The Press: Pegler v. Reynolds

The late Heywood Broun was fond of calling Hearst Columnist Westbrook Pegler "light-heavyweight champion of the upperdog." Even after Broun died, terrible-tempered Westbrook Pegler did not forgive him, or his close circle of newspaper friends. Last week the ancient feud erupted in the trial of a $500,000 libel suit. Defendant: Columnist Pegler and Hearst corporations, which syndicate and publish his column. Plaintiff: Broun's old friend, onetime War Correspondent Quentin Reynolds, who five years ago invited Pegler's wrath by reviewing a biography of Broun for the New York Herald Tribune. Pegler took part of it to be an accusation that he was...

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