Sunday Telegraph book deal that compromised a murder trial

Sebastian Faulks gave his former Sunday Telegraph boss, John Thompson, a warm send-off in his tribute yesterday, "A nurturing force in the final days of Fleet Street".It reinforced the picture drawn of Thompson in the more formal Daily Telegraph obituary following Thompson's death, aged 93, on 24 November.Thompson, who edited the Sunday Telegraph for 10 years from 1976, was mild of manner and ran a kindly regime but had "an inner steel", wrote Faulks. This characteristic was necessary, as both Faulks and the obituary pointed out, because of the difficulties he faced in producing a paper in Fleet Street's final days of continual union disputes.Faulks pointed out that it was difficult to know Thompson well because "he was a diffident man who did not invite intimacy." It reminded me of a description of him by Henry Porter as "retiring to the point of joining a trappist order." But Faulks and the Telegraph's obituarist overlooked Thompson's most extraordinary, and disastrous, decision as an editor. In 1978, the Sunday Telegraph negotiated the serialisation of an autobiography by a former Liberal MP, Peter Bessell, who was a chief prosecution witness in the trial of Jeremy Thorpe, his party's leader. Thorpe was accused of conspiring to murder a male model, Norman Scott, who was said to have blackmailed him over their alleged gay relationship.Two months after Thorpe was charged, Thompson agreed a contract with Bessell which stated that he would receive £50,000 for extracts... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2013-12-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Judge rules against authors in Google Books copyright infringement case

Google's Books project, which has indexed millions of titles and made them available online, hasn't always been on completely solid legal footing. After all, Books operates without the permission of authors, which has understandably drawn some ire from copyright holders, not to mention other web ... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2013-11-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'</em>s Latest Comic Book Easter Eggs

This week's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. had a lot more Easter eggs in its basket than previous episodes. Here's a breakdown.     Continue reading at Wired

[ Wired | 2013-11-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Book Groups Back Bill to Restore Privacy Protections

Spurred by revelations of how the National Security Agency is collecting information on citizens, the Campaign for Reader Privacy has issued a statement calling for Congress to pass the USA Freedom Act. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-11-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Judge dismisses Authors Guild case against Google Books

A U.S. judge has thrown out a long-standing copyright infringement case brought against Google by the Authors Guild, saying the company’s book-scanning project provides significant benefits to the public. Judge Denny Chin, formerly of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New... Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2013-11-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Book Country Debuts Curated Kickstarter Page

Book Country, the Penguin Group’s online writing community and self-publishing platform, has launched a curated page on Kickstarter, the popular online crowdfunding site, to highlight funding projects by Book Country members. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-11-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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8 Years Later, Google's Book Scanning Crusade Ruled 'Fair Use'

Eight years after a group of authors and publishers sued Google for scanning more than 20 million library books without the permission of rights holders, a federal judge has ruled that the web giant's sweeping book project stayed within the bounds of U.S. copyright law.     Continue reading at Wired

[ Wired | 2013-11-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A Beginners Guide to the Slovak Book and Literature Market

We offer a survey of publishing in the Slovak Republicm, which has struggled to gain recognition in the international market in spite of a lively literary scene and book market. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-11-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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VIDEO: Wonderland artist's books sold

A collection of first edition books illustrated by the Edwardian artist Arthur Rackham has sold for more than £40,000 at auction. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2013-11-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Pan Macmillan deal for self-published author

Pan Macmillan has acquired five self-published and two unpublished novels by bestselling ebook... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-11-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Gertrude Stein: The Making of a Children’s Book

Gertrude Stein's children's book, The World is Round, is 75 this year and is being rereleased by Harper Design in a reproduction of the book’s first edition from 1939. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-11-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ylvis's YouTube hit becomes children's book

Much-watched song by Norwegian musical comedy duo due out in US as illustrated storyNorwegian musical comedy duo Ylvis may be very silly, but that's not likely to hold back their next venture, an illustrated children's book based on their massive YouTube hit song, The Fox, which is to be... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2013-11-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Big books the antithesis of Twitter

Six years and 900 pages on, there ended up being two million reasons why this first-time author would have been glad to have stuck with the written word.     Continue reading at The Sydney Morning Herald

[ The Sydney Morning Herald | 2013-11-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Usborne wins children’s science book prize

Usborne has won the Royal Society Young People’s Book Award with an interactive flap book... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-11-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon Prime customers will now receive Sunday deliveries

There is an ever-growing list of benefits that Amazon provides for its Prime customers. For a $79 yearly fee users enjoy Netflix-like streaming video, Kindle book rentals and free two-day delivery service. The latter has only one simple drawback -- if you order an item on a Friday, you need to... Continue reading at Betanews

[ Betanews | 2013-11-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon begins US Sunday delivery

Amazon will begin delivering packages in the US on Sundays for the first time through the US... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-11-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Malala's book banned in private schools in Pakistan

The All Pakistan Private Schools Management Assn. represents 40,000 affiliated schools across Pakistan and has banned the book from its libraries.Malala Yousafzai has become an international celebrity. In her book "I Am Malala," the Pakistani teen who survived being shot in the head by a member... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-11-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Shanghai Children’s Book Fair: A Strong Foundation

Positive reviews from exhibitors continue to roll in on the second day of the China Shanghai Children’s International Book Fair (CCBF). Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-11-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Shanghai Children’s Book Fair: Off to a Great Start

First impressions count, and on the first day of China Shanghai Children’s International Book Fair, the heavy foot traffic just one hour into its opening bodes well for the inaugural event. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-11-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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New Academic Theatre for London Book Fair 2014

London Book Fair 2014 will feature a new academic theatre in its Academic &amp; Scholarly zone in... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-11-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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London Book Fair Unveils New Academic Area for 2014 Show

The London Book Fair has announced it will be featruing a new section in its academic and scholarly zone in 2014 called The Faculty@LBF. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-11-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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