Inquirer reporter George Anastasia’s Sunday magazine piece on the prosecutors’ deal with Ralph Natale, the key witness in the racketeering case against Joey Merlino, was the talk of the federal courthouse on Monday. But discussion of the article in relation to the ongoing trial actually preceded publication. Last week acting U.S. Attorney Michael Levy voiced concern to Philadelphia Newspapers Inc. attorney Katherine Hatton that because the Sunday magazine is designed to be kept around the house all week — it contains the weekly TV listings — it could be "a temptation" to the jurors, who aren’t sequestered. Hatton says she offered to provide jurors with TV listings separate from the Sunday mag, but "they didn’t take me up on that." Levy says the judge didn’t think it was necessary.

Media watchdog group Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR, www.fair.org) became the victim of a spam scam last week. A lengthy e-mail touting some sort of pyramid scheme ("BE A MILLIONAIRE LIKE OTHERS WITHIN A YEAR!!!") was sent to FAIR’s listserv, complete with the same headers and return address as real FAIR missives. Apparently someone outside the organization "exploited a weakness in the way we had our listserv set up," explains the group’s communications coordinator, Rachel Coen. The flaw has since been corrected, she adds, and the spammer apparently did not gain access to the recipient list. There were complaints, she admits, but "a lot of sympathetic notes too" after subscribers received an e-mail offering an explanation and apology.

"Getting the Message Out: Grassroots Gay and Lesbian Media in Philadelphia," a free panel discussion, will be held April 19, 7:30 p.m., at the University of the Arts, CBS Auditorium, Hamilton Hall, 320 S. Broad St.

—WHAT radio host Mary Mason’s advice to newlyweds Renee Chenault and U.S. Rep Chaka Fattah, according to the Daily News. This is Chenault’s second marriage, and Fattah’s third.

Tim Marshall, host of Rhythm and Blues Showcase on South Jersey’s WBZC 88.9/95.1 FM, presents a concert to benefit the Damon Harris Cancer Foundation (www.damonharris.com) on May 5 at the Radisson Hotel in Mt. Laurel, NJ. Performers include Harris, a former Temptation and prostate cancer survivor, the Delfonics and Ms. Marilyn Marshall.

Journalists in Jeopardy

"Gunmen shot and killed the popular host of a political news radio program in southern Thailand on Tuesday. Witayudh Saengsopit, 55, was shot five times as he was about to enter his office in Surat Thani, 330 miles south of Bangkok, to prepare for an early morning broadcast, police Captain Veerasak Siripokpat said. Mr. Saengsopit was host of the Tan Loke Tan Kon ("Catch up with the world, catch up with the man") show at a provincial radio station. Late last year, an unidentified group put a hand grenade on the gate of his office as a threat, possibly linked to a personal dispute or his reporting on alleged government corruption. He had been under police protection for several months, but that ended recently. The Thai media are regarded as [among] the freest in Asia, but there are occasional threats on the lives of journalists."

—From The European Journalism Centre’s daily e-mail, based on an Associated Press report.

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