The Nation - News from Feb. 13, 1987

Random House asked a federal appeals court to reconsider a ruling that blocked publication of a biography of author J. D. Salinger, saying the decision threatened the freedom of the press. “It is essential to the First Amendment values on which our system of government is founded that the panel’s decision be reconsidered by the full court,” the publishing house said. A two-judge panel of the appeals court on Dec. 29 blocked publication of “J.D. Salinger: A Writer’s Life,” by Ian Hamilton, on grounds that the book infringed upon Salinger’s copyright by using his letters without his permission.