OLD Media Moves

How Consumers Digest continues to stiff freelance writers

September 3, 2019

Posted by Chris Roush

Syndicated personal finance columnist Chuck Jaffe writes about how Consumers Digest has still not paid freelancers — including himself — who wrote for the publication the money that it owes them.

Jaffe writes, “Not wanting to throw good money after bad – because Consumers Digest was barely float – I found a lawyer who took the case on contingency; he felt that the information I provided, including still-active bank account numbers, gave us a shot.

“We were not, however, the fastest gun.

“Several other writers got there first (including Debra Borchardt, who fought the case personally and wrote about her victory here: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/i-sued-consumers-digest-won-debra-borchardt/?trackingId=%2BrjLCgnxy31UVV6yhmcT6A%3D%3D), and the money dried up before we could certify our claim.

“The National Writers Union in May 2018 got Consumers Digest to sign a payment agreement for the full 63 grand of the freelancers’ contracts, but my Illinois lawyer told me to stay out of that suit since I had an enforceable judgment before the case was filed. Consumers Digest, apparently, never honored the agreement or paid those writers a dime.”

Read more here.

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