Take this Reuters article for instance, which has been published and translated by dozens of top newspapers: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-tesla-germany-daimler/ele...
3rd paragraph: "The market for upscale electric cars is Tesla’s to lose, with sales of its entry-level Model 3 sedan expected to reach about 50,000 cars this year and almost double that in 2019."
All sources indicates that Tesla has already produced 50K Model 3. In the first three quarters. There's is still one quarter to go in 2018. And Tesla plan to produce more than 300K Model 3 next year, not 100K.
What kind of error is that? Reuters is aware of this "mistake" and they are not correcting it. All media who published the report and were made aware of the wrong numbers kept it "as is", even though the 50K has already been proven wrong.
How can Reuters and co keep such blatant errors while knowing it's bullshit? For some reasons, the disinformation only increases as Tesla pressures the legacy automakers margin (Tesla surpassed both BMW and Mercedes in US car sales this summer while the German are losing big time).
Reuters & co might not be short themselves. But they knowingly play the short game and kep spreading the FUD ("See these terrible numbers? Who can expect Tesla to turn a profit? Now, let's hear what competitors and short sellers have to say...").