Defending Our Stories

As a freelance writer, contributor to many off-road publications and former magazine editor, one argument from readers/consumers that always seems to come up is that magazine editors are sell-outs. Or I should say, their machine comparisons or “shootout” results are based on advertising dollars. They say, “Read the story and then check the ads…that usually determines the shootout winner.” Never has this been more wrong in terms of my work and the work of any of the magazines from Affinity Powersports (ATV Magazine, ATV Sport, UTV Magazine). Since 1998 – my start – I’ve followed the lead of many honest, true magazine leaders and ethical journalists like Glenn Hansen (former Suzuki exec.), Chaz Rice (now with Can-Am), current ATV Magazine Editor John Prusak and many others.

An industry friend of mine, and former co-worker, recently brought this to light in a Q&A he did with my buddy John Pellan at ATVscene.com. Pellan asked KTM’s Chris Vogtman (a former magazine editor himself) what he missed most and doesn’t miss about being in the ATV magazine field.

Here’s the Excerpt:

(SOURCE: ATVScene.com)

“What don’t you miss?

“I don’t miss people constantly saying the shootouts I took part in at ATV Sport and ATV Magazine were brand slanted and advertising biased. I can’t speak for the other magazines, but the editorial staff at Affinity Group always put out and continues to put out unbiased articles with sound data backing their results. Testing machines and anointing a shootout winner was always a difficult task. No matter what, a reader with heavy brand loyalties would get offended. And, now that I’m on the other side, I can’t say I blame them [Laughing]. But, I felt we always did it the right way at Affinity Group, and I have seen firsthand that they continue on that tradition when KTM is invited to their shootouts.” — Vogtman

“I couldn’t agree more. As a matter of fact I made reference to this the other day when I pointed out ATV Magazine’s killer Utility 4×4 Shootout that Bill Lanphier wrote. I rode all but one of those big utes and their feature was spot on and completely unbiased in my opinion.” — Pellan

I also bring this up because a recent ATV Magazine article was under attack from forum users for a couple errors and what some readers called a “bias slant” or “conspiracy theory.” The errors were addressed and a correction will run (as that is what a magazine does when it makes a mistake). Above all, Vogtman’s quote sends the message that these mags don’t fluff it up, don’t create unfair results and do provide legitimate content that is often backed by the ATV manufacturers, all of which attend the annual ATV Trials testing event (and many rode WITH the test team). Do they agree with every result and editorial conclusion? Of course not, but they respect the results as we respect their partnership in the industry and participation in the event. It’s mutual respect and that goes a long way. I firmly believe that both Hansen and Rice would agree with Vogtman’s assessment, as they too have seen both sides and know the value of editorial integrity.

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