Gawker: Gm

Wrigley's, GM Pull Ads from Skins

Adrian Chen — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 16:43:18 EST

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Wrigley's gum just pulled its ads from MTV's teen drama Skins because the show is too sexxy. Taco Bell and GM have done the same. From now on, all teens must have sex in Fords while chewing Trident. More »

Here Is a 300 MPG See-Through Car

Henry Baker — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 16:45:03 EDT

Attack of the Show last night profiled two new "green" concept cars; the GM En-V, which looks like a bubbly deathtrap with unimpressive specs (only 24 miles on a charge?), and a group of students' Bridgestone F1-style 300 MPG roadster. More »

You Could Be Eating This 'Frankenfish' in 18 Months

Max Read — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 02:47:41 EDT

Hey, America: Time to get excited! Why? Because a year and a half from now you could be eating the very first genetically-modified animal approved for public consumption: The AquAdvantage® salmon! Assuming it passes the approval process, which began Wednesday. More »

Those of Us Who Aren't Killed and Eaten Have a Bright Economic Future

Hamilton Nolan — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:06:32 EST

The Way We Live Now: Rearranging the fundamental tenets of reality until everything is just fine. GM's losing billions, which is a huge success. Our wallets have totally disappeared, which is a mark of progress. We're cannibalizing each other. Delicious! More »

Your Name Here

cityfile — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 11:45:00 EST

The GM Building may not be the GM Building for much longer. Naming rights are up for grabs now that the automaker has gone bankrupt. And it's quite an opportunity: "This is the first time since 1968, when General Motors completed construction of the 50-story tower at 767 Fifth Avenue, that the rights to dub perhaps the single most coveted skyscraper in the country—on Fifth Avenue, above the Apple cube, across from the Plaza and Central Park, in the center of what is arguably the country's, if not the world's, most glamorous shopping district—are available." Let's all hope that existing tenant Apple swoops in and lands the deal. Otherwise, the building named after a bankrupt automaker could go back to looking like this, which wouldn't be an improvement at all, now would it? [NYO] More »

Rich Guys Who Got Federal Money Won't Get Richer This Year

John Cook — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 16:03:47 EDT

The Treasury Department's soon-to-be-announced executive pay guidelines will drastically slash cash payouts to executives at GM, Citibank, AIG, Bank of America, and Chrysler. Not on the list: AIG pass-through beneficiary Goldman Sachs. More »

Now Theft-Worthy: Salt

Hamilton Nolan — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 12:47:06 EDT

The Way We Live Now: Broke as a joke from coast to coast. They're selling heroin in Maine. They've sent everyone on furlough in California. And in the Midwest, you can't even leave salt outside without enterprising Americans swiping it. More »

The Apple Building?

cityfile — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 16:30:00 EDT

Darcy Stacom, the commercial real estate broker who convinced Mort Zuckerman's Boston Properties to pay $3.5 billion to buy the GM building in 2008, has suggested that Apple cough up a few bucks and pay Zuckerman for the right to rename the tower, so it doesn't sport the name of a bankrupt automaker. Let's hope Steve Jobs sets aside his health issues and moves quickly on this opportunity to plant a glowing white apple at the top of the skyscraper. Considering Zuckerman has already turned the "Citigroup Center" into "601 Lexington Avenue," the GM building may turn into the much blander-sounding "767 Fifth Avenue" if he doesn't. [Reuters] More »

Labor Relations Expert Mickey Kaus on GM

Pareene — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 13:25:03 EDT

On Friday, noted blogger Mickey Kaus decried the Obama administration's attempts to prolong the inevitable death of shitty car company GM. No one even wants their depressing cars, he noted! On Sunday, it's the fault of "unskilled workers making $28 an hour who have bankrupted their employers." More »

Wall Street: Tuesday Morning

cityfile — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 06:56:00 EDT

• JPMorgan Chase, American Express and Morgan Stanley all announced plans to raise fresh capital today, so they're prepared to repay the taxpayer money they've received as soon as Washington gives them the go-ahead. [WSJ, BN] More »

Why Didn't We Listen to Michael Moore?

Pareene — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 13:51:10 EDT

"Twenty years ago when I made Roger & Me, I tried to warn people about what was ahead for General Motors. Had the power structure and the punditocracy listened, maybe much of this could have been avoided." Hah, really? More »

Who Killed GM?

