The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers (Alliance) is the voice of the auto industry; the industry's advocacy group, representing 77% of all the cars and light trucks sold in the United States. Members include BMW Group, Chrysler Group LLC, Ford Motor Company, General Motors Company, Jaguar Land Rover, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz USA, Mitsubishi Motors, Porsche, Toyota and Volkswagen Group of America.
Client:
Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers
Practices:
Trade Associations/Coalitions
Expertise:
Government Relations,Crisis Communications
Our Work
A bill, dubbed ‘Right to Repair’ by supporters, was filed in the Massachusetts Legislature, as it had been in other states across the country. Funded overwhelmingly by the large after-market auto parts stores such as AutoZone, it was claimed that the bill was designed to do nothing more than provide independent auto repairers/mechanics with the same information that dealers had. Currently, proponents claimed, car manufacturers were unfairly withholding that data, leaving independent repairers unable to repair vehicles of certain makes and models because of lack of access to repair data and codes. The Alliance countered, arguing that manufacturers already supplied the same information to mechanics as it did to dealerships, and that the bill was merely a ploy by large, multi-national auto parts companies to obtain intellectual property.
Rasky Baerlein was hired by the Alliance to plan and execute a comprehensive media relations campaign in support of the coalition’s lobbying and government relations efforts at the state level. RSBC helped underscore the real consequences of the legislation and heightened media awareness of the strong industry opposition to the bill.
RSBC worked closely with the lobbying team and members of the Alliance and its allies to develop and coordinate messaging, identify and media train coalition members, draft op-eds, secure and attend editorial board meetings, and manage coverage by television news and talk radio stations. RBSC also took a lead role in elements of the broader campaign including development of a website and advertising campaign, and creation of materials for lobbying efforts. RBSC worked with the Alliance to engage others to become coalition members and mobilize them to be highly effective opponents of the bill in the media and at the Statehouse.
Prior to RBSC’s involvement, most media coverage was framed as the big auto companies versus the small mom-and-pop shops. This in turn led to a number of editorials that called for supporting the small independent repairer (in favor of the bill). Through aggressive and persistent engagement with statewide news media and electronic outlets, RBSC was able to get many reporters and editors to see the issue as it actually was: two big industries battling. Our work resulted in a significant change in the tone of news coverage and earned several editorials in favor of the Alliance’s position, both major accomplishments. Additionally, RBSC crafted and placed several op-eds which ran in newspapers across the state. The bill did not pass during either legislative session.
