Critics Tackle O.J. 'True Crime' Book

Simpson Book And TV Special Ellicit Storm Of Protest, Even From Within Fox Empire

(CBS/AP)  The widely-condemned O.J. Simpson book and Fox TV special, in which the former football star speculates how he would have killed his ex-wife and her friend, has been met with particularly loud criticism from commentators for the Fox News Channel, which is owned by Ruper Murdoch's News Corporation — which also owns the Fox television network and HarperCollins, the publisher of the new book.

Mark Fuhrman, a former LAPD detective who testified during the Simpson trial and who is now a commentator for Fox News, lashed out at the book and TV show. "This is entertainment? Is this the lowest form of reality TV? What kind of people would do this? I have no idea, but I have no respect for anybody who would engage this man in anything except maybe a knife fight."

Geraldo Rivera, who covered the Simpson trial in 1994 and later joined Fox News, called the Simpson book "disgusting."

"I think he's demonstrating that he made a fool of the jury in Los Angeles and all of the black community across the country that supported him," Rivera said.

Bill O'Reilly, whose "The O'Reilly Factor" is the highest-rated show on Fox News, also decried the Simpson book and special. "If every American walked away from the O.J. garbage, it wouldn't happen," he said.

O'Reilly made sure to point out that his show and the Fox News Channel have "nothing to do with the Simpson situation."

Meanwhile, one of the nation's largest superstore chains, Borders Group Inc., expects Simpson's new book to have "strong sales," but will donate profits to charity.

The nation's other large bookstore chain, Barnes & Noble, Inc., will also sell Simpson's "If I Did It" — but has no plans to donate proceeds.

"Barnes & Noble will carry O.J. Simpson's new book, 'If I Did It,' just as we do every book in print," spokeswoman Mary Ellen Keating said Friday in a statement. Keating said Barnes & Noble had not seen the book and did not know how it would be promoted.

Bill Nasshan, Borders' senior vice president of adult trade merchandising, said in a statement: "As always with publicity books like this, we prepare for strong sales, but ultimately it is up to the customers' reaction to the publicity."

Borders spokeswoman Ann Binkley said Friday that the book will have "easily visible" placement in stores, but there would be no special promotion and any profits will be donated to a charity that benefits victims of domestic violence.

"We believe it's the right thing to do. Period," Binkley said.

Numerous independent stores, appalled by Simpson's book, have said either they won't sell it or will offer limited copies and give away the proceeds.

"We probably won't stock the book, but if somebody comes and asks for it, we'll order it for them and then donate the money," said Lise Friedman, manager of Dutton's Brentwood Books, located in the Los Angeles County community where Simpson lived at the time of the murders.

"If I Did It" comes out Nov. 30, following a two-part interview on Fox, and interest appears strong but not overwhelming. Since the book's announcement late Tuesday, it has steadily climbed on the best seller list of Amazon.com, reaching No. 20 as of Friday afternoon.

According to an official of the Mystery Writers of America, Simpson's book will essentially be treated as "true crime," a genre that traditionally sells best at superstores, with independent sellers preferring purely fictional works. Reed Farrell Coleman, executive vice president of MWA, also said independent stores had more reason to worry about anger against the Simpson book.

"An independent store depends more on a faithful clientele, which it can't afford to offend. Superstores are more likely simply to respond to public demand," Coleman said.

Victims' relatives are angry at the planned publication of the book in which Simpson discusses how he would have killed his ex-wife and her friend "if I did it."

"He destroyed my son and took from my family Ron's future and life. And for that I'll hate him always and find him despicable," Fred Goldman said in an interview broadcast Thursday on ABC's "Good Morning America."

Simpson was acquitted in 1995 of murder in the 1994 killings of his ex-wife Nicole and her friend Ron Goldman after a trial that became a source of national racial tension. He was later found liable for the deaths in a wrongful-death suit filed by the Goldman family but has failed to pay the $33.5 million judgment.

Denise Brown, sister of Nicole Brown Simpson, accused publisher Judith Regan of "promoting the wrongdoing of criminals" and commercializing abuse.

She added: "It's unfortunate that Simpson has decided to awaken a nightmare that we have painfully endured and worked so hard to move beyond."

On Friday, publisher Judith Regan of ReganBooks, a HarperCollins imprint, said she took on "If I Did It" because she was a victim of domestic violence and thought any proceeds would go to Simpson's children.

In an eight-page statement, Regan said Simpson approached her with the idea for the book, in which he hypothesizes how he would have committed the killings of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman.

"I didn't know what to expect when I got the call that the killer wanted to confess," Regan said in the statement titled "Why I Did It." "But I knew one thing. I wanted the confession for my own selfish reasons and for the symbolism of that act. For me, it was personal."

Although Regan has acknowledged that Simpson does not directly say he killed the pair, she said she considers the book to be his confession.

"My son is now 25 years old, my daughter 15," the publisher said in her statement. "I wanted them, and everyone else, to have a chance to see that there are consequences to grievous acts. ... And I wanted, as so many victims do, to hear him say, 'I did it and I am sorry.'

