New poll shows Michigan public down on domestics

Even as the domestic manufacturers lose the East and West coast, they can always count on Michiganders to buy something from the Big 3, right? A new poll by the Detroit News and WXYZ-TV7 shows that a rather surprising 51 percent think that Detroit is doing a "poor" or "only fair", and that 60 percent are "somewhat" or "very" concerned about the future prospects of the US auto industry.

Industry insiders, however, say that things may not be as bad as they look right now. David Cole from the Center for Automotive Research claims that people don't know what's going on at the Big Three and are "just reacting to the press". While that may be true, the public may also be reacting to their paychecks - or rather the lack thereof. Auto-related employment in the state is down nearly 30 percent in the last six years, and statewide unemployment is among the worst in the nation.

[Source: Detroit News]