Keith Kelly writes in the New York Post:
Since July 6, the media world has been riveted by the apparent feud between Jacob Bernstein at Women’s Wear Daily and Nikki Finke, the influential Hollywood blogger who writes the widely read "Deadline Hollywood" for LA Weekly.
Bernstein’s story both praised and panned Finke, claiming that she’s feared and respected by Hollywood moguls, but also suggests that Universal Studios President Ron Meyer and former HBO chief Michael Fuchs supply a disproportionate number of her tips.
After the story ran, WWD made several corrections to the article after Finke called and sent a number of e-mails to WWD Editor Ed Nardoza complaining about inaccuracies in Bernstein’s reporting.
Several of them were corrected, then the WWD mysteriously pulled the story from its Web site. Meanwhile, Finke herself stopped blogging on her site from July 7 to July 11, citing personal business.
…So finally tomorrow WWD comes clean, saying that it stands by the story – sort of. WWD has no plans to post the story back on its Web site.
The reason: apparently a portion of the interview was taped, and sources said there is a legal question about whether one blanket "yes you can tape [the conversation]" covered all subsequent follow-up interviews.
I don’t know Jacob Bernstein but I bet he felt like he had all his ducks in a row. I bet he felt like he’d written the definitive piece on Finke. I bet he felt good.
Then, after his story came out, Nikki Finke came back at him and his publication (challenging the facts and their assertions) and cleaned their clock, handing both WWD and Bernstein a major defeat.
Final score: Nikki Finke 1, WWD/Jacob Bernstein 0.
