Whispers and Warnings Archive | WritersWeekly.com

Sole Proprietor Magazine/SolePM.com - Publisher threatens to sue Angela in same email he asks for truce. She tells him he's harassing her and wasting her time.
The Ugly Couch / theuglycouch.com - Said they pay in ad...but they don't!
Best Public Relations / bestpr.net - Keeps spamming Angela despite three requests for removal from their list!
Airleaf Publishing and Book Selling / airleaf.com - Bookman Publishing / Bookman Marketing changed their name. Don't be fooled!

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Whispers and Warnings For December 14th

Published on December 14, 2005

This Week:

Sole Proprietor Magazine-Publisher calls Angela a liar and a "ho"
ArcheBooks / archebooks.com-Complaints
Attn: Publishers and marketers pedaling their wares via fax-Junk faxes will be illegal in California on January 1, 2006
Wikipedia-Journalist loses job after scandal

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Whispers and Warnings For December 7th

Published on December 7, 2005

This Week:

Sole Proprietor Magazine / solepm.com / soleproprietormagazine.com - Well? Do they pay or don't they??
Martha Ivery / Infinity Publishing - pled guilty this week! No plea bargain was offered; faces up to 20 years. See this story and this story.
Knight-Ridder Inc. / Akron Beacon Journal - Settlement reached in defamation lawsuit.

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Whispers and Warnings For November 30th

Published on November 30, 2005

This Week:

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Whispers and Warnings For November 23rd

Published on November 23, 2005

This Week:

Xlibris / Xlibris.com - SPAMMERS. Has spammed Angela 6 times this year alone! Two authors also report being spammed by them this week. Emails sent requesting removal are ignored.
Google Print - Why Random House won't let them do it!
Conrad Black - federal prosecutors in Chicago have filed criminal fraud charges against this former newspaper tycoon
Former Maclean's editor - Conrad Black uses magazine's party to serve defamation lawsuit.
AT&T - Bay Directories (phone book publishers) owner Ron Andrews scores one for the little guy!

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Whispers and Warnings For November 16th

Published on November 16, 2005

This Week:

Annie Jennings PR / anniejenningspr.com - Spammed WritersWeekly.com. Any so-called "PR firm" that resorts to spamming should be avoided!
Janet Kay & Associates - case update!
PBS - Columnist says PBS Ignored Facts, Father's Request in Anti-Fatherhood Documentary

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Whispers and Warnings For November 9th

Published on November 9, 2005

This Week:

The Village Magazine / Privilege Media Group International - And yet ANOTHER complaint!
Herald Democrat newspaper and Herald Democrat reporter Vicki Grave - targets of defamation lawsuit filed by mayr.
Time Inc. - Asks judge to bar reporters from seeing defamation settlement; fears copycat suits.
Manager Media Group, publisher of English-language ThaiDay and Thai-language Manager Daily newspapers - Bomb explodes outside office, whose owner is being sued by the Thai prime minister.
Literary Agent Nancy Ellis - strong allegations
PublishAmerica - Scathing article by one of their authors.

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Whispers and Warnings For November 2nd

Published on November 2, 2005

This Week:

The Village Magazine / Privilege Media Group International - Is his "legal counsel" really an attorney?? Don't miss this one!
Debbie Morie or Debbie Moreland - Writers allege no payment for editing work performed.
Pen Knife Press - still spamming!

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Whispers and Warnings For October 26th

Published on October 26, 2005

This Week:

You can see a list of sites that book-editing.com accuse of copyright infringment at the bottom of this page: https://www.book-editing.com/
Earthlink.net - Loses lawsuit brought by bank which tested the 1996 Telecommunications Act that said an Internet provider can't be "treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider."
Movie rights to Encyclopedia Brown appear to be in limbo, despite efforts to land contracts
Publisher Raymond Pryke, owner of the Hesperia Resorter and Valleywide Newspapers - ordered to pay $3 million for libel.
Dayton Daily News - judge dismisses defamation lawsuit against this paper
The Spokesman-Review - Spokane, WA, mayor Jim West threatens to sue the paper for invasion of privacy.

