"I demand an
apology for this outrageous libel against my client!" screams the
letter, ending with an exclamation mark that attorneys seem to be
taught at law school is obligatory in a threatening sentence.
So began another typical day at the Miami offices of my firm,
Offshore Business News & Research, Inc., which specialises in
exposing international investment fraud while it is in progress.
There were days earlier on in my journalism career when the receipt
of such a letter would cause an immediate knot of worry in the pit
of my stomach that would last for days. Eighteen years into it,
however, I have received so many threats that they have little, if
any, impact on my mood for the day.
Events such as four successful defences of libel actions, including
one trial; a drunken, knife-wielding woman turning up at my
newspaper's office in South Wales to complain about a story I had
written; and the mayor of an English town telling me by telephone
that he would "torch" my home have taught me perspective, if not
caution. |
