[IMC-Tech] Re: [Imc-staff] New York Times Syndicate--trademark infringement

[Gayden Wren/CORPHQ/NYTIMES]

Dear Mr. Lehman:

      I happen to agree with you about the Times' coverage of the run-up to
the Iraq war.  As it happens, I don't work for the newspaper, but rather
for a features syndicate owned by the same company that owns the newspaper
but otherwise unconnected with it; but as a reader of the newspaper, I
heartily agree.
      There is, however, a fair range of options between "Ivany lies,
somebody dies" and "no harm done."  Let me cite a specific instance, and
see if you agree.

      There is a band based in Red Bank, N.J., whose name doesn't matter,
and I'd like to spare them further pain.  When I first visited their site,
they had a blog reporting the weekly doings of the band--which, if their
name means anything, is a punk band of some description.
      The entry for the week they received their Ivany review began:
"After three long years of discouragement, frustration and quiet
desperation, today at last there is light at the end of the tunnel.  John
Shelton Ivany of The New York Times has reviewed our album, and says `[name
deleted] is a stone winner.'"  The blogger went on to quote the review in
full, finishing with:  "I guess those three years of shouting into the wind
weren't pointless, after all.  This band is going places."
      I had to call this guy and tell them that it was all a lie, that
someone had given them this kind of hope in order to get his hands on a
free CD.  The best I could think of to say was that I had no reason to
doubt that Mr. Ivany didn't actually enjoy their music.  (I didn't mention
that in the two-plus years I've been seeing his "column," there's never
been a negative review, and that "stone winner" turns up in many of his
reviews.)
      When I identified myself as calling from The New York Times
Syndicate, the fellow's voice lit up, absolutely lit up over the phone; by
the end of a five-minute conversation, he sounded on the brink of tears.
The next day the Times citation was gone, and so was the review and the
entire blog entry.
      I don't know this guy or his band, but I'm an artist myself--a
playwright, director and even a singer/songwriter with a rock band--and I
can imagine how he felt.  Believe me, this was the most harrowing
conversation I've had in years.  If I have a grudge against Mr. Ivany, as
you suggest, it's because of this and literally scores of conversations
like it, though not quite extreme, that I've been forced to have since July
2003.
      If there's any chance at all that your archived press release could
help cause something like that to happen in the future, wouldn't you want
to get it down?

      That's all I've got to say on this point for now; if we need to
continue this, let's do so after the holiday.  I'm happy to send along the
evidence you requested, if you'll tell me what you need and give me an
address.
      Otherwise, peace to you, Ms. Edwards and everyone else out there, and
best wishes for a merry Christmas.

                                          --GW