Simpson Book Stirs Up Hornets' Nest Over Blind Selling

On Monday, November 20, News Corp. and ReganBooks announced the cancellation of the controversial O.J. Simpson book and television special, If I Did It, following a firestorm of protest raised by booksellers, Fox TV station affiliates, and many in the general public who vehemently decried the project.

While News Corp.'s decision was welcomed with sighs of relief from many, ethical questions about the initial decision to publish the book, in which Simpson was said to have discussed hypothetically how he would have killed his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman, will be discussed for a long time. However, for booksellers, another key issue, which elicited reactions ranging from annoyance to anger, was ReganBooks' decision to withhold all information about the title, which stores had to order "blind."

The majority of independent booksellers who spoke to Bookselling This Week prior to the cancellation announcement acknowledged that they planned to carry the book, and some were planning to donate monies from the sale of the book to appropriate charities. But much of booksellers' anger was fueled by the fact that they were asked to place orders for the book without knowledge of the title, author, or subject matter. The practice of blind selling in general raises the ire of most booksellers -- that it was used for this particular book has caused some to rethink the entire concept. (See related Letter to the Editor.)

Dutton's in Brentwood is located in the neighborhood where the gruesome murders took place, and store owner Doug Dutton told BTW that he had made the decision "not to order [the book] blindly." Had he known about the book's subject matter, Dutton said that he would have stuck by his decision. "It's a vile and repulsive concept, and I wouldn't have stocked it," he explained. "The fact that it was not announced is particularly egregious in this case. They had knowledge that it was going to be controversial."

Dutton said that he doesn't like the practice of blind selling in general. "I imagine there are instances where it's necessary. In this particular case, it's a method of publishing and promoting a nonevent."

At Tattered Cover in Denver, Cathy Langer reported that the store had ordered the Simpson title as a "new nonfiction book" and would not have returned it to the publisher based on its subject matter. However, of the blind buying process, she added, "We don't know what we're buying, or if a book will or won't work for our store. After this debacle, I'm hoping that publishers will think long and hard about this practice.... We're feeling burned by the practice."

In most cases, blind selling usually equates to a "lot of hoo-hah about nothing," Jack Buckley of Ninth Street Books in Wilmington, Delaware, said. "It's hype that doesn't equate to sales except every once in a while. I [usually] order on the conservative side." However, he added, "I always get a little ticked off about" the practice.

Ninth Street Books would have carried the Simpson book. Buckley said, "For the same reason I carry many books I don't agree with ... I don't want to make that judgment for my customers." Noting that in the week following news of the book, "not one customer asked about it," he told BTW that he didn't think it would have sold anyway.

Blue Willow Bookshop in Houston just isn't the kind of store that would carry If I Did It, regardless of the controversy surrounding it, according to Valerie Koehler. Noting that the store steers away from "heavily slanted books" and sells a lot of children's books, she explained, "We ordered 'untitled by anonymous.' "It's a little annoying, and it's hard to plan."

Koehler said that blind selling is made that much worse when its used to market a book like Simpson's. "Next time I will say, 'No, you tell me what the book is, '" she stressed. "I will really think twice ... [and wonder] if they're trying to pass another O.J. off on us. You can only do that a certain number of times."

Leslie Ryan of Off the Beaten Path in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, said she was very unhappy with the blind sale of If I Did It, and, prior to the book's cancellation, had intended to refuse the shipment. Overall, she said, "I just don't feel like the practice is beneficial. I understand there may be contractual obligations between the publisher and another entity, but it can create poor buying." In the case of the Simpson book, "that book would not have sold for me.... it's not a smart way of doing business."

Moreover, Ryan continued, a blind sale for a book as controversial as If I Did It only makes the practice worse in her mind. "You create a lack of trust. I was told that this was a book of national interest and that it's going to have a large print run. I would have hoped it would have been worthy of that." (Read more.)

Mitchell Kaplan of Books & Books, Inc. in Miami would have carried the Simpson book and had planned to donate the proceeds to a local woman's shelter. As for blind selling books, he said, "I don't like that practice at all." --David Grogan