Tracy Samilton
Tracy Samilton covers the auto beat for Michigan Radio. She has worked for the station for 12 years, and started out as an intern before becoming a part-time and, later, a full-time reporter. Tracy's reports on the auto industry can frequently be heard on Morning Edition and All Things Considered, as well as on Michigan Radio. She considers her coverage of the landmark lawsuit against the University of Michigan for its use of affirmative action a highlight of her reporting career.
Tracy graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in English Literature. Before beginning her journalism career, she spent time working as a legal assistant at various firms in the Ann Arbor area.
-
General Motors and the United Auto Workers sit down soon to negotiate a new contract. Recession fears and slowing sales are concerns, along with allegations of corruption among UAW leaders.
-
General Motors will be the first United Automobile Workers target in contract talks. A perfect storm of tariffs, recession fears, slowing sales and automation costs has led to unhappy union workers.
-
A man infected with measles recently visited a tight-knit Orthodox Jewish community in Michigan. Officials say a lightning-fast communication network within that community kept it from spreading.
-
Voters in Toledo, Ohio, will decide if Lake Erie has legal rights. It's an attempt to amend the city's charter after efforts failed to address toxic algal blooms that affect water supplies.
-
Once again, several big-name automakers won't have reveals or even exhibits at the North American International Auto Show. Organizers of the 54-year-old auto show are struggling to revive it.
-
Michigan and the city of Flint will argue Wednesday that the lawsuit they face over the city's water crisis should be dismissed. States are generally shielded from lawsuits.
-
As much as fully autonomous vehicles are in the news, none of us will be commuting to work in a self-driving car for at least two decades. Meanwhile, Toyota says it will use technology, called V-2-V, in all its cars within a few years with claims it will save thousands of lives each year — as cars talk to each other on the highway.
-
Ford Motor Company is scrambling to find another supplier that can make a key part for its highest profit vehicle, the Ford F-150 pickup, after an explosion and fire at a key parts supplier. Ford has shut down its truck plants, and it's likely there will be a ripple effect because the plant made parts for other automakers, too.
-
Some undocumented immigrants in Flint, Mich., are just finding out that the water from their taps is contaminated with lead. Fear of being deported keeps some from picking up free water and filters.
-
The Environmental Protection Agency is accusing Volkswagen of intentionally dodging clean air rules on nearly half a million vehicles in the U.S. The EPA says Volkswagen installed software called a "defeat device" that only runs full pollution controls during official emissions testing. Under normal driving conditions, the vehicles emit nitrogen oxides at up to 40 times allowable levels, according to the EPA.