How does USA Weekend handle green cars? Lightly

/
Whenever a topic like green cars makes a diluted appearance in a mass-market publication like USA Weekend (from USA Today), it's worth checking in to see what the writers (or, more likely, the editors) got right and wrong. This past weekend, USA Weekend published its annual auto issue, and green was the new black.
The paper said that, "46 alternative-fuel vehicles already on the road." A clarifying comment about the difference between vehicles that are E85-capable and those actually running on biofuel doesn't come until many paragraphs later and in a different context. Issues surrounding the production of ethanol are not mentioned at all. Also, there is no mention of diesel technology (except for in an article reprinted from Car & Driver) and biodiesel is glossed over.

USA Weekend gets it right that EVs are great for the environment, even taking the "long tailpipe" argument into consideration, and the article builds up the upcoming smart and Miles vehicles coming to the U.S. next year and beyond. If you're a regular reader of AutoblogGreen, there's no compelling reason to read the article. But it is a semi-useful primer if you need one.

[Source: USA Weekend]

More Information