Road & Travel Magazine

Last updated
Road & Travel Magazine
American-woman-motorscene-covers.jpg
American Woman Motorscene covers
Editor-in-ChiefCourtney Caldwell [1]
CategoriesAutomobile, Travel, Climate Change Issues, Personal Safety on the Road
FrequencyMonthly
PublisherCaldwell Communications, Inc.
Founded1989
Final issue2000 (print)
CompanyCaldwell Communications, Inc.
CountryUnited States
Based in Los Angeles, CA
Language English
Website www.roadandtravel.com

Road & Travel Magazine (RTM) is an online magazine focusing on automotive, travel, climate change and personal safety issues with a slant towards women. The magazine has its headquarters in Los Angeles, CA. [2]

Contents

History

Road & Travel Magazine was founded in 1989 by Courtney Caldwell [1] [3] under the name American Woman Motorscene. AWM was the first magazine to address the women's automotive market. [4] Pursuing a connection between auto and travel, editors began adding travel content to expand the magazine's audience.

In 2000, AWM became one of the first print publications to transition to an online format. At that time, changed the name to American Woman Road & Travel to more accurately reflect the magazine's editorial content.

As the online version began to gain reader traction worldwide, American Woman was dropped from the title to avoid alienation of non-US and male readership, finally resulting in Road & Travel Magazine, a title that more accurately reflected its lifestyle content to a worldwide audience with an interest in automotive, travel, climate and personal safety topics.

In 2008, RTM added a section dedicated to environmental topics as they related to auto and travel. In 2017, RTM further expanded its content to include the RV and Camping lifestyle markets.

Editorial direction

Road & Travel's primary target audience is women between 25 and 59. Caldwell's editorial vision for RTM was an automotive magazine for the average consumer, one that was not geared toward car enthusiasts, therefore making it the rare lifestyle magazine that targets everyday "in-market" consumers—those looking for information on purchasing autos, trip planning, and safety on the road.

Awards

International Car of the Year Awards In 1996, Road & Travel Magazine launched its annual International Car of the Year Awards (ICOTY) honoring ten new vehicles in ten categories for the upcoming new model year. ICOTY awards became the first awards to honor new vehicles from a theme that reflected lifestyle and life stage; focusing on the emotionally compelling experience consumers have during car buying and ownership. The categories that make up the ICOTY awards are:

Qualifications include vehicles manufactured by American, British, German, Japanese, Korean and Swedish automakers but are sold in America. In order to achieve a balanced perspective on voting that reflects all consumers, not just one gender, RTM engages a diverse group of 12 men and women renowned automotive journalists from the U.S. and Canada in the voting process. This jury of respected writers represents such publications as the Robb Report , Edmunds.com, Winding Road, MSN Autos, [5] AutoWeek, [6] NY Times, and Autoline Detroit. [7] J.D. Power and Associates tabulates votes to ensure credibility and validity. The annual event takes place in Detroit at the onset of press week for the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS). The event is televised by the local CBS affiliate, WWJ-TV and is presented as a TV special on opening weekend of the NAIAS to consumers.

Lifetime Achievement Award In 2004, Road & Travel Magazine introduced an award to honor automotive journalists who have achieved a lifetime of contributions to the automotive industry. The award was designed to acknowledge the talents of those journalists whose lifetime of contributions have helped enrich the world of automobiles. Past recipients include: Denise McCluggage, [8] Jerry Flint, David E. Davis, Jr. and Jim Dunne. (In 1958, McCluggage appeared as a guest challenger on the TV panel show "To Tell The Truth".)

Related Research Articles

Lexus is the luxury vehicle division of the Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corporation. The Lexus brand is marketed in more than 90 countries and territories worldwide and is Japan's largest-selling make of premium cars. It has ranked among the 10 largest Japanese global brands in market value. Lexus is headquartered in Nagoya, Japan. Operational centers are located in Brussels, Belgium, and Plano, Texas, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North American International Auto Show</span> Annual auto show in Detroit, Michigan

The Detroit Auto Show, formerly known as the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS), is an annual auto show held in Detroit, Michigan. Hosted at Huntington Place since 1965, it is among the largest auto shows in North America, and is widely regarded as one of the automotive industry's most important events.

<i>Autoweek</i> Magazine

Autoweek is a car culture publication and magazine based in Detroit, Michigan. It was first published in 1958 and in 1977 the publication was purchased by Crain Communications Inc, its current brand licensor. The magazine was published weekly and focused on motor sports, new car reviews, and old cars, events and DIY. Autoweek now publishes Autoweek.com. Autoweek brand is owned by Crain Communications Inc., publisher of leading industry trade publications Advertising Age and Automotive News, among others, and is based in Detroit, Michigan.

<i>Car and Driver</i> American automotive magazine

Car and Driver is an American automotive enthusiast magazine first published in 1955. In 2006 its total circulation was 1.23 million. It is owned by Hearst Magazines, who purchased it from its prior owner Hachette Filipacchi Media U.S. in 2011. It was founded as Sports Cars Illustrated. The magazine is based in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Honda Ridgeline</span> Mid-size pickup truck

The Honda Ridgeline is a mid-size pickup truck manufactured by Honda. Currently the company's only pickup, it is built using a unibody frame and a transverse-mounted engine. It is offered only in a crew–cab short-box configuration with one powertrain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Automotive Hall of Fame</span> Hall of fame and museum in Dearborn, Michigan, United States

The Automotive Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum honoring influential figures in the history of the automotive industry. Located in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, US. The Hall of Fame is part of the MotorCities National Heritage Area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance</span> Annual classic automobile show held in Pebble Beach, California

The Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance is an annual automotive event held on the Pebble Beach Golf Links in Pebble Beach, California. It is widely considered the most prestigious car show in the world and it is the pinnacle Concours d'Elegance competition worldwide.

