Mariah Carey’s brother sues her for defamation over memoir

NEW YORK (Reuters) — Mariah Carey’s older brother on Wednesday sued the singer over her recent best-selling memoir “The Meaning of Mariah Carey,” accusing her of defamation and inflicting emotional distress.

Morgan Carey is seeking unspecified damages in a complaint filed in a New York state court in Manhattan, including over book passages that he said falsely suggested he was violent.

The lawsuit was filed one month after Mariah Carey’s older sister Alison sued her for $1.25 million for alleged emotional distress over the memoir, which was published in September and topped The New York Times‘ nonfiction best-seller list in October.

Spokespeople for the singer did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Her brother’s lawyer declined additional comment.

Mariah Carey, 51, is known for songs including “Vision of Love,” “One Sweet Day” and “All I Want for Christmas Is You.” Her memoir described a dysfunctional poverty-stricken childhood, and her early career struggles.

Morgan Carey, born in 1960, said Mariah Carey damaged his reputation by writing about an alleged “vicious fight” with his father that occurred when she was a little girl, and where “it took twelve cops to pull my brother and father apart.”

He said actual fights with his father never occurred during Mariah Carey’s childhood, and the alleged incident’s being “fictional” was shown by the likelihood only one or two police officers would have responded to a domestic violence report.

Morgan Carey also sued over passages that he said implied he tried to extort money from Mariah Carey, is associated with “sketchy” and “questionable” people in the music industry, and has “‘been-in-the-system’ (i.e., a criminal).”

Other defendants include the book’s co-author, its publisher Macmillan, and the imprint Andy Cohen Books, named for the TV producer and host of Bravo’s “Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen.” None of their representatives immediately responded to requests for comment.

-reuters-

Hike in price of newsprint looms, as inquiry points to surge in imports

MANILA - The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) today said preliminary evidence points to an influx of newsprint imports, hence a ground to slap additional duties to protect the domestic industry.

“Based on DTI’s review of the evidence presented in the said petition, a prima facie case exists to justify the initiation of a preliminary safeguards investigation,” the agency said in a statement, referring to the petition for safeguard measures filed by Trust International Paper Corp (Tipco).

Tipco is the country’s lone producer of newsprint, a raw material in producing newspapers, books, magazines, notebooks, pad paper and wrappers.

Citing data submitted by the local monopoly, newsprint imports rose 792 percent to 26,356 metric tons (MT) in 2011 from 2,956 MT in 2007. During the January to August 2012 period, a record 31,462 MT of imported newsprint entered the country.

Majority of the newsprint imports in 2008 came from China and the UK. From 2009 to 2012, bulk of imports came from South Korea and the UK.

The DTI said the safeguard investigation on newsprint, which the Philippine government initiated last September 20, covers domestic production and importation from 2007 through August 2012.

“DTI has notified all interested parties and has required them to submit their reply and other evidence or information relevant to the said investigation. The investigation will make a preliminary determination whether the increasing volume of imported newsprint is causing serious injury to the local producer of newsprint,” the agency said.

Once the DTI determines that newsprint imports have indeed injured Tipco, the agency will forward the case to the Tariff Commission for a formal investigation.

The Philippines’ World Trade Organization (WTO) mission in Geneva earlier notified the trade body’s Committee on Safeguards of a safeguard investigation on newsprint, citing “serious injury to the local newsprint industry as indicated in their declining market share, production, sales, capacity utilization, productivity, profitability, price suppression, depression and undercutting.”

Covered by the investigation are newsprint in rolls or sheets weighing no more than 55 grams per square meter with Asean Harmonized Tariff Nomenclature (AHTN) Code 4801.00.10 as well as other newsprint with AHTN Code 4801.00.90. These products have most favored nation (MFN) rates of duty of seven percent. MFN rates refer to tariffs slapped on goods from outside Asean.

Additional safeguard duties may be put in place to provide a “seriously injured” domestic industry relief against imports, if the volume of fairly-traded, “like” or directly competitive imports exceed a trigger level or if their prices fall below a trigger price.

source: interaksyon.com