'NYT,' AP, Gannett and Tribune File Amicus Brief in Banning of 'Rye' Sequel

By: E&P Staff America's newspaper of record, its largest news agency, and two of its largest newspaper publishers have filed an amicus brief in support of a Swedish writer whose sequel to J.D. Salinger's classic "Catcher in the Rye" has been indefinitely banned by a federal judge.

The New York Times' "Arts Beat" blog reported Friday that the Times, the Associated Press, Gannett Co., and the Tribune Company had filed a brief with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit to reverse the ban, citing both the First Amendment and common sense.

On July 1, Federal Judge Deborah A. Batts of the U.S. District Court in Manhattan ruled that the novel "60 Years Later: Coming Through the Rye" was not a protected parody or commentary, and could not be published, advertised, or distributed. The novel, written by Swedish author Frederik Colting under the pen name J.D. California, contains a sarcastic 76-year-old protagonist named "Mr. C," who is clearly Holden Caulfield, the main character of "Catcher in the Rye" aged 60 years. The novel has been published in Britain.

According to the Times, the four media companies cited precedents where publication of materials has been permitted despite concerns for national security (a la the Pentagon Papers), as well as information that might prejudice a trial jury. The organizations also cited precedents where courts had allowed libelous materials to be published and let the victims seek recompense after publication.

"Yet in this case, where the only harm appears to be to the pride of a reclusive author in not having his desires fulfilled barring commentary about his iconic book and character, without any actual financial harm," the brief stated, "the lower court saw fit to ban publication of a new book. Such a result defies common sense, and is not -- and cannot be -- the law."

"Here the book clearly is a transformative use of the old 'Catcher in the Rye,'" George Freeman, vice president and assistant general counsel for The New York Times Co., told the paper. "We?re taking a position of principle that banning books is a bad thing and prior restraint is a bad thing."

Colting is currently appealing Judge Batts' ban. In papers filed with the Court of Appeals July 23, Colting's lawyers stated, "Had this commentary and criticism been published as an essay, a dissertation or an academic article, there is no doubt that it never would have been enjoined."

"Catcher in the Rye" was first published in 1951. The reclusive Salinger has not had any original writing published since 1965, and has not given an interview since 1980. He currently lives in Cornish, N.H.