insider, self-dealing. The companies that were turned down had the exact same things in common:
    1. They did not pay hundreds of thousands to buy influence. This is on public record and can be investigation under lobby and cost filings.
    2. They did not make campaign contributions.
    3. Each of the reasons they were told they were turned down were violated with each of the companies that did get money.
    4. They were doing all of the work in the U.S. unlike those who did get the money.
    5. They had a car design and those who got the money were “thinking about doing a car design”.
    6. You could not draw a line from them to a politician or a person who made money or political gain unlike those who did get the money.
    It was a crooked set of deals and the regulatory, law enforcement and voters need to make some noise about this.”
     
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  13. By Shock Me Posted: 10/4/2009 5:29pm PDT

    Isn't "this Finnish Company" in fact the the contract builder Valmet? Do they plan to charge Fisker nothing for their services? $500 million in one pocket allows them to to pull $500 million out of the other. So it can't be said where the money will come from to pay off Valmet until (or if) a plant is built here.
     
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  14. By Gene Posted: 7/9/2010 6:19am PDT

    Tesla and Fisker.
    Both hand-outs, not loans.
    Loans are collateralized.
    I resent our government picking winners and losers, and loaning OUR money, make that gambling with our kid's deficit. If you don't have a problem with this, then forget watching the news, because you're a moron.
    http://www.atvmloan.energy.gov/keydocs/fiskerconditionalcom.pdf
    search for the word collateral in this document. It is not there.
    Fire everyone in government that just blew $529M and $565M of our money.
    Our current government and administration is out of control. Vote for real change in Nov. 2010, and 2012.
     
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