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Whispers and Warnings For October 19th

Published on October 19, 2005

This Week:

The Times (Britain) - Sued for alleged libel.
Village Voice - Sued by former editor for alleged sexual harassment.
Bookner.com - Don't fall for this old one.
Student newspaper adviser settles suit with Indiana school district

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Whispers and Warnings For October 12th

Published on October 12, 2005

This Week:

Janet Kay & Associates - May never be required to pay restitution. Send your complaints here!
XSIQ (International) Pty Ltd / xsiq.com - several writers allege non-payment
Sports Illustrated / Time Inc. - "Texas-El Paso football coach Mike Price felt vindicated after a settlement was reached with Time Inc. over a Sports Illustrated article recounting a night of drinking at a t*pless bar in Florida."
Journal Sentinel - Judge dismisses part of circulation lawsuit.
Manager Media Group Plc, a Thai-language newspaper - To be sued by Thailand's prime minister for defamation.
Ethiopian government drops U.S. lawsuits against journalists

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Whispers and Warnings For October 5th

Published on October 5, 2005

This Week:

Janet Kay & Associates - Expected to plead guilty in November, but WON'T SERVE ANY JAIL TIME! Ridiculous!!
The Westerly Sun in Rhode Island - Sued for alleged libel
The Reporter in Fond du Lac, WI - Sued for alleged civil defamation by petroleum company
Tribune Company, the nation's third-largest newspaper firm - Takes $1 billion hit in lost income-tax case.
Bristol Herald Courier's parent company - Sued for alleged discrimination and wrongful termination.
Google Print - finally sued for copyright violations
Cann Copy & Printing and Tan Tien Publications, two businesses located in San Jose, California - Sued by six leading publishers for allegedly routinely producing unauthorized photocopies of entire textbooks and academic monographs and sold them to college students.

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Whispers and Warnings For September 28th

Published on September 28, 2005

This Week:

BBC - Pays settlement to inventor after libel claim
New Times - Wins lawsuit. Was accused of defamation based on a misleading sub headline.
American Media Inc. - Sued by freelance photographer.
American Fork Citizen New Utah - Man loses defamation lawsuit' ordered to pay this publisher's legal fees
King County Journal - May be sued for defamation
Tate Publishing & Enterprises - responds to criticism on forum here, here and here.

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Whispers and Warnings For September 21st

Published on September 21, 2005

This Week:

Publishers won't rule out lawsuit against Google Print - a digital age test of copyright law
The Star Tribune (Minneapolis) - former ombudsman who sued the paper for age discrimination is returning to write a column on ethics
The Mirror of London - Publishes photos that appear to show actress snorting cocaine...after they lost a libel case to her.
DEPUTY President of the Senate, Senator Ibrahim Mantu in Nigeria - Sued by 35 journalists for alleged libel.
Tate Publishing in Oklahoma - Author reports bad experience.

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Whispers and Warnings For September 14th

Published on September 14, 2005

This Week:

Sunil Gangopadhyay, well-known poet in India, his publisher and editor - on trial for "defiling idol."
Michael Jackson juror trying to get out of book deal.
Parent corporation of Jehovah's Witnesses allegedly tries to shut down Canadian-based website over quotes from their out-of-print texts.
America's Directories, a northern Indiana telephone book publisher - Loses appeal, ordered to pay $200K.
More Ethics Problems for Tampa Tribune reporter
Razor Magazine - ceases print publication; CEO responds to "reporting inaccuracies."
Did Yahoo help send a Chinese journalist to jail?

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Whispers and Warnings For September 7th

Published on September 7, 2005

This Week:

Challenges to library books up 20% in 2004. List of most controversial books is here.
Associated Press - Navy SEALs drop claims against this agency.
The Augusta (Ga.) Chronicle - S.C. high court reinstates libel suit against this paper.
New York Post - Gov. George Pataki said he believed it was illegal for the paper to publish transcripts of tape recordings of private conversations involving him, his wife and top aides and advisers.
Bangkok Post - Nearly 100 journalists of Thailand's oldest English-language newspaper demonstrated in support of editors who they say were fired under pressure from the Thai government.
Coming soon: End user license agreements forbidding book buyers from reselling books?
Israel Broadcasting Authority - Sued for alleged libel.
Google Print - Association of American Publishers upset the search engine will scan thousands of books from the libraries of Harvard, Stanford, Oxford, the University of Michigan, and the New York Public Library, for posting, albeit only brief sections, online.

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Whispers and Warnings For August 31st

Published on August 31, 2005

This Week:

Publish America / PublishAmerica.com - Sued by Encyclopedia Britannica for alleged trademark infringement (Note: link is PDF file.)
The Daily Egyptian - Concedes it failed to follow basic journalistic practices after being hoaxed.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - apologizes after attaching former mayor's name to an Op-Ed column he did not write.
Publisher Shinchosha Co. in Japan - loses libel lawsuit. Ordered to pay 3.3 million yen in compensation for a magazine article that suggested wrong person committed crime.
Numerous lawsuits likely - family of Argentine-born guerrilla, whose photo has appeared on numerous products and in publications since 1960, plan to start suing companies that have used it without authorization.
Self-published, best selling author Kevin Trudeau - Article states author of Natural Cures 'They' Don't Want You to Know About is an ex-con.

