Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
Automakers

How to Reframe the Narrative About Car Dependency

Photo: <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/jVWxLStmxPU"Clay Leconey, CC

"Roadway safety is a shared responsibility, and people in cars and outside of cars play an equal role in keeping each other safe."

"Sprawl is good, actually, because it means people can have big, beautiful houses and some quality alone time on their daily commutes."

"We won’t need to worry about transportation emissions or the broader impacts of automobiles on the environment for that much longer, because haven’t you heard? Electric cars are here!"

Those phrases might make the average sustainable transportation advocate's blood pressure spike. But in the world of corporate disinformation, they're simply a handy way to reframe the conversation about car dependency — and to manipulate the public into accepting the avoidable deaths of their loved ones and their planet.

On today's episode of The Brake, host Kea Wilson brings you an extended interview with Grant Ennis, author of Dark PR: How Corporate Disinformation Harms Our Health and the EnvironmentListen below, and check out a sharable summary of the "nine devious frames" he outlines in his book here. 

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

Best of 2024: Yes, People Bike In ‘Bad’ Weather — If We Support Them

Good policy can mean the difference between people getting in the saddle or not — even when Mother Nature is at her worst.

December 26, 2024

Tuesday’s Headlines Are the Reason for the Season

An MTA worker's delightful after-work hobby, a viral sidewalk meme revisited and a few wonkier deep dives to get you through the holidays.

December 24, 2024

Best of 2024: The Real (Disappointing) Reason Why Gen Z Is Getting Fewer Drivers Licenses

Yes, fewer young adults are getting behind the wheel. No, it doesn't mean car culture is doomed.

December 24, 2024

Streetsblog Year in Review: The Biggest Sustainable Transport News of 2024

It was a busy year in the movement to end car dependency — and there's a lot more to come.

December 23, 2024

Monday’s Headlines Are Knocked Out by Greenways

Greenways are helping to revitalize cities, but how well are they integrated into the overall transportation system?

December 23, 2024
See all posts