The Exploding Truck That Wasn't
NBC News wanted to show GM's pickup trucks could catch fire on impact. When the trucks didn't cooperate on camera, its investigators wired them to blow up on cue.
- First reportNBC, Dateline
"Waiting to Explode?"
Dateline aired a crash test appearing to show a GM full-size pickup catching fire when struck from the side, presented as evidence the trucks' side-mounted fuel tanks were dangerously prone to igniting.
Washington Post, "NBC Apologizes For Staged Crash, Settles With GM" ↗ - UpdateGeneral Motors
GM says the crash was rigged
GM's own investigators found what NBC hadn't disclosed on air: remote-triggered incendiary devices mounted under the truck near the fuel tank, plus a loosely fitted gas cap, to guarantee a fire on camera. GM sued NBC for defamation and went public with the evidence.
UPI Archives, "GM to withdraw lawsuit after NBC retraction" ↗ - RetractionNBC, Dateline
On-air retraction and apology
NBC read a retraction on the air: "We deeply regret we included the inappropriate demonstration in our Dateline report. We apologize to our viewers and to General Motors." NBC agreed to reimburse GM roughly $2 million for its investigation costs.
UPI Archives, full text of NBC's retraction ↗ - AftermathNBC News
Three producers forced out, correspondent demoted, news president resigns
An investigation NBC commissioned into itself laid the blame on three Dateline producers, who resigned; the correspondent who reported the story was demoted. NBC News president Michael Gartner resigned days later.
Baltimore Sun, "NBC fires producers, demotes reporter for 'Dateline' misstep" ↗
What it teaches
GM's trucks may or may not have had a real defect. What NBC broadcast as proof wasn't evidence of one: it was incendiary devices, wired under the truck by NBC's own investigators, because the crash hadn't cooperated on its own.