Bankruptcy, bailouts, secretive plots to kill electric vehicles - General Motors has been accused of seeking all of these. To help set the record straight, or at least put out the official spin, GM has launched a new 'Facts or Fiction' site that aims to torpedo many of the popular misconceptions about the company.

Among the more interesting are the company's reasons behind ending the EV1 - which center around battery inadequacy - and talk of bankruptcy protection. The company fully denies it is in any way considering bankruptcy, and says its plan will see it through the 'downturn in the U.S. market.' To be fair, both of those statements ring truer than the opposition.

Other claims, however, such as GM's support of the 35mpg CAFE standards, are couched in careful manipulation of the issue. The claim that GM opposes the standards is answered by a statement of support for 35mpg by 2020 - not the currently proposed 2015 deadline. Likewise, the claim that GM clearly anticipated the growth in demand for fuel-efficient cars falls flat, despite recent improvements in the area. If it had truly anticipated the shift, it would already have these cars to market, rather than advancing timetables from 2010 or 2012 to now.

Of course, the entire industry was blindsided by the rapid rise in oil prices over the past 12 months, as was the global economy. So GM can't bear the blame for the situation; neither, however, can they fairly get away with claiming to have foreseen it.

Finally, a few of the 'myths' busted by the site seem hardly credible. For instance, only conspiracy theorists think the car industry is conspiring with the oil industry to hide quick, cheap and easy efficiency improvements. If they existed, they'd be using them at breakneck pace. Another example myth: GM doesn't make cars that people want to buy. Take a test drive of a Cadillac CTS or a Pontiac G8 and try to say that with a straight face.

If that doesn't convince you, consult a sales chart - seven models, including the Cobalt, G6, Aura, Vibe, CTS, Malibu and Enclace, have seen sales increases ranging from 10% to 156% in 2008, despite an overall downturn in the market. That's something worth crowing about, even if there are another two dozen models currently failing to break even.

The site itself is an interesting attempt to engage in a dialogue with the public about GM's and the industry's current situation. While it doesn't allow for direct interaction or user-generated content, it does show that GM is listening and that it has a response, however late.