John Citrone had been appearing each Wednesday on WJXT-TV to preview weekly entertainment options in Jacksonville, Fla., but his segment on the show was canceled yesterday after he made comments on-air that were "very inappropriate and insensitive," according to the station. "Do we really care if Georgia burns?" Citrone asked jokingly about recent brush fires that have afflicted that state. Reached by AAN News, Citrone explains that the question was asked "in a Groucho Marx-y" way, and was in keeping with his on-air shtick as "the crazy alt-weekly guy." Folio Weekly's managing editor admits he was unaware of the severity of the fires, and says his only intention was to have a little fun with an interstate rivalry. He offered to apologize on-air later in the broadcast but WJXT declined, although they included his written apology in a story about the incident posted on their website. Citrone tells AAN News that when he has had an opportunity to apologize to individuals who were upset by his comment, most have been understanding and supportive.
The Metro Council approved the legislation this week despite opposition from the Nashville Scene and other local publications. According to the Tennessean, the law takes effect July 1. It will restrict the placement of news boxes and require publishers to pay permit fees and maintain their newsracks in good repair. "I'm not sure what it's supposed to accomplish, other than that we'll all have to register with a government entity and keep the boxes in working order," Scene publisher Chris Ferrell says. The councilman who co-sponsored the ordinance says he would lead the charge to rescind it if local publishers developed a better, voluntary plan. An earlier self-policing plan submitted by publishers was rejected by the council.
Co-host Michele Norris praises the Pulitzer-winning LA Weekly food critic for having "a very expansive view" of what being a restaurant critic is all about. "You wouldn't believe how many bad meals I eat in order to find the ones I review every week," Gold says. He visited a particular Taiwanese restaurant 17 times -- "until I figured out what the aesthetic was," he says -- even though he despised the food. "I described one dish there as being bitter -- not bitter like coffee, but bitter like cancer medicine," Gold says. "But I meant it in a good way."
Today, AAN debuts AltWeeklies.com: The Week in Review, a new feature that will highlight the week's best stories from AltWeeklies.com, dig out dusties from the archives, and note story ideas that other papers can easily steal. In this week's installment: Kurt Vonnegut, unsexy men, the SEIU, David Sedaris, war tax resisters, ghost soldiers, Paul Wolfowitz and a commuter challenge.
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