PowerNation is a programming block of automotive how-to enthusiast television programs that began originally as the PowerBlock. It is currently produced by Gray Media, which purchased the assets of PowerNation's former owner Raycom Media in 2019. PowerNation consists of a block of automotive enthusiast shows including Engine Power, XOR , Truck Tech, and Detroit Muscle. PowerNation airs on the History Channel, and also features content on its own through a digital media player app available on the Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV and Roku platforms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International Car of the Year</span>

The International Car of the Year (ICOTY) awards are one of several annual "car of the year" awards around the world for new automobile models judged to be the best of their generation. This one is presented by the United States magazine Road & Travel Magazine. Awards are given under ten different categories to new vehicles manufactured internationally and available on the US market. The awards ceremony is attended by 600 industry leaders and media on the evening before Press Days at the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS). The awards have been presented annually since 1997.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Volkswagen Microbus/Bulli concept vehicles</span> Motor vehicle

The Volkswagen Microbus/Bulli concept vehicles are a series of concept cars that are styled to recall the original Volkswagen Microbus built by Volkswagen AG. The first of these was the Volkswagen Microbus Concept Car, first presented at the 2001 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS).

Jean Marie Jennings was an American journalist, publisher and television personality covering the automotive industry. She was widely known for her unabashed, enthusiastic and outspoken approach; for making the industry more accessible to a broad cross-section of enthusiasts; and for mentoring a generation of automotive writers, editors and designers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ed Welburn</span> American automobile designer (born 1950)

Edward Thomas Welburn Jr. is an automobile designer and former General Motors' Vice President of Global Design, a role in which he served from 2003 to 2016 and the same position that Harley Earl and Bill Mitchell once held. To date, Welburn still holds the distinction of having been the highest-ranking Black-American in the global automotive industry. He has overseen the development of recent GM products, such as the Chevrolet Corvette, Cadillac Escalade and Chevrolet Camaro. Welburn has overseen groundbreaking concepts such as:the Oldsmobile Aerotech, Cadillac Ciel, and Buick Avista.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Denise McCluggage</span> American journalist

Denise McCluggage was an American auto racing driver, journalist, author and photographer. McCluggage was a pioneer of equality for women in the U.S., both in motorsports and in journalism. She was born in El Dorado, Kansas, and spent her childhood in that state. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Mills College in Oakland, California. She began her career as a journalist at the San Francisco Chronicle.

<i>Petersens 4-Wheel & Off-Road</i> American automobile magazine

Petersen's 4-Wheel & Off-Road was an automobile magazine dedicated to 4x4 and off-road trucks and SUVs. The first issue was published in 1977; it began as a special-interest publication from the editors of Hot Rod magazine. 4-Wheel & Off-Road covered a range of topics for the do-it-yourself light-truck enthusiast, including real-world 4x4 performance modifications, new products and product evaluations, off-road event coverage, new-vehicle evaluations, travel, and lifestyle. In March 1978, the magazine officially became a monthly publication, and in 2013, 4-Wheel & Off-Road celebrated its 35th anniversary. It was published by the Motor Trend Group. On December 6, 2019, magazine-publishing industry news outlet Folio: reported the magazine was among 19 publications to be discontinued by Motor Trend Group by the end of 2019.

AutoIndustriya.com is a Philippine-based online automobile magazine. It is considered the longest consistently running independent automotive online publication in the Philippines.

Hagerty, Inc. is an American automotive lifestyle and membership company, as well as the world's largest provider of specialty insurance for classic vehicles. Hagerty is based in Traverse City, Michigan and also operates in Canada, Germany and the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chrysler Pacifica (minivan)</span> American minivan built by Chrysler

The Chrysler Pacifica is a minivan produced by the Chrysler division of Stellantis. It is unrelated to the discontinued crossover and concept vehicles by the same name and replaced the Chrysler Town & Country for the 2017 model year. It is positioned as the higher-end Chrysler minivan, above the Dodge Grand Caravan until 2020 and above the Chrysler Voyager since 2020.

Motorsport Network is an American media and technology company headquartered in Miami, Florida and London, UK. The company's proprietary brands, websites and OTT operations focus on motor racing and consumer automotive content serving and presenting content to audiences worldwide. The privately held business was founded in 2015 with the acquisition of Motorsport.com and now operates international digital, videogame, print, e-commerce & event businesses.

Jim Dunne was a noted test-track engineer, journalist, editor, author and regular contributor to automotive publications, including Popular Science, Road & Track, Automotive News, Autoweek, The Drive, Motor Trend, Ward's Automotive, and Leftlane News. In addition to serving as Detroit editor of Popular Mechanics and Popular Science magazines, Dunne is widely known as one of the industry's preeminent automotive spy photographers.

References

  1. 1 2 "Courtney Caldwell. Editor-in-chief of the magazine". Women Drivers. Archived from the original on March 21, 2009. Retrieved November 14, 2015.
  2. "Public Relations". Road & Travel. Retrieved November 14, 2015.
  3. "Courtney Caldwell". Roadandtravel.com. Retrieved January 30, 2011.
  4. "Magazine founder". Roadandtravel.com. Retrieved January 30, 2011.
  5. "MSN Autos". MSN. February 22, 2010. Retrieved January 30, 2011.[ permanent dead link ]
  6. "AutoWeek" . Retrieved January 30, 2011.
  7. "Autoline Detroit". Autolink. Retrieved January 30, 2011.
  8. Denise McCluggage, TheCarConnection.com Archived February 13, 2007, at the Wayback Machine