HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam — Any Vietnamese resident who has “American facial features” and was born between 1962 and 1976 is entitled to an American immigrant visa. So why are two young men who…More
The Wall Street Journal
Thais at wit’s end with wayward elephants POOR PACHYDERMS Like Thai humans, domesticated elephants suffer from expanding unemployment
Bangkok — Perched on the roof of his van, Roger Lohanan guides a powerful search light across tropical vegetation, hoping to spot an elephant. Eventually, a bare-chested boy emerges from the bush and says a…More
Publishers Cater To Captive Audience For Unsold Books — Bored Prisoners Will Read Anything They Can Get; It’s `a Key to Our Cells’
“The objective of this missive is an appeal for knowledge,” begins a two-page letter from Francisco Garcia to “Dear Schuster,” at the New York office of Simon & Schuster. Mr. Garcia, until recently an inmate…More
No Offense: Big Retail Chains Get Special Advance Looks At Magazine Contents — Wal-Mart, Many Others Bar Some Issues as Too Racy, Cite Customer Concerns — People’s Publisher Says ‘No’
Early in February, Cosmopolitan shipped an advance copy of its March issue to the magazine buyer for Winn-Dixie supermarkets. On Feb. 12, the buyer e-mailed the company’s 1,186 stores saying the chain wouldn’t carry the…More
Hard Copy: Magazine Advertisers Demand Prior Notice Of `Offensive’ Articles — Big Companies Like Chrysler Want to Know Contents, And Publishers Acquiesce — Sexual, Political, Social Issues
When Esquire Editor in Chief Edward Kosner abruptly killed a short story about a gay man who writes college term papers in exchange for sex, he sought to calm the ensuing uproar by declaring he…More
The Pen Is Mightier: At the Stars and Stripes, Johnny Gets His Pad And Barks, `Why, Sir?’ — Paper Digs Up Tough Stories Regarding the Pentagon, Which Has to Print Them — Fewer Readers, Bloated Staff
GAJEVI, Bosnia and Herzegovina — Arriving at the scene of a pitched gun battle between Muslim civilians and Serb police, Jeffrey Smith approaches an angry crowd of Muslims, his pen and pad at the ready….More
High-Wire Act: Instincts That Took Newsweek’s Editor To Top Save Him Now — Maynard Parker’s Bosses Back Him After Role in Hiding `Primary Colors’ Author — `Scrambling the Jets’ Weekly
How do you fall for a sensational forgery, help cover up a spectacular literary lie, and still hold on to one of the most prestigious jobs in journalism? For the answer to that question, meet…More
Not So Simple: William E. Simon Is Kinder and Gentler, But Investments Lag — Real-Estate and Thrift Deals Fall Short of ’80s Success With Leveraged Buyouts — Lourdes `Changed His Life’
William E. Simon is best known for making a fortune in leveraged buyouts after a star turn as an outspoken, conservative Treasury secretary in the 1970s. So what’s he doing in the dupe’s role in…More
The Aftermath: Hit by Derivatives, Florida County Tries To Decide What to Do — Escambia Officials Bog Down In Confusion and Politics; Issue: To Sell or Not to Sell — Comptroller Rejects Advice
PENSACOLA, Fla. — Discovering that their $44 million portfolio of mortgage derivatives was worth just $19 million was bad enough. But that was just the beginning: Now Escambia County’s commissioners have to decide what to…More
I Owe U.: How a Texas College Mortgaged Its Future In Derivatives Debacle — Odessa’s Finance Chief Bet Ranch, Had 3 Big Years, Then Saw Disaster Strike — Student of Volatile Securities
ODESSA, Texas — Roger Coomer had what every trader dreams of — hot hands. Juggling telephone calls from brokers while restlessly shifting his gaze between television and computer screens filled with financial information, Dr. Coomer…More
