Car maven from Altoona forges career as auto show radio host, and pushes carmakers for inclusion
Sierra A. Porter
Des Moines Register
Ken Chester stands in an East Side sound studio on University Avenue, shuffling through the pages of his script as he records segments of a radio show that will be distributed to small-market stations across several states, including Iowa.
The syndicated show, recorded in one- and two-hour formats, and related short features require about 12 hours a week to prepare and produce. Chester doesn't mind. The subject is one he loves: cars.
Born in Worcester, Massachusetts, the Altoona's resident's love for vehicles began at age 3 through his father, who worked as a mechanic.
"One of my earliest memories was my father picking me up as a little boy, putting me in the front seat of the car," said Chester, now 62.
What he does mind is what he says are institutional barriers that keep him and other self-employed Black automotive journalists from getting the access and recognition they need to expand their audience and influence. He's part of a coalition working for change in the automobile industry.
Whatever the obstacles, Chester always has found a way to keep a link to the car business. Even before he graduated from high school, he worked as an auto salesman. Attending Suffolk University in Boston, he graduated in 1980 with a degree in accounting.
Recruited for a financial associate development program by then-telephone service giant GTE, he worked at subsidiaries around the country, including in Grinnell, where he said he and his wife came to love Iowa. When the program ended, the Grinnell office made a job offer and he jumped at it. He's resided in Iowa ever since, despite job changes.
In the late 1980s, Chester, who had relocated to the Des Moines metro, began writing freelance articles about cars, and taking photos to go with them. He formed the Motor News Media company to market his work. Among his clients: the Des Moines Register, for which he wrote steadily across two decades, appearing frequently as the "On the Road" columnist and receiving mentoring as a writer from then-features editor Bob Shaw.
He also ran an auto buying service, locating for customers the cars they wanted and then helping them negotiate the purchase. And in the early 1990s, he worked for a while on a computerized car-buying system that underwent testing at area banks and in Minneapolis-St. Paul.
Further expanding his auto and media experience, Chester befriended longtime WHO morning radio host and then-program director Van Harden, who gave him on-air opportunities.
"Great guy," Harden said. "I hired him to do an auto show on WHO radio a number of years ago. Also, he is my automotive correspondent for car news on my morning radio show."
Harden "gave me a golden opportunity that most people would kill for, and I consider myself highly blessed," said Chester, who also was part of the team that helped his church develop and produce shows for a cable TV channel.
In January 2017, Chester began producing, writing and hosting his automotive radio show, "Roadworthy Drive." The program's motto: "Where mobility and technology meet the open road."
A typical recent episode featured:
A chat about the pros and cons of how Ford's Lincoln division has improved customer satisfaction in the J.D. Power ratings.
Batteries vs. fuel cells for powering alternative vehicles.
Winter car maintenance tips.
Uber's decision to offload its Uber Elevate air taxi division.
Chester's expertise comes through as he moves between topics, talking about finances and engineering and providing consumer advice. He flashes wit and engages in wordplay — for instance, talking about how car companies "slay a forest" to produce all the paperwork required for a vehicle purchase.
As an offbeat bridge between segments, he'll sometimes play a vintage car commercial.
Other programs will feature his reviews of cars, when he can get the chance to try one out. And he also produces one-minute segments that give stations added content between other programming.
"We talk about heavy trucks, about privacy rights and electric vehicles, or the truck driver shortage, safety equipment and car insurance issues," Chester said. "We take a very broad definition of mobility, because that's changing. We talk about the technology that goes with it."
His website lists radio stations in 17 states, from California to New York, that carry either his program or the five "Roadworthy Drive Minutes" he produces each week. The state roster includes Iowa, though none of the stations is in the Des Moines metro. However, the program is accessible as a podcast on Spotify.
Despite its geographical reach, "Roadworthy Drive" is limited so far to smaller markets, and it doesn't earn Chester enough to allow him to quit his regular job as a personal shopper at Hy-Vee.
Without a proven minimum of 65,000 listeners, he can't raise the money from national advertisers, including auto manufacturers, that he would need to broaden his network. And to get the kind of numbers he'd be required to show the agencies that represent those advertisers, he'd need $7,500 for a Nielsen study quantifying his listenership — money he says he can't raise except through advertising.
"Because we can't deliver the numbers, they wouldn't even talk to us. Because they won't talk to us, we can't get the money. Because we can't get the money, we can't build the infrastructure. That is recurring," Chester said.
A further obstacle, he said, is that he and several of his fellow Black automotive journalists aren't able to get the access they need for press tours, news releases, test-drives and other content from the automotive industry.
Chester said the situation, is ironic because he reaches the vast majority of his listeners are on stations that have a mostly white general audience.
"My problem is I get pigeonholed because I'm Black," said Chester. "I can't deliver those numbers, even if I had Nielsen. Ad agencies wouldn't see that; they see small-town numbers in the few markets that are measured that I'm in."
He's joined a group of six of his peers, dubbed the Black Automotive Media Group, who are pushing the auto industry to widen its media outreach. They assert that by failing to do so, the industry is missing opportunities to connect with an African-American market that has, according to Nielsen, $1.4 trillion in buying power in 2020.
"They do not even understand that through us, you have advocates that are expanding your reach, and if we don't have access to these things, we can't push," said Ronda Penrice, an Atlanta writer who is a member of the group.
Amid last summer's unrest following the death of George Floyd, a Black man, at the hands of Minneapolis police, the seven saw an opportunity to press their case with the automakers.
They sent the companies a letter seeking action to improve their representation at automotive press events; allocate funds to help support their websites, shows and other undertakings; and increase Black representation in their executive ranks.
In June, Chester joined a conference call with some of the companies, including General Motors and Honda. He heard promises of change from people such as Joe Jacuzzi, executive director of vehicle brand communications for GM.
When contacted by the Register, Jacuzzi said the company is getting the message.
"We know that a diverse workforce promotes fresh, innovative thinking that translates into both a competitive advantage for not only us, but more importantly for others and our products and our customers, and it is vital, and it is critical," he said.
After the call, Chester said he still believes things aren't going to change overnight. He noted that one major automaker bought advertising on his show. But he said he's waiting to see if, when the coronavirus pandemic is brought under control and the auto industry resumes its promotional events, he and other members of the Black Automotive Media Group will begin getting the sort of access they've been seeking for years.
"Expand your circle," he said he urged them. "It doesn't cost you anything to do. Use your influence within your circle to introduce a person of color who's qualified. If it gives them a chance at the table, that's all we've ever asked for."
Meanwhile, he'll keep helping his listeners keep up with the latest news and views about cars, technology and the joy of driving — even if it's never going to make him rich or famous.
