€Cz4c\€^Ksa=Ys 6U\A ELENA RUTH SASSOWER Coordinator, Ninth Judicial Committee Enclosures: (A) 6/30/E2 Itr to NYC Dept

$€Cz4c\€^Ksa=Ys 6U\A ELENA RUTH SASSOWER Coordinator, Ninth Judicial Committee Enclosures: (A) 6/30/E2 Itr to NYC Dept$

NINTII JUDTCIAL COU!TTTEB

Box 70, Gedney Station White Plains, New york 10605-0020 TeIe: (914) 997-BL}S / Fax: (91_4) G84_6554

By Prioritv Mait

June 30, L992

Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Jr. Publisher The New York Times 229 West 43rd Street New York, New york 10036

Dear Mr. Sulzberger:

It is with regret that we bring to your attention the enclosed cornpraint, f iled today with tlie wew york city Department of Consumer Affairs.

At. the. tlme you took over the titre of publisher, we saved your editorial statement, appearing in the January L7, L9g2 issu6 ;i The-New York Times. As you wirr recarl, you reiterated the pledge made by each of .your predecessors whe-n they assumed the responsibilities of publisher: rrTo give the news irnpartially, without fear or favorr. regardless of any party, sect or interest involved. rl rrThe In- view of your commitment that Times will continue to adhere to the highest standards of journalisn and business t; which it has always herd itserfrr, wL would like to know what those standards are. rndeed, w@ wourd also welcome an opportunity-ot -n"r=to discuss with you the reality of The Timesr coverage rnajor stories aireciiy affecting the public interest.

Very truly yours, €Cz4c\€^KSa=ys 6U\a ELENA RUTH SASSOWER Coordinator, Ninth Judicial Committee Enclosures: (a) 6/30/e2 Itr to NYC Dept. of Consumer Affairs (b) L/L7/e2 NYT Editorial Statement ilFrom the publisherrl

€cl€-B-/ ti .t

Box.7O, Gedney Station Ifhite plains, New y6rk 10G05_0070 Tele: (914) e97-81_o5 / Fey: (914) 6s4_G554

By Fax and Mail

June 30, L992

Mark Green, Commissioner N.Y.C. Department of Consumer Affairs 42 Broadway-Bth Floor New York, New york l-0004

Dear Comnissioner Green:

We are writing you to protect the public from the false and nisleading advertising clain made by New yorkrs leading newspaper, The New york Times.

For years, The Times has been considered a newspaper of record--a reputation it - actively promotes through its tro-ntlpage motto nAIl the News Thatrs Fit to printtl such motto not onry impries- .that $e_lineg is cornpetitively superior to newspapers not making tnid crairn, uut conslitutes ui, affirmative representation to the pubric that purchase of The provides limes atl information meeling objectiie-ror =C""o"ra=:"E fitness--and that. anything rejected uy it publication does not meet those objective standards.

TIre Times nowhere sets forth its criteria for determining the fitness of thg news it prints. In view of The Tirnesr ob-vious space Iinitations, we presume such criteria is tr/o-fold: news which public the not onry has a right to know, but which it, needs to know to protect itserf and to preserve the integrlty ;i our democratic system.

As. shown by our June l-4th retter to Max Frankel, Exeeutive Editor of The New York Times, the j-al Ninth Judic committe" =orrgfri-on t9 know why The Times would not report information uearing the public - interest in quality judiciary and in the accountability of elected officials--Fresldent eish and Senator DrAmato among them. To substantiate the seriousness of the story and the legiti-rnacy of our inquiry, we encrosed comprehensive documentation. Dept. of Consumer Affairs Page Two June 30, L992

perernptorily Mr. Frankel reiterated The Timesr rejection of the story. A copy of his terse June rstn letter is an-nexed. as you can see, Mr. Frankel makes the statement: trthe material you otiei us does not add up to an articre for The Timesr. This reads t; the inference that our material has not met the rfAll the News Thatrs printr yet Fit to standard. Mr. Franker offers no expJ-anation as to what that standard is and declines t";;"4 ,iEi us. we submit that_ any objective review of the material vre provided to Mr. Frankel shows that it not only represents the kind of meaningfur information that the puuiic ireeas to know, nui documents a major nationar story. rndeed, the very fact that this national story derj-ves rron the New york scene should have made it arr thg more significant for the The Times,'its enj"vi"g-u" it does a nationar circulation, while prEE"rvi_ng New york name and identity.

Moreover, we have compared articles published by-"overage. The Times in the six-week period since we first sought its Based thereon, we find neither justification nor basis upon which such story was rejected.

