Posted on 03/27/2004 5:07:37 AM PST by Oldeconomybuyer
(1010 WINS) (NEW YORK) The publisher of a book by disgraced journalist Jayson Blair has sued the New York Daily News and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution for breaking an embargo on publication of excerpts from Blair's book detailing his rise and fall at The New York Times.
The lawsuits filed by New Millenium Entertainment this week alleged multiple violations including copyright infringement, breach of contract and violation of the California Uniform Trade Secrets Act.
The suits also named Daily News reporter Paul Colford and Journal-Constitution book reviewer Teresa Weaver. They claimed that the advance publication of excerpts from "Burning Down My Master's House" interfered with the publicity campaign for the book.
"Plaintiff had orchestrated, at great cost, a mass media publicity campaign to coincide with the release of the book," said the lawsuits.
They said reviewers who were given advance copies, including Weaver, were required to sign an agreement that they would not publish their reviews until after the March 6 publication date. In addition, it said that reviewers agreed not to disclose any of the book's contents to anyone prior to its release.
The publisher said it did not provide a copy to the Daily News nor did it indicate how they obtained it.
Both the Daily News and the New York Times, Blair's former employer, published stories about the book on Feb. 27, but did not say how they obtained the book. No suit was filed against the Times.
The suits said that on Feb. 27, the Daily News published excerpts from the book and on March 4, the Journal-Constitution published Weaver's review.
The book recounts Blair's career at the Times, which he left last spring after being accused of plagiarism. A review by the newspaper uncovered errors and fabrications in three dozen stories.
Spokesmen for the two newspapers said they could not comment because they had not seen the suit. A spokesman for New Millenium also declined comment. The publisher, based in Beverly Hills, picked up the book after New York publishers expressed little interest.
The AP has reported that the book has not been selling well and was widely panned by critics.
LOL! 'Nuff said - Bring on the lawyers!
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