Times Bomb [Jayson Blair's inside story, from Newsweek]

Newsweek ^ | May 18, 2003 | Seth Minookin and others

[summer]

Times Bomb

Newsweek

.... As the Times meeting was unfolding, Jayson Blair was holed up in an apartment in Manhattan, talking with his lawyer and his literary agent. The week before, friends say, Blair had checked himself out of Silver Hill, a tony inpatient hospital in New Canaan, Conn., where he had been receiving treatment for a history of alcoholism, cocaine abuse and manic depression, NEWSWEEK has learned. ....

...In a conversation with NEWSWEEK, Blair spoke of his feelings since his career went up in flames: "I can't say anything other than the fact that I feel a range of emotions including guilt, shame, sadness, betrayal, freedom and appreciation for those who have stood by me, been tough on me, and have taken the time to understand that there is a deeper story and not to believe everything they read in the newspapers."...

...But Blair's performance, already spotty, seemed to be getting worse. His personal life also seemed to be spinning out of control. His apartment in Brooklyn was littered with broken furniture and rotting food, his landlord said; there was fungus, and mold. When he moved out in the fall of 2002, the place was in such sordid condition his landlord considered taking him to small-claims court to recoup damages. "It was real filth," the landlord told NEWSWEEK. "Imagine using a bathroom for two-and-a-half years and never cleaning it."

....Within months, Blair was circulating drafts of a book proposal on the sniper story in which he discussed his own anger and frustration as an African-American. "[A friend] encouraged me to look for answers about the history of violence in my own family and that of Lee Malvo [the other sniper suspect], suggesting the search would not be in vain, if it at least ended my restless angst," Blair wrote. Later, he told friends that he identified with Malvo....

[aristeides]

Any money Blair gets, can be the object of civil suits. Who did Blair commit torts against that can sue?

[aristeides]

The father, who's an inspector general at the Smithsonian, refused to comment on his son.

[summer]

Re your post #36 - Thanks, Publicus. And, I think you are right, too.

[Publicus]

Raines and others who did nothing to stop that jackass Blair are domestic enemies for they undermine the public's VITAL faith in the efficacy and integrity of our institutions from within.

[ChadGore]

"Later, he [Blair] told friends that he identified with Malvo."

Liberal bias.

[aristeides]

I assume his habits explain why he wasn't willing to travel. He had his dealer in Brooklyn.

[summer]

Who did Blair commit torts against that can sue?

I am not a lawyer, but I think there could be a class action suit against the NYT by at least two groups: (1) the readers of the NYT, who were defrauded of their money and deserve a refund; and (2) the other employees of the NYT, as some of them may still have this wacky notion they are to write the facts in a news story.

[Dog Gone]

Is Blair extorting anything from the Times? Is he threatening to reveal something?

[summer]

Re your post #44 - Yes, I find I have a lot more animosity toward the NYT management who DID NOTHING in this situation than toward the sick guy they employed.

[aristeides]

"Later, he [Blair] told friends that he identified with Malvo."

Could his misreporting of the sniper case have been meant to interfere with the investigation and/or prosecution?

[summer]

Re your post #50 - Well, I heard it reported somewhere in the news that is what the US Attorney's office was investigating.

[summer]

RE my post #47 - I meant to add: And, the reputations of the other NYT reporters were damaged by this matter.

[BunnySlippers]

Howard Kurtz, the host of CNN's "Reliable Sources," was just now on tv talking about this Jayson Blair matter, and Kurtz expressed disgust that now, Jayson Blair will probably be rewarded for his fraud with a mega-money literary contract.

Kurtz said he felt there should be a law, similiar to the Son of Sam law in NY (which prevents convicted criminals from selling their stories), whereby a writer is prohibited from colelcting any profit as a result of journalist fraud.

I just read the MSNBC article and, I too, am outraged that this little creep is going to make big bucks over being a criminal. It's disgusting!

[altura]

interested bump

[Publicus]

"Slickmeister, $12 million book contract after admitting to lying under oath. There's the role model."


Don't worry. I do not expect sales to come anywhere NEAR that figure and the publisher who foolishly bought Willie's willie stories and paid him in advance will take a financial and professional hit.

Hillary's "work" is another book that will tank miserably- just watch- and the publisher who got mixed up with her bs will also suffer adverse financial and professional consequences for doing so.

Eventually, even the isolated, self-important, dim-witted idiots at these publishing houses will see that getting mixed up with the Clintoons and their ilk is a very, VERY costly venture. (Ask the American people, the United States has STILL not yet recovered from the damage those parasites have inflicted to the country.)

[BunnySlippers]

I found it amuzing that the article said his apartment had broken furniture and rotting food all around. The manager said "imagine living in an apartment for 2 1/2 years and using a bathroom that you never cleaned". Yuck!

[Publicus]

Winstar, Enron, WorldCom...the list of company's swindled by sleazy conartists posing as managers, accountants, lawyers is known. The ill-gotten gains need to be returned and the bums responsible need to be incarcerated for a while so that they can learn that embezzlement, fraud, money laundering and other crimes while defrauding the American people in the process is NOT okay.

I hope AG Ashcroft will take decisive ACTION soon.

[optimistically_conservative]

NY Slimes Journalistic Fraud Jayson Blair commends those that "understand that there is a deeper story and not to believe everything they read in the newspapers."

How far we've come since, "If you see it in The Sun, it's so."

[Rodney King]

Anybody know how much the NYT paid Blair?

[thathamiltonwoman]

I knew there had to be some cocaine in this story. That's the only thing I could think of to explain his sense of invincibility.