Indeed, in addition rrNationalrr 'Metro, to itP daily and -sunaaypages, The Times also runs a Friday rrl,aw pagerr ds rrwestchesterrt r welr as a section--where this news might have appropriateiy been featured--had The Times been guided uy its motto.

It is noteworthy that immediately following - our submission of the identical material to New Y-ork magazine, that publication made it the subject of its lead iten on- trt" r'rnterrigencer', page (p. 7) of its June 22nd issue. That itern, entitled "bredenti-lfs c;;; rrscratched -ot The Case of !h" Missing Casesrr, only the surfacert this extraordi-nary news story_. Howeverr w€ see no reason why The Times' readership should be deprived of even that 1irnited uiornt of rrnews f it to printtt.

The. Tirnes is n9t onry a pubric institution, but a private business enterprise. As such, it must be herd to the standard applied to other businesses in the city of New york--narnety, truth in advertising and avoidance of fraud upon the consurniig public. Dept. of Consumer Affairs Page Three June 30, L992

rn light of the foregoing, we carl upon your as commissioner of the Departnent of Consumer.Affairs, to conduct an investigation to determine whether The Tirnes should be free to induce puichase of its newspaper and rnislead the public by use of its moLto nAlI the News That's Fit to printr'.

Very truly yours, €Cana g s ELENA RUTH SASSOWER Coordinator, Ninth Judicial Committee

Enclosures: (a) our 6/L4/92 ltr to Max Frankel (b) arl enclosures supporti_ng our rtr to Mr. Frankel (c) Mr. Frankelrs 6/IB/92 response york (d) New magazine , 6/22/gZ, r'Intelliqencerrl cc: The New York Times New York Post New York Daily News New York Newsday The New York Observer The Village Voice New York Magazine Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR) 428 L THE NEW YORKTITilES,EDITORIALS

MAx FRANKEL, Executiue Editor JOSEPH LELYVELD, Managing Ed.itor WARREN HOGE, Assislant Mamging Ed.itor DAVID R.JONES, Assistant Managing Editor CARoLYN LEE, Assistant Mqnaging Editor ! JoHN M. LEE, Assistdnt Managing Editor ALLAN M. SIEGAL, Assr.sront Manoging Editor : JACK ROSENTHAL, Editorial Page Editor --' @hal&fetufiork PHILIP M. BoFFEY, Deputl Editorial Page @imor Editor

Founded in 1851 LANCE R. PRIMIS, President and Gereral Manager RUSSELL T. LEwrS, Erecutiue V.P., Deputy Gen. Mgr. ADoLPH S. OcHs, Publisher 1896-1935 JOHN M. O'BRIEN, Erecutive V.P., Deputy Gen. Mgr. ARTIIUR TIAYS SI]LZBERGNN, PUbIiShCr 1935.1 96 1 WILLIAM L. poLI"Ari Erecutive VP., Sales ORVIL E. DRYFOOS, Publisher 1961- I 963 JAMES A. CI/TIE, Sr.V.P., Marketing ARTHUR OCHS SULZBERCER, Publisher 1963-1992 ERICH G. LINKER JR., Sr.VP., Advertising - ELISE J RoSS, Sr.VP., Systems and Technology MICIIAEL J. KURTZ, V.P.,Human Resources .XAREN A. MESSINEO, I4P, Controller JoSEPH M.MULLEN, Ye Production CHARLES E. SHELTON, V.P., Circulation

From The Publisher

It has been four generations since Adolph S. . To follow in such footstepsis both a great honor Ochs laid down the precepts that have successfully and a daunting challenge.I pledgethat, with the aid guided The New York Times for g6 years. Those of the men and women who make this great paper principles have been carried forward with distinc- all it is, The Times will continue to adhere to the tion by my grandfather, Arthur Hays Sulzberger; high standards of journalism and businessto which' ! my uncle, Orvil E. Dryfoos, and my father, Arthur it has always held itself. Ochs Sulzberger. In assuming the duties of this office, I remain r F Each of these men, in their message 0 upon being grateful for the guidance that has been and will ! named Publisher, quoted the pledge Mf. Ochs made continue to be given to me by my father. While he F when he took the helm of The Times: I' \ relinquishes the title of Publisher, he retains that of To give the news impartially, without Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The New fear or favor, regardless o;r ony party, York Times Company.It gives me great comfort to sect or .interestinvolv ed know that his presence and counsel will continue for vears to come. Each remained faithful to those words and the spii'it behind them. AnrHun OcHsSur-zsERcER JR.

; l i I I tI I t €c