Ethics

You may be aware of how automotive journalism has traditionally been a less-than-ethical profession.

There is a bit of debate here in Canada regarding the issue, and suffice to say I thought I’d put down on paper some very quick guidelines for how I choose to conduct myself as a journalist.

• I do not accept any gifts or graft.
• I will honestly and completely portray my experiences and impressions of any test vehicle.
• I will not accept any air travel on executive or business class.
• I will donate all of the Air Miles and frequent flyer points incurred from press events to charity.
• I return all vehicles to manufacturers washed, with a full tank of gas.

This is a skeleton list, which will be refined and added to in the future. Readers: do you trust judgement on a vehicle, possibly the second-biggest purchase of your life, while knowing most auto writers have little or no ethical mettle?