A former tabloid reporter says the tabloids are mired in illegal conduct so dependent on it that they could not compete with the mainstream press without it. Tabloids routinely practice bribery and extortion along with other borderline activities.
In an op-ed in the Los Angeles Times, Jeffrey Scott Shapiro says, “Although the law provides us with the tools we need to punish crimes related to free speech, the judicial system is too quick to bow before the 1st Amendment, and as a result we end up shielding criminals who misrepresent themselves as journalists and activists.” -db
From an op-ed in the Los Angeles Times, July 19, 2011, by Jeffrey Scott Shapiro.