"I didn't know if he would. But I wanted to try. I wanted his confession."

Regan, known for such tabloid best sellers as Jose Canseco's "Juiced," said she did not pay Simpson for the book. "I contracted through a third party who owns the rights, and I was told the money would go to his children. That much I could live with.

"What I wanted was closure, not money," she wrote.

Regan will interview the former football star in a two-part, sweeps-month showcase on Fox Television Nov. 27 and 29. The interview is billed as a hypothetical discussion of how Simpson might have killed his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman in 1994.

"You know, I'm curious about what O.J. Simpson has to say, too, but, I wanted to hear it on the witness stand," said Sara Nelson, Editor in Chief of the trade magazine Publishers Weekly. "I don't want to pay 20-odd dollars to hear it. I don't want to pay him 2 cents to hear it."

[kisskiss123-2009]

let me write a book on what I WOULD HAVE DONE IF I WAS THE LEADER OF THE KKK or something in which BLACK folks got killed.. yeh i bet it WOULDNT get approved so y is it ok for him a BLACK man to write a book on what he "WOULD HAVE DONE" if he killed those WHITE people. yeah dont sound fair. but us white people are the prejuidice people.. i think NOT!!!!!!!!! egh.

[kisskiss123-2009]

this is in comment to the 4th one down.WHITE america.. are you effin kidding me!its not the white people that are the problem.Its the BLACKS! anyone on crack is scum.its the black people that are the ones that wont give up on the prejudice sh*t!If a BLACK person doesnt get a job bc he/she is not qualified,if they dont get thier way then the WHITE people are PREJUDICE!but even tho there is a 100000 things just for blacks like the million man march and the NAACP and the black college fund..let there be a all white college fund and LORD we would have so much trouble.blacks these days discuss me! GET OVER THE PAST ITS DONE THERE HASNT BEEN SLAVES IN OVER 150 YEARS.its blacks that ruin neighborhoods and think they can KILL and MURDER and get away with it.bc they are black and we "owe it to them" MY A$$.gosh!This man brutially murdered these two people.He should have NO right to write a book.Who gives a SH*T on what he WOULD HAVE done.what you SHOULD do is pay the family what you owe them .ur NOT a football player anymore your a piece of BLACK trash.so get over it.and back to that comment.if you "BLACK" people arent so "bad adn scum"then why is it that the GHETTO is all BLACK and neighborhoods with mostly blacks are places that are goin down in value and are full of crime and not the WHITE neighborhoods.Yes true some white people are just as bad.But its mostly the BLACKS thinking bc 150 years ago their ANCESTORS were slaves that now we owe them somethin.

[2blockpops]

You people make me sick!!!!!!!!!!!

[2blockpops]

Correction: Is there one white person that doesn't have ill feelings towards blacks (Katrina all over again). That proved it too, how America still has not "overcome," and never will. So sad!!

[2blockpops]

Also, Michael Richards proves how far America still has to go. You have all proven yourselves. It is not you on the chopping block, so, you don't see it, and that is really sad. It is a sad, sad day in America for me.

[2blockpops]

I am so outraged at white America, that I don't know what to do. I knew racism was still pretty bad, but is there one white person that has ill feelings against blacks. I am an unbeliever totally in the white race.

When you're white and do crack, you're okay. When you're black and do crack, you come from the scum of the earth according to white and Hispanic America, who are a mixture of black anyway. So, you are really in the same category as us, namely Geraldo. Remember what the foreign gov. of CA said, least we forget?

[hermit22]

Oh, Jane I forgot to tell you. My brother's toddler is 2 years old TODAY! That means she's got a good shot at making it through this century! 100 more years = 102~ I won't be here to see that, but I wish her well!

[hermit22]

JaneM4. You're welcome. I'm absolutely serious.
Thats a new expression: "60 is the new 40".

Another expression I like is: "Aim for 100!"
"Happy Birthday! Now Aim for 100!"

I've got some old relatives. 92,99, 102.... last I heard. 60 is a whippersnapper.

[kjgal]

One more thing... If it could be proven without a shadow of a doubt that he didn't do it, I would be more than happy to stand in line to kiss his fat arse!

[kjgal]

OJ is telling us what he would've done IF he did it. So what IF Nicole or Ron had've had a gun and shot OJ's sorry butt in self defense? Oh what a beautiful day that would've been! Then again, they would've been thrown under the jail and then hung! I can only pray he pisses off the wrong person one day. Oh, but he already has. That would be GOD.