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Whispers and Warnings For August 24th

Published on August 24, 2005

This Week:

WritersWorld.co.uk / Graham Cook / WritersWorld Limited - Writer claims he paid this publisher to publish two books, but the books were never published. He claims he filed a lawsuit against this publisher and was then counter-sued for …

Whispers and Warnings For August 17th

Published on August 17, 2005

This Week:

Privilege Media Group International / The Village Magazine - Another complaint - and publisher stops responding to our emails
Libel suits being used to intimidate
Bangkok Post - Faces criminal libel suit for airport runway crack report
Editor-in-Chief of Yes! Magazine and executive editor of Hi! Magazine - Sues movie star for libel (yes, you read that right)
Author of 50 Reasons why Anwar cannot be PM - sued for defamation
Delaware Gazette Co. and Brown Publishing Co. - Sued by three of Ohio's independent newspaper organizations alleging breach of contract

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Whispers and Warnings For August 10th

Published on August 10, 2005

This Week:

Anonymous posters to a blog operated by Independent Newspapers Inc. - Sued for libel
"Inside Edition" / Viacom Inc. - Wins anti-wiretapping, fraud and trespass lawsuit over hidden camera
Rocky Mountain News Deputy Editorial Page Editor - resigns after allegedly lifting passages from a website
The Lawrence Journal-World - Settles With Woman Who Got Robbed After Error in Ad
Random House / Dan Brown, author of The Da Vinci Code - Win plagiarism lawsuit

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Whispers and Warnings For August 3rd

Published on August 3, 2005

This Week:

Book Builders - Now owned by DWJ Media - but previous head of Book Builders may still be working for them.
St. Martins Press, author Augusten Burroughs and Burroughs' agent - Sued by family portrayed in Running With Scissors
The Florida Times-Union - sued by golfer John Daly for defamation
Former CIA officer sues to publish book
The Lawrence Journal-World (Kan.) - Woman claims newspaper typo led thieves to her house

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Whispers and Warnings For July 27th

Published on July 27, 2005

This Week:

The Consumer Economist / consumereconomist.com - Writer alleges non-payment.
Foundation for Thought and Ethics, publisher of an "intelligent design" - Wants to intervene in a federal lawsuit against the Dover Area School District and its board
Vanity Fair magazine - Loses libel suit
Global Contact, publisher of Directory of US Companies - Consumers complain about "the fine print"
Paladin Press of Boulder, Colo. - 'Hit Man' publisher settles Oregon lawsuit

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Whispers and Warnings For July 20th

Published on July 20, 2005

This Week:

VendorPro / vendorpro.com - Spamming once again!
The Village Magazine / thevillagemagazine.com / Privilege Media Group International, Inc. / PMGIntl.com - Writer alleges non-payment and more.
ESLUSA.Org, LLC / Global Public Service, Inc. / Computers-SD.com / CareerChangeUSA.Com - Writer alleges unauthorized use of her article on their website.
Conde Nast - Roman Polanski's Libel Suit Against this firm opens in London
Random House, Inc. - Settles lawsuit against P. Diddy
News of the World - Man loses libel appeal against this pub
Sports Illustrated / Time, Inc. - Federal court clears the way for former Alabama football coach Mike Price to find out the name of a confidential source used by Sports Illustrated.
Michael Moore - Libel suit against him dismissed.
Publisher's Dog Sues Vet in Kentucky - Sorry. Couldn't resist including this one.

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Whispers and Warnings For July 13th

Published on July 13, 2005

This Week:

Savoy Magazine / Monroe Anderson, Editor / Hermene Hartman, Publisher / N'Digo - ndigonline.com / Jazzy Communications / Hartman Publishing Group - Owes writer $3K. Won't provide payment date.
Dayton Dispatch News and the River Cities Star - Being sued by River Cities Beacon. I can't even tell you how bizarre this situation is. Best to click and read for yourself.
Google.com - Publishers say google is offering too much free content when scanning books for their new Google Print service.
Star Tribune - This Minneapolis paper has reached a settlement in age discrimination lawsuit.
The Daily Camera in Boulder, CO - Fights court order not to publish photo.