Pareene — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 11:29:31 EDT

General Motors is bankrupt. Whoops. It was probably going to happen no matter what, but lots of people hoped that bankruptcy would remain a threat that would encourage everyone to band together to save the company. Who is to blame for the death of the American auto industry? More »

Wall Street: Friday Morning

cityfile — Fri, 29 May 2009 06:43:00 EDT

• It looks like General Motors will file for bankruptcy on Monday. [WSJ] More »

Our Great Brands Are Too Big to Fail

Hamilton Nolan — Tue, 26 May 2009 13:08:50 EDT

The Way We Live Now: With the shame of the defeated. We're too dumb to even figure out how to make our biggest companies go bankrupt properly. But we will obstinately stand on the power of our "luxury" brands until they sink in the financial muck and drown us, triumphantly! More »

Pour Faster!

Hamilton Nolan — Thu, 07 May 2009 12:56:03 EDT

The Way We Live Now: At the bottom of a bucket metaphor. GM is burning up the money we all gave it as fast as humanly possible. Bread lines are lengthening. But something's still selling: More »

American Autos are King Again!

Hamilton Nolan — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 12:32:23 EDT

The Way We Live Now: Rollin on Dubs. You can't keep the US auto industry down! Unless "you" are a superior foreign competitor. But if "you" are bankruptcy, forget it. USA car companies are back! More »

Wall Street: Monday Morning

cityfile — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 06:56:00 EDT

• John Thain is striking back at Bank of America in an effort "to restore his sullied reputation," and accusing BofA's CEO, Ken Lewis, of lying. [WSJ] More »

R.I.P Pensions

Pareene — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 10:31:27 EDT

Once GM and Chrysler finally die, there will be no more pension plans left in the entire country (except for former presidents and members of congress). Sorry! More »

Why GM's Still Worth Something

Owen Thomas — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 14:51:46 EDT

General Motors is defaulting on an upcoming $1 billion debt payment. A bankruptcy is "probable," says the CFO. So why isn't the stock at zero already? More »

It's Good to Be a Bankruptcy Attorney

cityfile — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 16:20:00 EDT

Weil Gotchal is one of three major law firms that has asked new associates to hang out until 2011 before showing up to work. The firms are encouraging recruits to push back their start dates on account of the recession, naturally, but Weil may have a harder time pleading poverty as of this afternoon. The firm just requested the largest quarterly fee in bankruptcy history for its work on the Lehman Brothers meltdown. Weil is asking a judge to turn over $55.1 million for the the work it has done over just the past four months—plus expenses, of course—and insiders say it will probably get every penny of it. And Weil is expected to earn another $200 million in the event General Motors files for bankruptcy protection. It isn't often that we wish we'd gone into bankruptcy law. But it looks like today is one of those days. More »

Welcome to the Party, Life Insurers

cityfile — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 06:38:00 EDT

• The Treasury is expected to announce in the next few days that it will be extending bailout funds to a handful of life insurance companies. [WSJ] More »

GM's Last Best Hope

cityfile — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 10:20:00 EDT

Wall Street: Tuesday Morning Headlines

cityfile — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 06:50:00 EDT

• A half-dozen bidders have emerged for AIG's asset management unit, although efforts to sell it have been "complicated," not surprisingly. [WSJ] More »

Grim Job Numbers, More Concern About Detroit

cityfile — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 06:41:00 EDT

• The private sector lost 742,000 jobs during the month of March, substantially more than analysts had been predicting. [WSJ, CNN] More »

Vikram Pandit Will Remain at Citigroup Forever

cityfile — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 13:05:00 EDT

Now that the Obama administration has drop-kicked GM CEO Rick Wagoner, can we expect other poor-performing chief executives to meet a similar fate? You'd certainly think so, especially when it comes to companies like Citigroup, which has received three government bailouts since last fall but has yet to figure out how to go a week without an embarrassing disclosure of one sort or another. Don't get your hopes up. According to "people familiar with the matter," Washington has considered ousting Citi chief Vikram Pandit, "but demurred, in part because of the paucity of candidates to replace him." Maybe Washington should consider pushing Pandit to move ahead with his plan to construct that executive Zen garden? That sure would be an attractive perk to add to the bottom of the job ad on Monster.com. [WSJ] More »

Obama's GM Ultimatum, More Layoffs at UBS

cityfile — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 06:30:00 EDT

• Washington is now playing hard ball: The Obama administration has forced out GM CEO Rick Wagoner and now says the company has 30 days to finalize its alliance with Fiat if it expects to get more bailout cash. [NYT, WSJ] More »

Ken Burns Documentaries No Longer Brought to You By General Motors

Richard Lawson — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 13:18:15 EDT

Burns, the meticulous documentarian who chronicles various lives and movements in American history, has been cut loose by the extremely imperiled GM, after twenty-two years of sponsorship. He's not the only American dreamer they've dropped. More »