[fgoodroe]

Freedom of speech is what a lot of people are jumping on, we DO have a freedom of speech, EXCEPT if you are an actor, or a senator or a singer or any other public figure, no matter what is said, we all chant "freedom of speech", but let one person in the public eyes dare to utter one word, ANY one word and they are ostracized and shamed and shunned and their credibility is gone FOREVER!!! Even after they retract what was "Their right" to speak freely, and apologize forever for, they are still scorned and shunned. Mark Furman said the big bad "N" word what was it 10 years before he became a cop? And his actions from years before, now knocked out any of his credibility. A drunken Mel Gibson said something, while in a drunken stupor, and he is still catching hell for it, Dixie Chicks? How DARE they speak their opinion, they are STILL on a blackballed list. All in the name of freedom of speech, So PLEASE stop crying like a parrot with that freedom of speech crapola, until FREEDOM OF SPEECH IS FOR EVERYYONE INCLUDING THOSE IN THE PUBLIC EYE!!!

[lroush1-2009]

linfinster I agree with you. This book came at the price of many lives, first and foremost the two lives that were abruptly ended by the violence. Then there are the lives of this couples children, and the lives of the victims families that have been altered forever.

Then there are the lives of the the men and women who gave themselves so that we retain the rights to speak and think freely. I have many veterans in my family. I would never disrespect them by attempting to censor, banish, or remove another persons right to speak and think freely.

I also agree that we as a society have a responsibility to teach our children more effectively good strong decent values. Most importantly the fact that if I expect the right to speak and think freely, I have to respect that EVERY individual has the right to the same (whether i agree with them or not). But I do not have to buy it or watch it or support it if I do not agree.

I personally do not think it is right for this particular person to profit from this particular story nor do I feel that he should be attempting to absolve his guilt by "confessing" so impersonally. That is my set of values and apparantly not his. If we as a society truly believe this is wrong (which I do), then we need to not patronize. This act is our strongest voice; not buying the book and shaking our heads at the immorality of the situalion.

[linfinster]

Lroush1 -
Free citizen may a*s*s! This is where the moral and values piece comes in. When society can tolerate this kind of abuse of it's citizens, by propagating this mentality, and call it free? we will NEVER be free. That book is not an expression of free will. It comes at a very high price.

[vancouverboo]

Bookstores have the right not to carry this book. By carrying it - regardless of where the profits go - and how to define "profits" is a big question - they participate in this further lowering of the standards of decency in this country.

[b19546]

Ms. Kight-Kimble,

I could not agree with you more.

My sincerest sympathy to you and your family.

[lroush1-2009]

As dispicable as I find this book and topic, I will maintain that he has a right to publish it as a free citizen of this country. We as members of this same free country have the right to not watch the interview and not buy the book. I will do my part and will not be reading or watching. I might go so far as personally boycoiting the sponsors of the fox interview.

We have ways of expressing ourselves that continue to express our independance and rights as citizens of a free nation.

I find OJ's arrogance and actions repugnant. Unfortunately, he is free to express himself. And I am free to not patronize any association of that arrogance.

[mtkite]

The publication of Mr. Simpson's book, If I Did It, should be blocked. Morbid curiosity is not a human characteristic that should be stimulated. Commercializing murder is unacceptable. Greed should not trump dictates of conscience. There is no value in creating a document which results in heightened racial tension. With every book sold our already diminished culture will only become of less value. Do not give Mr. Simpson a platform from which he further victimizes the victims' families.

Marsha Kight-Kimble
Victim Advocate
Lost daughter, Frankie Merrell, in OKC bombing.

[linfinster]

Part 1

You think there is a solution in all of this? That's a laugh! What damage white man has done can never be repaid, I think there have been, is and will be plenty of programs and available resources to give a hand up and out in this country for ANYBODY to get out of the sinkhole they are in. The problem is (one of many ..) How are our future generations going to be taught? Values and self worth CAN trasend hatred. I am white my son is biracial, Dad is African American and South American. He's 18, out on his own and facing a future that has many opportunities. Restitution is NOT going to solve the problems. Throwing money at it only weakens the Government because let's face it, politics are evil and greedy, any money given out in restitution will be spent, improvements will be made, peoples lives will be better for a time, but the core issues were never delt with.

[linfinster]

PART 2
People must be taught values and self worth beyond what they look like. Don't get me wrong, my son WILL and DOES face racism. I'm not hiding my head in the sand. But it is a reality that exists and it's the mentality of what are you going to allow to affect you, is up to you. Black people have many good reasons to be angry, frustrated and hurt by the actions of many white people. No one can erase the damage done. But there is a way to rise above it, use the energy for something that will better you. I am so thankful I wasn't stuck in some violent, hate filled, racist city and had to raise my son with that in your face mentality. It would have been dang near inpossible to strengthen him for the fight into adulthood. What black people have to overcome is so sad, in those inner cities.
The picture is big, the problems make up an abstract artwork that can't be defined in any one way. I don't have an answer, but I did the best I could with my son and I can only hope he makes the right choices for himself, despite the hatred he faces for himself. I'll be there to help him. I never finished college but have only the university of life for an education , so that is MY opinion.

[plowhandle]

He's a shameless, murderous dog who deserves to die in the same fashion he butchered his two victims.

It will probably come as he walks down the street, on his way to his daily golf game - a 'crazy' person, walking up behind him - stabbing him repeatedly with a rusty blade...leaving him to bleed out like the pig he is.