About Eddie

Eddie Alterman is the Chief Brand Officer of Hearst Autos, which publishes Car and Driver, Road & Track, Autoweek, and other publications for auto enthusiasts, or, let’s be honest - fanatics. 

Eddie was born in Huntington Woods, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit that is, by proximity alone, deeply connected to cars and the stories that come with them. As a young kid, Eddie gained a love of cars from his father, a diehard car enthusiast who taught Eddie that a car isn’t just a car – it’s a story, a collection of memories – like the 1950 Buick that reminds him of that heady time we call adolescence; or the Jaguar E-type, full of stories about his racing heroes and timeless design.

Everyone remembers their first car – Eddie’s was a 1988 VW Golf… mine was a 1992 Toyota Corolla – and just like Eddie’s dad, we associate each of our cars with the stage in our lives when we owned it… the car is forever intertwined with the memories, the physical with the spiritual.

And so, perhaps the most powerful car lesson Eddie’s father imparted was that at the end of the day, more than anything else, cars are more than a pile of metal and leather… they are the conduits to our memories and as such, they are deeply a part of our psyche.

Eddie would go on to absorb this lesson in a big way. While outside of school, his happy place was behind the wheel, in school, he preferred the old fashioned way of storytelling – with a pen and paper. And he nurtured his love of both at the University of Michigan, pursuing a BA in English while working his first job at Automobile Magazine, where he began as a “motor gopher,” responsible for maintaining test cars.

Eddie continued to hone his storytelling skills as a copy editor at Automobile magazine and learned the power of great editing at the New York Times, where he’s been a frequent contributor, penning gems with such pun-tastic titles as “When life hands you lemons, drive them.” 

His platform grew in 2009 when Eddie was named Editor in Chief at Car and Driver, the world’s largest automotive publication. Ten years later, he was elevated to Chief Brand Officer of parent company Hearst Autos, responsible for the editorial and business strategies of the entire portfolio. But don’t think that Eddie grabbed that corner office, donned a blazer and hung up the keys.

Oh no - the self-described car freak spends no less time on the road - for most people, a place to tune out but for him, a place to tune in – all the way in. His ideal drive, off into the sunset, so to speak - is the coastal beauty of a road trip from LA to Big Sur - well technically the sunset would be on your left, but you get the point.

And although Eddie may still be adjusting to being an empty nester, perhaps his silver lining is a bit more driveway space for a few more… automotive story vehicles. 

Books

The Great Gatsby