Kim Porter's children say she didn’t write bestselling memoir about Diddy

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Kim Porter's children say she didn’t write bestselling memoir about Diddy

2024-09-26 06:18 Last Updated At：06:30

NEW YORK (AP) — Although it's a bestseller on Amazon, the late Kim Porter did not write a tell-all memoir detailing an abusive relationship with her longtime partner Sean “Diddy” Combs, her children said in a statement Tuesday.

“Kim’s Lost Words: A journey for justice, from the other side…” was independently published on Amazon in early September, over a week prior to Combs' arrest in New York and the unsealing of an indictment against him. It's alleged to be based on Porter’s diary and notes.

Porter's children, Quincy, Christian, Jessie and D'Lila, denounced the book as a complete fabrication in a collective statement on Instagram late Tuesday.

“Claims that our mom wrote a book are simply untrue. She did not, and anyone claiming to have a manuscript is misrepresenting themselves," the statement read. "Any so-called ‘friend’ speaking on behalf of our mom or her family is not a friend, nor do they have her best interests at heart.”

Christian, Jessie and D'Lila are Porter and Combs' children, and Quincy is Porter's son from a previous relationship, but he was largely raised by Combs. Their statement is the first they've made since Combs was arrested, and they don't directly address the criminal case against him.

Likely in response to the book's alleged details of violence Combs committed against Porter, the children said the volume of “hurtful and false rumors” circulating about their parents' relationship compelled them to speak out.

Porter died from pneumonia in November 2018 at age 47, according to her autopsy report, which determined she died of natural causes. At the time of her death, Combs’ said he and the former model and actor were “more than best friends” and “more than soul mates.”

The book contends in its “disclaimers” section that foul play is responsible for Porter's death. Her children said they are “deeply saddened that the world has made a spectacle of what has been the most tragic event of our lives," noting that her cause of death has been established for years and that there wasn't any foul play.

Riddled with typos and errors, a preview for the short book details physical abuse, sexual coercion and other acts of violence Combs allegedly committed. The $22 paperback had a quiet release on Amazon, but skyrocketed after the news of Combs' arrest and the shocking details of the indictment. It reached the No. 1 spot on Amazon's bestseller's list, but has since dropped down in the rankings.

The author of the book is listed as Jamal T. Millwood, writing “for Kimberly A. Porter." The author behind the book is Todd Christopher Guzze, who goes by the name Chris Todd and defines his occupation as an “investigative producer, author and journalist.”

In a phone interview with The Associated Press Wednesday, Todd said he was approached by people “very close to Kim and Sean Combs” who provided him with a “flash drive, documents and tapes” from Porter that he eventually pieced together to create the memoir in a months-long process.

In response to Porter's children's statement, Todd said his “door is open” for any family members to communicate directly with him.

Todd urged skeptics to “do some homework on who I am” and look at prior cases he's worked on.

Regarding the use of the pseudonym of Millwood — a name conspiracy theorists believe the late rapper Tupac Shakur is using as an alias after his 1996 shooting death was allegedly staged — Todd said his sources requested he use the name specifically for its connection to Shakur.

Rolling Stone was the first to report Todd's identity behind the pseudonym.

Hong Kong court to sentence 2 senior journalists in landmark sedition case

2024-09-26 18:23 Last Updated At：18:30

HONG KONG (AP) — A Hong Kong court is set to sentence two senior journalists Thursday in a landmark sedition case that is widely seen as an indicator of media freedom in a city once known as a beacon of press freedom in Asia.

Stand News former editor-in-chief Chung Pui-kuen and former acting editor-in-chief Patrick Lam are the first journalists convicted under a colonial-era sedition law since the former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997.

The now-shuttered news outlet was one of the last in Hong Kong that dared to criticize authorities as Beijing imposed a crackdown on dissidents following massive pro-democracy protests in 2019.

The closure came months after the demise of pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, whose jailed founder Jimmy Lai is battling collusion charges under a tough national security law imposed by Beijing in 2020.

Last month, the court found Chung and Lam guilty of conspiracy to publish and reproduce seditious materials, along with Best Pencil (Hong Kong) Ltd., the outlet’s holding company. They face up to two years in prison and a fine of 5,000 Hong Kong dollars (about $640).

Judge Kwok Wai-kin began the sentencing hearing two hours after the scheduled time. After hearing further mitigation statements from the journalists' lawyer, Audrey Eu, he said he needed some time to think about it. The hearing was halted and was expected to resume later Thursday.

Kwok wrote in his verdict in August that Stand News had become a tool for smearing the Beijing and Hong Kong governments during the 2019 protests. He ruled that 11 articles published under the defendants' leadership carried seditious intent, including commentaries written by activist Nathan Law and veteran journalists Allan Au and Chan Pui-man. Chan, who is also Chung’s wife, earlier pleaded guilty in the Apple Daily case and is in custody awaiting her sentence.

Kwok said Lam and Chung were aware of and agreed with the seditious intent, and that they made Stand News available as a platform to incite hatred against the Beijing and Hong Kong governments and the judiciary.

On Thursday morning, dozens of people waited in line to secure a seat in the courtroom.

Former Stand News reader Andrew Wong said he wanted to attend the hearing to show his support, though he felt it was like “attending a funeral.” Wong, who works in a non-governmental organization, said he expected the convictions last month, but still felt “a sense that we've passed a point of no return" when he heard the verdict.

“Everything we had in the past is gone," he said.

Their trial, which began in October 2022, lasted some 50 days. The verdict was postponed several times for reasons including a wait for an appeal outcome in another landmark sedition case.

Their lawyer, Eu, argued that the pair be sentenced to up to time served, saying their case was different because they were journalists whose duties were to report different people's views. She said the articles in question represented only a small portion of what Stand News had published. The pair also stressed their journalistic mission in their mitigation letters.

The pair were detained for nearly a year after their arrests before being released on bail in late 2022.

Eu said Lam has been diagnosed with a rare disease and she was concerned that he could not be treated by the hospital that handles his case if he is sent to jail again. Lam also lost his chance to pursue overseas studies due to the case, she said.

Hong Kong was ranked 135 out of 180 territories in Reporters Without Borders’ latest World Press Freedom Index, down from 80 in 2021, and 18 in 2002.

Self-censorship has also become more common during the political crackdown on dissent following the 2019 protests, with increased reports of harassment against journalists in recent months. In March, the city government enacted another new security law that raised concerns about further curtailment of press freedom.

This story corrects the spelling of the judge's name to Wai-kin instead of Wai-king.

Follow AP's Asia-Pacific coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/asia-pacific

Kim Porter's children say she didn’t write bestselling memoir about Diddy

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Kim Porter's children say she didn’t write bestselling memoir about Diddy

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