How About Giving Us an Interview to Refute Gossip About You?
For weeks, glossy celebrity-focused magazines have claimed that there was marital trouble between Jessica Simpson and her husband, Nick Lachey. And for weeks, the couple did not respond. But silence rarely proves golden in Hollywood, even when talking means rewarding one’s detractors.
“I said to Jessica’s dad, ‘Silence is keeping the story going because the reporting we have is one-sided,’ ” said Janice Min, editor in chief at Us Weekly. “I explained to him that nothing would be more powerful than hearing straight from Jessica.”
So Us Weekly, which had questioned the marriage itself several times in its pages, landed an exclusive interview and photo shoot with Ms. Simpson, Mr. Lachey and Ms. Simpson’s father. The Dec. 13 issue featured a six-page story with the cover headline “We’re Not Over!”, contradicting Us Weekly’s earlier reports.
“We had compelling reporting that there were problems,” Ms. Min said, “but still, to be able to hear straight from the source, that was the most compelling evidence of all.”
Posted by Rachel at 11/13/2004 | 
February 28th, 2005 at 3:38 pm
She legally changed her name for their econd anniversary. She’s Mrs. Lachey now.