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Whispers and Warnings For July 6th

Published on July 6, 2005

This Week:

Henri Paratte / Les…

Whispers and Warnings For June 29th

Published on June 29, 2005

This Week:

National Wildlife Federation - Author claims this organization admitted piracy and paid $350,000 for copyright infringement.
Yvonne Vermillion - Website developer has habit of stealing other websites' content when developiong her clients' sites?
Henri Paratte / Les...ditions du Grand Pre' / Henri D. Paratte - We've advised his victim that it's now time to contact the authorities.
Star Tribune - Four advertisers allege Minnesota's largest newspaper inflated its circulation numbers so it could charge more for ads.
The Brownsville Herald - Cleared by the Texas Supreme Court in defamation lawsuit.
British newspapers Daily Mail and The Sunday Times - Sued by Elton John for libel.
Weekly World News / American Media, Inc. - Accused of calling burned police officer one of the 10 ugliest people in the world; offers donation to charity of officer's choice allegedly to avoid lawsuit. Please don't ever buy this trashy tabloid!

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Whispers and Warnings For June 22nd

Published on June 22, 2005

This Week:

Rocky Mountain News - Settles racial Harassment suit
Indianapolis Star - Rejects Religious Discrimination Charges
Newsday - Three former circulation executives charged with conspiracy to commit fraud for a variety of schemes, including use of a shell company, to pump up the papers' circulation at the expense of advertisers, in some instances by as many as 100,000 copies a day, or 20 percent.
UK newspaper Sunday Times - settles libel case brought by Saudi businessman
The Day / theday.com - Apologizes to successful student's mother after making a generalization about kids with "cruddy home lives."
Vancouver Sun - Sued by Tony Robbins for libel
McGraw-Hill Companies - Feds trying to convince this publisher to turn over data that one of its publications collected from a natural gas company under investigation.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch - Ran a lengthy apology Sunday after a local religious ministry complained about errors in recent article.

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Whispers and Warnings For June 15th

Published on June 15, 2005

This Week:

WritersWorld.co.uk / Graham Cook / WritersWorld Limited / WritersWorld.com.es / WritersWorld.fr - And yet another complaint.
Martha Ivery - Finally indicted!
PublishAmerica - hits a new low.
Harper's Magazine - Sued by soldier's family for publishing photo of him in casket.
Illinois Chamber of Commerce, the Illinois Coalition for Jobs, Growth and Prosperity and two of the coalition's officers - Judge tosses former IL State Supreme Court candidate's libel suit against them.
Paparazzi - become targets of criminal probe

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Whispers and Warnings For June 8th

Published on June 8, 2005

This Week:

Josh Dinnerman / JDD Media - Finally paid three writers, but may still owe money to others.
WritersWorld.co.uk / Graham Cook / WritersWorld Limited / WritersWorld.com.es / WritersWorld.fr - Another victim claims he owes them money.
The Greeley Tribune - Sues county official, accusing her of withholding legal advertising in retaliation for an editorial
National Enquirer - Sued by Cameron Diaz for libel
Settlement Reached in Literary Works In Electronic Databases Copyright Litigation
Random House - Sued over Doom biography
Dallas Observer - Supreme Court won't review libel suit over newspaper's satire
Le Monde - French appeals court rules editor-in-chief of Le Monde and the authors of an opinion piece in the paper are guilty of "racial defamation" against Israel and the Jewish people.

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Whispers and Warnings For June 1st

Published on June 1, 2005

This Week:

Plenty magazine - Didn't pay promised kill fee until WritersWeekly stepped in.
The Baltimore Sun - News groups support this paper's appeal against governor
Solanco Sun Ledger, the Sunday News of Lancaster and the New Era of Lancaster - Pennsylvania appeals court reinstates libel suit against these papers.
The Business Journal - This twice-monthly business paper lost a lawsuit filed against the mayor for banning city employees from speaking to reporters.
BBC - Staffers call off planned strike
The Green Bay News-Chronicle - Is going out of business.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - Names new senior vice president for circulation in wake of lawsuit alleging circulation fraud.
Niche Media / Boston Common, along with three new staffers - Sued by Boston Magazine, which alleges theft of advertiser database by three former employees

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Whispers and Warnings For May 25th

Published on May 25, 2005

This Week:

Interesting and disturbing story about book piracy in China.
Mt. Ivy Press and its founder, Jane Daniel - Court upholds $22M Award to authors who claimed this publisher kept royalties that belonged to them and hid the money in offshore accounts.
Joshua Dinnerman / JDD Media - Dishing out lawsuit threats like candy.
The Philadelphia Inquirer - Sued by seven female writers alleging age, gender bias.
Melanie Mills / Lisa Hackney - Previously convicted in Canada for a scheme that bilked writers, may be returned to the U.S. to face more charges. Is accused of hitting her mother with a car.
Bakersfield School District in California - Sued by students trying to prevent principal from censoring student newspaper articles.
San Bernardino County Sun in California - Editors apologize twice for implying murder victims were drug dealers
The Chicago Tribune - Jury finds the paper did NOT libel a former suburban prosecutor.
The Miami Herald - Sued by jockey who claims an article defamed him.

