About four years ago, I was contacted by a reporter from the New Jersey Star Ledger. She told me she was working on a story pertaining to my background as a stockbroker. "This is great!" I thought because I was just weeks from publishing my first novel and could definitely use some positive press.
The telephone interview was conducted in an innocuous tone that made me feel comfortable with my responses. I deliberately emphasized my successes in the stock market, and I was happy to forward a recent photo of myself as requested. For next few days after the interview I told acquaintances that I would likely be in the news.
Weeks went by, and I gave up on calling the reporter for a publish date, assuming it might not ever happen. Then one day (December 28, 2008), some six months later, a close friend called to tell me my picture was in the Sunday edition of the New Jersey Star Ledger and I was not going to be happy. Apparently, the article described three brokers who were dismissed from the securities industry for committing fraud against their clients. I was one of them although my case was the lesser of the three. I stopped my friend from reading the rest of the article when she told me it included a horrible photo of me looking sick and angry.
I don't drive because of a chronic disability. So, I did not see the newspaper until two days later. In the meantime, I received calls from people who know me and were saddened by this exposure. Eventually, I saw the awful report, first hand. I was infuriated. Infuriated because the article was nothing like the story I expected to see. It was a complete distortion of the facts, and the photo had been taken in June of 2001 as part of my prison ID tag. The article was published in 2007!
The report portrayed me as a menace to investors. It also made the distinct impression that, although I had served a brief prison sentence and five years had gone by, I was still on the prowl and investors should be wary of me.
There was never any mention of possiblity that I might have recovered from the adiction that caused my criminal behavior. The information I gave the reporter was not used in the story, and I never was given an opportunity to set the record straight via an effective medium - until now.
When I recovered from the shock a week later, I tried to contact the reporter via her email address. She never responded after several attempts. Next, I sent two messages to the editor requesting that someone in the editorial call me for the true story. To this day, I have not received the courtesy of a reply. It became clear to me that this newspaper had no intention of providing a broader, more edifying story about my life.
As I approach the age of 75, I am enjoying a simple, pedestrian life living with a family in Northern New Jersey. After spending time in Gamblers Anonymous and Alcoholics Anonymous programs, and by the Grace of God, I have recovered from the illnesses that had a grip on my life for several decades. I still think of my recovery as miraculous, and I act on the unwavering belief that I am redeemed from a life of Hell as I continue in my pursuit of health and happiness. I am writing a sequel that I hope to complete this summer.
This unpleasant experience reminds me of why I don't second-rate tabloids like the Star Ledger. Over the years I have seen a noticeable decline in the quality of reporting from the media in general. I am not a pessimist, but I don't see any chance of a reversal of this trend.
To get an accurate picture of who I am, please read my new book "Stock Power". It is written as commercial fiction which I hope to be made into a feature film.
