Recorded Books for Sale — Along with All of Haights Cross Following a “comprehensive strategic review,” Haights Cross Communications has decided to sell off all of its assets — including Recorded Books, which publishes unabridged audiobooks for libraries, schools, and consumers. For the first three quarters of the fiscal year, as of the end of September 2007, that unit had sales of $64.3 million. Release Editis, France’s No. 2 Publisher, Also for Sale Newspaper La Tribune reported (without citing sources) that French investment company Wendell intends to sell publishing conglomerate Editis by the middle of this year. The country’s second […]

That Didn’t Take Long: News Corp. Settles Who knows why they didn’t pay her earlier, but News Corp. has paid Judith Regan now — an undisclosed amount, of course — and stated, “After carefully considering the matter, we accept Ms. Regan’s position that she did not say anything that was anti-Semitic in nature, and further believe that Ms. Regan is not anti-Semitic.” They call the settlement “an equitable, confidential settlement, with no admission of liability by any party.” But does it get charged to HarperCollins’ bottom line, or is it a corporate expense? The next quarterly report, due in early […]

DOJ Sets Conditions for Pearson Harcourt Purchase The Department of Justice officially filed an antitrust lawsuit against Pearson’s proposed purchase of Harcourt Assessment, and at the same time the department has filed a proposed settlement. It wants Pearson to sell off Harcourt’s behavior assessment tests, its abnormal personality clinical test, and either the spoken and oral language assessments or the language fundamental evaluation. “Under the proposed settlement, the Department’s Antitrust Division must approve the buyer of each of the divested assets.” Justice spokesperson Gina Talamona indicates this is standard procedure. Justice says in their release “the transaction, as originally proposed, […]

WorldNetDaily Buys Publisher World Ahead World Ahead Media has been acquired by conservative Internet news site WorldNetDaily, which had been its partner on the WND Books imprint. Founded in 2004, World Ahead’s authors have included Jerome Corsi and Kathleen Willey. WND’s own books list, started in 2002, has included titles by Michael Savage. World Ahead will change its name to WND Books and the company’s ceo Eric Jackson will retain that title for the book line while also becoming evp of strategy for the parent company. World Ahead vp Norman Book will become WND’s evp of operation. (Jackson and Book […]

Beah and Reporters at Odds Author Ishmael Beah released an adamant statement yesterday in response to a series of articles in The Australian defending every aspect of his book, and accusing the man who led to the Australian’s investigation and the paper’s reporters of “defamation” and of “us[ing] innuendo against me when there is no fact. Though apparently, they believe anything they are told — unless it comes from me or supports my account. Sad to say, my story is all true.… I was right about my family. I am right about my story. This is not something one gets […]