Trend-spotting and ecars

On January 18th my inbox had an email : My Alerts: NYT-ecars (5 articles) which made me sit up immediately. I know, you are wondering: why? You see, my strategy for alerts is minimalistic: I put alerts for what I think are obscure topics from a media perspective- so I am not bothered by those pesky emails. It's not just a matter of self defense (or your inbox will overtake you) - its also because I use alerts are for trend-spotting. In the long-long time that I have had an alert out for ecars, I don't think I have seen a total of 5 articles in the New York Times and here I am - 5 in one alert! Not only that - these were good stories:

Renault Pledges to Keep a French Factory Busy
By DAVID JOLLY (NYT) : Carlos Ghosn, the chief executive of Renault, met with French officials to address concerns that the carmaker was intent on sending jobs to Turkey.

Renault Pledges to Build New Electric Vehicle in France
By DAVID JOLLY (NYT) : Renault said it would split production of its new Clio model between France and Turkey and would produce its new electric vehicle entirely in a plant near Paris.

Finally, Some Electricity in the Air
By LAWRENCE ULRICH (NYT) : With some storied brands dead or dying, and upper-crust manufacturers as no-shows in Detroit, the show floor had room for Chinese hybrids, Korean electrics and more.

Chinese Maker Hopes to Offer Electric Car for U.S. by Year-End
By NICK BUNKLEY (NYT) : Many Chinese companies have planned. BYD Auto is better prepared.

A Future That Doesn’t Guzzle
By BILL VLASIC and NICK BUNKLEY (NYT) : Automakers unveiled many hybrid gas-electric and battery-powered cars at the Detroit auto show, a sign of how much emphasis is being placed on the electrification of vehicles.

So of course I followed up;  read that the Nano (TATA) had created a stir at the Detroit Auto show - I follow Reva, Tesla and Nano -  and of course read that Tesla is planning IPO. The San Jose Mercury News is having a week of Green Jobs. I could have almost predicted my most recent alert (and you can too right?)
On Feb 1 my inbox has an email: My Alerts: NYT-ecars (2 articles):

An Electric Boost for Bicyclists
By J. DAVID GOODMAN (NYT) : The booming Chinese electric-bike industry is spurring impressive sales in India, Europe and the U.S.

Tesla Motors Plans Public Offering to Raise $100 Million
By CLAIRE CAIN MILLER (NYT) : The filing from Tesla Motors represents a landmark in the resurgence of electric car technology that most car makers until recently had dismissed as impractical.

Yup - it sure feels good to predict a headline.