Posted on 05/24/2003 8:04:09 PM PDT by ThreePuttinDude
May 24, 2003 -- THE NEW York Times double-crossed Styles section writer Alex Kuczynski this week by leaking word that the sexy journalist had quietly resigned - without noting her departure was merely temporary.
"Alex told the Times a year ago when she signed her book deal with Doubleday that she would take a six-month book leave," a source explains.
"They were fine at first, but when the time came for Alex to leave, the top brass said, 'times are rough - we want you to informally resign. No one will ever know.' "
Sadly, Times management went back on its word. On Monday, a "staff notes" memo was sent around to employees stating that, "Alex Kuczynski has resigned from the Times."
"Alex was furious," said our mole. "It was very upsetting."
Speculation was raised further when Kuczynski cleaned out her desk Tuesday afternoon, to make way for ex-New York scribe, Vanessa Grigoriadis, who will be joining the Styles section.
"Vanessa will sit at Alex's desk until she comes back - and she is coming back," our source said.
But others still aren't so sure Kuczynski will return. "The memo was the Times' way of pushing Alex out," one insider said. "They were supposed to send her a formal letter offering her job back, and they haven't. They are trying to screw her . . . she left for book leave in April and the memo didn't come out until now."
Kuczynski declined coment. A rep for the Times said at first: "Ms. Kuczynski left the Times in early April to write a book with the understanding that she would return to the Times later this year."
After Kuczynski threatened the Times with a lawsuit if they didn't sound "more enthusiatic" about getting her back, a Times rep added: "We anxiously await her return."
The dark days aren't over at the paper. Four unidentified reporters under investigation for Jayson Blair-like abuses "have banded together and threatened to sue the paper if their names are leaked," another mole added.
The probe has widened to include graft. "They are worried about people breaking the strict code at the paper about accepting gifts," our spy said. "The masses of reporters are getting angrier by the moment because they were held to strict standards while several others obviously were not."
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
Just to be clear, I am not defending the times, Krugman was one of the people who took cash, but, pretty much in every newspaper, people get paid off, one way or another, the Wall Street Journal had somone who was involved in some very shady business years ago, there have been rumors about the Times Business people, and every gossip columnist in every new york news papers is getting something from somone to say or print something and also it helps them "develop sources". Blair, wants to do a tell all book, I have a feeling he might rip apart the business section, and thats the lifeblood of the times not there political section.
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