Sonari Glinton
Sonari Glinton is a NPR Business Desk Correspondent based at our NPR West bureau. He covers the auto industry, consumer goods, and consumer behavior, as well as marketing and advertising for NPR and Planet Money.
In this position, which he has held since late 2010, Glinton has tackled big stories including GM's road back to profitability and Toyota's continuing struggles. In addition, Glinton covered the 2012 presidential race, the Winter Olympics in Sochi, as well as the U.S. Senate and House for NPR.
Glinton came to NPR in August 2007 and worked as a producer for All Things Considered. Over the years Glinton has produced dozen of segments about the great American Song Book and pop culture for NPR's signature programs most notably the 50 Great Voices piece on Nat King Cole feature he produced for Robert Siegel.
Glinton began his public radio career as an intern at Member station WBEZ in Chicago. He worked his way through his public radio internships working for Chicago Jazz impresario Joe Segal, waiting tables and meeting legends such as Ray Brown, Oscar Brown Jr., Marian MacPartland, Ed Thigpen, Ernestine Andersen, and Betty Carter.
Glinton attended Boston University. A Sinatra fan since his mid-teens, Glinton's first forays into journalism were album revues and a college jazz show at Boston University's WTBU. In his spare time Glinton indulges his passions for baking, vinyl albums, and the evolution of the Billboard charts.
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The vehicles are comparatively affordable at $35,000. Tesla says it can't build them fast enough to meet the demand.
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Promoting a future of electric cars, the U.K. will ban sales of new gas and diesel vehicles by 2040. Many European politicians and regulators see electric autos as critical for reducing air pollution.
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Tesla's first Model 3 comes off the assembly line Friday, a pivotal moment for the company. It's Tesla's mass-market electric car — with a $35,000 price. But it faces challenges ramping up production.
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After two record sales years, investors are worrying about the health of the auto industry, especially as automakers are looking toward the future.
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Takata pleaded guilty and agreed to pay $1 billion in a settlement with the Justice Department over its airbags that were prone to rupture. Three Takaya executives have been charged with conspiracy.
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With the rise of self-driving cars, there's a need to define the "five levels of autonomy," referring to the gradual change from driver-assisted to fully automated cars.
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The president-elect tweeted that he had influenced Ford's decision, but Ford says it never planned to close the Louisville, Ky., plant or to reduce jobs there.
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Smith & Wesson Holding Corp. is asking its shareholders to approve a change in the company's name to American Outdoor Brands Corp. Its guns will keep their famous name.
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Overall, sedan sales in the U.S. are expected to show a drop between 6 and 8 percent. Consumers are going for SUVs and trucks instead.
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The smartphone chipmaker has agreed to buy NXP Semiconductors for $38 billion. The deal allows Qualcomm to rely less on the smartphone industry. NXP makes semiconductors for cars.