Volkswagen Says Name Change News Was a Joke

 

German carmaker Volkswagen says a widely publicized announcement that it was changing its name to "Voltswagen" was meant as a joke.

A volt¹ is a measurement of force in an electrical current.

The German company admitted it had put out a false news release Tuesday announcing that the name of its U.S. branch was being changed to "Voltswagen of America." It said the release was created to publicize a new vehicle in a fun way. The announcement said Volkswagen was launching its all-electric ID.4 sport utility vehicle (SUV).

In a tweet published Tuesday, the company said: "We know, 66 is an unusual age to change your name, but we've always been young at heart. Introducing Voltswagen. Similar to Volkswagen, but with a renewed focus on electric driving."

Many major news organizations, including The Associated Press, Reuters, USA Today, CNBC and The Washington Post, reported the press release as real news. Some, including the AP, said they had been promised by Volkswagen that the news release was not a joke.

The company's actions led to widespread criticism from media companies and social media users.

"The Associated Press was repeatedly assured by Volkswagen that its U.S. (branch) planned a name change, and reported that information, which we now know to be false," AP spokeswoman Lauren Easton said.

The news service corrected its earlier story and published a new one based on the company's admission. Easton added that any purposeful release of false information "hurts accurate journalism³ and the public good."

Other news organizations were also forced to publish new stories with corrected information after Volkswagen's admission.

A spokeswoman for USA Today, Chrissy Terrell, said its reporter asked if the company's news release was a joke and was told "no." She said the false announcement was used as a way "to manipulate respected reporters" from trusted news organizations.

The USA Today business reporter himself, Nathan Bomey, wrote on Twitter: "Dear Volkswagen: You lied to me. You lied to AP, CNBC, Reuters and various trade pubs. This was not a joke. It was deception⁴." He added that the U.S. already has a problem with misinformation and told the company: "Now you're part of it. Why should anyone trust you again?"

Early Tuesday, Volkswagen supported the story and re-released the news. But by late Tuesday, the company had removed the news from its website.

"Volkswagen of America will not be changing its name to Voltswagen. The renaming was designed to be an announcement in the spirit of April Fool's Day," the statement said. April Fool's Day, observed by people in some countries on April 1, is a day to play tricks on others or attempt to fool them.

A spokesman for Volkswagen in Germany told The Wall Street Journal that "we didn't mean to mislead anyone. The whole thing is just a marketing⁵ action to get people talking" about the new ID.4 SUV.

Some critics spoke² about Volkswagen's industry scandal that greatly hurt it in the past. The company was forced to admit in 2015 that some of its cars were equipped with devices that cheated on diesel⁶ emissions⁷ tests.

Dawn Kopecki, a senior editor for CNBC.com, noted⁸ the scandal on Twitter. She tweeted, "Apparently⁹ no one in the approval process at @VW said, hey maybe we shouldn't lie to the press given the whole, you know, emissions lying thing."

Words in This Story

sport utility vehicle (SUV) – n. usually a large vehicle that can drive on simple roads and is meant to be used for recreational purposes as well as general ones

focus – n. the subject on which people place their attention; a main point of interest

assure – v. to tell someone in a very clear way that something will happen or is true

accurate – adj. free from mistakes or errors

manipulate – v. to deal with something in a clever and usually unfair or selfish way

deception – n. to make someone believe something that is not true

scandal – n. an incident that shocks or makes people upset because it is morally or legally wrong

emissions – n. things (usually gasses) that are released from a process

1 volt   

n.伏特，伏

参考例句：

• You may use 100 and 110 volt appliances in your room.您可以在房间使用100及110伏特的电器。
• The common service voltage of electric power in our country is 220/380 volt.我国普通供电电压为220/380伏。

2 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

3 journalism   

n.新闻工作，报业

参考例句：

• He's a teacher but he does some journalism on the side.他是教师，可还兼职做一些新闻工作。
• He had an aptitude for journalism.他有从事新闻工作的才能。

4 deception   

n.欺骗，欺诈；骗局，诡计

参考例句：

• He admitted conspiring to obtain property by deception.他承认曾与人合谋骗取财产。
• He was jailed for two years for fraud and deception.他因为诈骗和欺诈入狱服刑两年。

5 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

6 diesel   

n.柴油发动机，内燃机

参考例句：

• We experimented with diesel engines to drive the pumps.我们试着用柴油机来带动水泵。
• My tractor operates on diesel oil.我的那台拖拉机用柴油开动。

7 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

8 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

9 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。