Norm! column

May 7, 2008

THE DEAD LIST

Celebrity blogger Perez Hilton has added me to his frienemy list, as in former friend now enemy.

He's "very disappointed" with my item last week about Steve Friess' claim that Hilton plagiarized his account of Tina Turner's tour announcement.

Friess had reported in his VegasHappensHere.com: "The 68-year-old legend says that Sophia Loren told her to stop lolling about her Swiss home and get back to work."

The "lolling about" phrase was Friess' and not a quote from Loren.

Friess wasn't happy when the following post appeared later on PerezHilton.com: "The 68-year-old legend says that Sophia Loren told her to stop 'lolling about her Swiss home and get back to work.'"

When Friess squawked, calling it plagiarism, Hilton's e-mail response to the local free-lancer and podcaster was, "A reader sent me that item as their own."

In an e-mail, Hilton said I should have "had the courtesy" to go beyond his response to Friess and sought a comment from him. As a result, he said, the "relationship" -- which amounted to me crediting his scoops but not receiving the same courtesy -- "is now DEAD"

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