Chrysler spills the beans, breaks own embargo on pickup
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Since the first journalists chiseled their first notes into tablets of stone, reporters and the people/companies they cover have dealt in "embargoed" information: advance details about a product or event provided with the understanding that a story wouldn't be published or broadcast until a specified date.
And woe to the reporter who breaks the embargo and goes with the story early.
But when a company blows its own embargo, there's no one to blame but itself.
That's what happened last week when Chrysler spilled the beans on the upcoming 2013 Ram pickup -- details that had been provided to reporters in December on an embargoed basis.
Buried in a March 6 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission was the revelation that the upcoming Ram will have the 285-hp Pentastar V-6 engine and a new eight-speed transmission -- a combination expected to provide a nice bump in fuel economy.
A company spokesman seemed genuinely surprised that the powertrain details had been made public prior to the truck's introduction next month and said he had to inform executives before making a comment.
Even more surprising: Chrysler blew its own embargo when it didn't have to. Because it's not a publicly traded company, filings with the SEC are voluntary.
