Mirror’s apology underwhelms Bing

One of the most publicized Hollywood libel suits in recent years may be headed back to court amid complaints that a British newspaper’s front-page apology to settle the issue was less than sincere.

Los Angeles lawyers for wealthy American film producer Steve Bing have threatened to revive his multimillion-dollar libel suit against the Daily Mirror after its editor suggested that one needed a sense of humor to fully appreciate the apology. Rival papers said the apology was so groveling that it suggested being a parody.

Bing, vilified in the British press last year for initially disputing his paternity of actress Elizabeth Hurley’s child, had agreed to drop his suit in return for an apology from the Mirror for publishing his phone number and urging readers to call to berate him. DNA tests later established that Bing was the father.

The tabloid appeared to have obliged Bing in Tuesday’s edition with a front-page banner headline that read: “A humble and sincere apology to Mr. Steve Bing, philanthropist & humanitarian.” An accompanying full-page article printed on Page 9 of the paper ran under the headline, “We’re Sorry, Steve.”

The apology initially satisfied Bing and his lawyers, who issued a statement saying he was “delighted that the Mirror has set the record straight.”

However, the heavy-handedly abject tone struck some as sarcastic, a conclusion bolstered by the paper’s placement of the retraction opposite an op-ed piece headlined, “Why Americans Can’t Understand Irony or Sarcasm.”