What It Takes To Reframe the Narrative About Car Dependency (Grant Ennis)

What It Takes To Reframe the Narrative About Car Dependency (Grant Ennis)

Author: StreetsblogUSA March 28, 2023 Duration: 29:20

"Roadway safety is a shared responsibility, and people in cars and outside of cars play an equal role in keeping each other safe."

"Sprawl is good, actually, because it means people can have big, beautiful houses and some quality alone time on their daily commutes."

"We won't need to worry about transportation emissions or the broader impacts of automobiles on the environment for that much longer, because haven't you heard? electric cars are here!"

Those phrases might spike make the average sustainable transportation advocate's blood pressure spike. But in the world of corporate disinformation, they're simply a handy way to reframe the conversation about car dependency — and to manipulate the public into accept ing the avoidable deaths of their loved ones and their planet. 

On today's episode of The Brake, host Kea Wilson brings you an extended interview with Grant Ennis, author of Dark PR: How Corporate Disinformation Harms Our Health and the Environment. Listen in, and check out a sharable summary of the "nine devious frames" he outlines in his book here. 


You hear a lot about electric cars and futuristic transit, but what about the fundamental shift required to build cities where driving isn't a daily necessity? That's the terrain explored on The Brake: A Streetsblog Podcast. Hosted by the team at StreetsblogUSA, this series moves beyond the headlines to engage with the activists, planners, writers, and community members who are actively reimagining American streets. Each conversation digs into the real-world work of dismantling car dependency, examining the policy choices, cultural norms, and historical decisions that got us here. The discussions are grounded in the intersecting categories of society, commentary, culture, and news, offering a nuanced lens on everything from bike lane debates and public transit equity to the subtle ways our built environment shapes daily life. This isn't just a technical talk about infrastructure; it's about the human stories and the political movement fighting for safer, more connected, and less congested communities. Tune in for a podcast that acts as a vital pit stop for understanding the complex, often frustrating, but ultimately hopeful push to take our foot off the gas and build a different future.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 89

The Brake: A Streetsblog Podcast
Podcast Episodes
How 'Community Mobility Rituals' Can Transform Your Neighborhood [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 34:47
Neighborhood walking tours, group bike rides, and organized strolls in the park aren't typically thought of as front-line strategies to break a city's dependence on automobiles. Some advocates argue that without events l…
Why Sustainable Transportation Advocates Need to Talk About Zoning [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:55
The humble zoning code may be the single most important tool that sustainable transportation advocates can wield in the fight to end car dependence ... if they can make heads or tails of their communities' hundreds of pa…
Episode 5: Where Do Great Bus Stops Come From? (Mary Buchanan) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 22:43
Streetsblog's America's Best Bus Stops Contest is down to its final two contenders. Nationwide, though, the United States have a lot more sorry stops than good ones — and to understand how our top two wonderful waiting a…