Obama's Housing Rescue, Automakers Come for More

cityfile — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 07:21:00 EST

• President Obama is unveiling a $75 billion plan today to help struggling homeowners. A press conference is scheduled for 12:15pm. [WSJ, NYT, CNN] More »

Another Dark Day on Wall Street

cityfile — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 07:16:00 EST

• Stocks are down sharply today over concern about the deepening recession. The stimulus package last week? So much for it restoring confidence. [BN, WSJ] More »

GM's Casual Dress Code Leads To Success

Hamilton Nolan — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 14:42:40 EST

Hey, there's been a huge auto bailout! In this clip, GM execs show up for a press conference in less-than-crisp suits, their way of screwing American taxpayers again (I think). Smug, guys. More »

Auto Rumors, Bonus Talk, More Madoff

cityfile — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 06:38:00 EST

• The Journal is reporting that GM and Chrysler have resumed merger talks, although both companies have denied it. Chrysler has, however, said that it plans to shut down production for a month. [WSJ, Bloomberg, DB] More »

Thursday Headlines

cityfile — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 06:37:00 EST

• The House approved the auto bailout bill yesterday; what will happen when it gets to the Senate is still up in the air. [NYT] More »

Big Three Bailout, Battered Bonuses

cityfile — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 06:17:00 EST

♦ Detroit's Big Three automakers presented new turnaround plans (and their request for $34 billion) to Congress yesterday. [WSJ, Bloomberg] More »

Detroit Hopes the Second Time's the Charm

cityfile — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 06:28:00 EST

♦ The Big Three automakers are putting finishing touches on new business plans to take to Congress this week, part of a last-ditch effort to secure a federal bailout. [WSJ, Bloomberg, NYT] More »

Classic GM Ads: When Times Were Not So Terrible

Hamilton Nolan — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 12:00:34 EST

Poor General Motors Corp may not be around forever if certain auto dealers on a bus ride cannot persuade the federal government to give the failing company $25 billion. Sad! Remember when GM cars ruled the roads, America ruled the world, and men were men? Those were the days. We've collected a gallery of ten classic GM ads from the good old days of the 1930s, to remind you of what once was, and what shall never be again. Weep for your autos: More »

Random Dudes To Hop Bus To DC, Save Auto Industry

Hamilton Nolan — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 12:40:19 EST

America's failing auto companies continue to Get The Message Loud And Clear about Making Real Changes that will Make America Strong Again. They just really, really need that $25 billion government bailout first, okay? Seriously. GM has already promised to give up some of its corporate jets and order cheaper pencils. And now, a bunch of auto industry types are doing what GM's execs should have done in the first place: carpooling to Washington! Though it may be, objectively, the lamest car pool ever: More »

GM Fires Tiger Woods, Pencil Suppliers

Hamilton Nolan — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 15:28:40 EST

Floundering maker of autos GM got slammed for flying its executives to Washington on private jets to beg for a government bailout. They were denied, so now they've decided to cut back on every last unnecessary expense. And today, the company announced that it's going to end its $8 million per year endorsement contract with Tiger Woods. Though GM swears that, hey, this has nothing to do with their desperate quest for a bailout—"the timing...is purely coincidental." (Bullshit, judging purely on outward appearance). Where else is the company cutting costs? Everywhere, starting with the paper towels!: More »

Colmes Departs, Amanpour Scores, Forbes Denies

cityfile — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 11:38:00 EST

♦ Alan Colmes, the "liberal" who supposedly serves as co-host of Hannity & Colmes with Sean Hannity, is leaving the Fox News program at the end of the year. [HuffPo] More »

GM Gives Up Two Jets

cityfile — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 15:47:00 EST

General Motors now says it plans to return two of its five corporate jets following a wee bit of scandal earlier this week. But it's not as if the company simply caved in the face of bad press! "G.M. is saying that the timing is coincidental since it was already in the process of returning two of its corporate jets." Of course it was! Here's a pic of one of the company's Gulfstreams on the tarmac at LaGuardia. [Dealbook] More »

Populist GM Executives Will Muddle Through With Only Three Jets

Hamilton Nolan — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 15:29:51 EST

General Motors caught a leeetle bit of flack this week for flying its executives to Washington on a private jet in order to beg for a taxpayer bailout. "Hey," said politicians, the media, and the general public, "you have less than zero money. Should you really have spent thousands on a private jet?" We would also add, "Shouldn't you have driven a car?" Later GM and its fellow broke automakers left Washington with no money, making this one of the colossal PR fuckups of 2008, and possibly of the preceding decade as well. But everything is different now, because GM is going to have somewhat fewer private jets. So please give them some multiple of billions of dollars okay? More »