The encyclopedia · Product & Design · Product decision · 2006
HarperCollins paid O.J. Simpson to write a hypothetical confession, then pulped the run
ReganBooks signed Simpson for a reported $3.5M advance, then canceled and destroyed 400,000 printed copies days before release after public backlash.
HarperCollins · News Corp · 2006-11-20
What happened
HarperCollins imprint ReganBooks signed O.J. Simpson, acquitted of murdering Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman but later found liable in civil court, to write 'If I Did It' — a first-person hypothetical account of how he would have committed the killings. The publisher printed roughly 400,000 copies and scheduled a companion TV special.
The announcement triggered immediate public outrage, with critics calling it Simpson profiting from describing the murders in detail regardless of the book's hypothetical framing. Fox affiliates and booksellers signaled they would not carry the special or the book, and advertisers pulled out.
News Corp chairman Rupert Murdoch canceled both the book and the TV special within days, before publication. HarperCollins pulped the entire print run and issued a public apology, absorbing the printing cost and the advance already paid to Simpson.
Why it happened
- Leadership approved the project without gauging how the public would react to profiting from a hypothetical murder confession.
- The publisher had already printed and shipped 400,000 copies before testing public sentiment with any preview.
- Cancelling after printing meant the destruction cost came on top of the advance, rather than instead of it.
- The decision to greenlight came from a small circle around Judith Regan without broader editorial or reputational review.
The lesson
If a project only works when nobody notices what it actually is, that's the sign to kill it before printing, not after.
Aftermath
The rights later passed to the Goldman family as part of a wrongful-death judgment, and they published the book in 2007 under the title 'If I Did It: Confessions of the Killer,' donating proceeds to a foundation in Ron Goldman's name.
Sources
- If I Did It: Confessions of the Killer — Wikipedia
- Fox News — News Corp. Cancels O.J. Simpson Book and TV Special
spotted an error? The club wants to know.
More like this
Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning: a $400M budget against a $598M gross
Pixar's Elio — an original animated film that cost $200M+ and grossed $154M
The Alto Knights: a $50M mob film that grossed $9.6M
Somewhere, someone solved the problem this company failed at. 2nd Opinion →
Comments · 0
Sign in to join the comments.