*TMZ.com is known for exposing a lot of the dirt in the entertainment industry and pop culture in general.
But according to The Hollywood Reporter, the tables are set to be turned on the tabloid site with an exposé that’s been more than a year in the making.
The source of the story will be The New Yorker. The Reporter reveals that the publication’s exposé will focus on “about the unorthodox reporting tactics of the Warner Bros.-owned TMZ and its controversial founder” Harvey Levin. The buzz on the story is so strong that Levin is supposedly “nervous” about it being made public.
So much so that the 64-year-old executive is warning current and past TMZ employees not to speak to the writer of the expose, Nicholas Schmidle. Schmidle’s reputation is well known among those familiar with his work. The journalist’s New Yorker story on the hunt for Osama bin Laden, “Getting Bin Laden,” was nominated for a National Magazine Award in 2013.
Schmidle’s past works, coupled with the New Yorker’s willingness to do “unflattering stories set in the world of media and entertainment” look to be the reason for Levin’s nervousness, the Reporter notes, while highlighting the magazine’s lengthy profile on filmmaker Paul Haggis‘ separation from Scientology which led to Wright’s book “Going Clear” and the Alex Gibney-directed HBO documentary that recently got nominated for an Emmy.
Despite Levin’s efforts, sources go on to tell the Reporter that Schmidle has spoken to “several TMZ insiders” and “others in the so-called Thirty Mile Zone around Hollywood from which TMZ took its name.
“Levin and TMZ are not often discussed on Time Warner earnings calls, but by most accounts the outlet is said to make tens of millions of dollars for Warner Bros. each year, mostly from the syndicated TMZ newsmagazine television show, which Levin hosts. The former lawyer’s ability to procure court documents, celebrity death and divorce news, sex videos and other unflattering tidbits have led to speculation — especially in L.A.’s legal community, which often grapples with TMZ — that the outlet is paying sources handsomely,” the Reporter mentioned in its story.
“It’s unclear whether Schmidle’s reporting has turned up any unsavory (or illegal) tactics used by Levin or TMZ, but sources say Warner Bros. is anxiously awaiting a call from the magazine’s fact-checkers,” the publication’s report added.
For more of the Reporter’s coverage of The New Yorker’s expose on TMZ, click here.
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