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Whispers and Warnings For May 18th

Published on May 18, 2005

This Week:

Henri Paratte / Les...ditions du Grand Pre' / Henri D. Paratte - Took author's money and, five years later, still no book (but lots of lame excuses!).
The Sun, a British tabloid - being sued by Cameron Diaz for libel
News Group Newspapers, publishers of British pubs News of the World and The Sun - Win lawsuit brought by Romanian man. The publisher had claimed the man had been a prt of a kidnapping plot.
Newsweek - Retracts story that led to 17 deaths.
The Jerusalem Post / Palestine Post Ltd. - Sued by man who claims he was incorrectly labeled a Nazi.
Seattle Post-Intelligencer, one of its reporters and The News Tribune of Tacoma - Sued by scientist who claims the papers falsely blamed his lab work and testimony for the wrongful murder convictions of two Oregon men.
Detroit Free Press - Editor and Publisher accepts responsibility for quotes published without attribution
Orlando Sentinel - Sued by psychiatrist.

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Whispers and Warnings For May 11th

Published on May 11, 2005

This Week:

Professional Jeweler / professionaljeweler.com - Editor caught giving Angela false information. Then he asked to speak to Angela's supervisor. Ha! Don't miss this one.
Janet Kay & Associates / George Titsworth - Trial moved to August.
Military View / Senior View / Joshua Dinnerman - Writer claims non-payment
Olga Wornat, author - Sued by first lady of Mexico
Proceso magazine - Sued by first lady of Mexico for publishing her annulment papers
John Wiley & Sons - Sued a number of eBay sellers in part to get the message out that selling Wiley e-books on eBay is illegal.
Random House, Dan Brown, Sony Pictures and Columbia Pictures divisions - All sued by a man claiming The Da Vinci Code stole ideas from his books.
The Culpeper Citizen, The Free Lance-Star and the Culpeper Star-Exponent - Lose public access lawsuit against county.
Michelle Delio, freelancer - Accused of fabricating dozens of sources for articles on wired.com. Articles by Delio were also removed or altered by Technology Review magazine and Infoworld.

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Whispers and Warnings For May 4th

Published on May 4, 2005

This Week:

Marvel Enterprises / Marvel Comics - Agrees to settle with Spiderman creator. Settlement believed to be $10M.
Famous Poets Society - Poetry.com clone?
Journal Communications Inc. publisher of Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - Sued by advertiser for circulation inflation.
Apple - Angry about book on their chief executive Steve Jobs, plans to remove all John Wiley and Sons books from their 104 stores.
Chicago Tribune - Sued over photo linking man to mob
The Tampa Tribune - Reporter resigns over story with fabrications
VirtualBookWorm.com - Two complaints.

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Whispers and Warnings For April 27th

Published on April 27, 2005

This Week:

Foetry.com - Owner closes site after his identify is revealed...and then reopens. Rebuttal to that article appears here.
The Baltimore Sun - Governor's office says review of paper's alleged errors, distortions was inadequate, lackluster.
American Media and Sylvester Stallone - sued by Sly Magazine LLC for trademark infringement (see third paragraph)
The Source, a hip-hop magazine - Sources say pub is experiencing financial, advertising and circulation woes in the wake of sexual harassment lawsuit.
Cruces Sun-News - Judge refuses to stop publication of article despite magistrate's objections.
e-syndicate.net - Really interesting scenario happening here!

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Whispers and Warnings For April 20th

Published on April 20, 2005

This Week:

Children's Literary Agency - related to ST Literary Agency?
The Observer, a 118-year-old northern New Jersey weekly - Accused of plagiarism.
Regan Media - Jenna Jameson has filed a federal lawsuit against her publishing company, Regan Media.
Jordan Wright, publisher of Planet Collector magazine - Sued by auction house Sotheby's for allegedly obtaining and selling customer list to competitor.
The Buffalo Tree by Adam Rapp - Banned by Muhlenberg, PA school district for graphic s*xual content.
Spotlight Publicity / spotlightpublicity.com - Interesting...
The Los Angeles Times - will publish an editor's note regarding reporter accused of writing flawed story.

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