Britney Spears Garners Apology, Retraction From Tabloid

The National Enquirer as issued a rare retraction and apology today for publishing stories about the impending divorce of Britney Spears and Kevin Federline. The retraction comes after Spears sued the tabloid, and a settlement requiring the retraction, with no cash damages, was reached.

MSNBC quoted the retraction from the National Enquirer as saying the tabloid's officials "now accept that their marriage is not over and they are not getting divorced. These allegations are untrue and we now accept Britney's position that the statements are without foundation. We apologize for any distress caused." The retraction was over articles published June 5th and 12th, with the headlines "Britney Marriage is Over!" and "Britney and Kevin: And Now The Divorce!"

Yahoo News reports that "A London lawyer representing American Media Inc., the Boca Raton, Fla.-based publisher of the National Enquirer, signed a settlement agreement with Paul Tweed, the Belfast lawyer representing Spears in Britain and Ireland. The settlement requires a published apology, but no cash damages." Spears filed the lawsuit in the UK, because laws are much more plaintiff-friendly on that side of the Atlantic.

Forbes clarifies the issue. "Whereas U.S. libel law requires a celebrity to prove that an article was both false and published maliciously, British and Irish libel law places the burden of proof on the publisher of such material."

Paul Tweed, the lawyer representing Britney Spears, was quoted by the Associated Press as saying "The couple are very satisfied with the Enquirer's prompt and good-faith response." Neither the lawyer for American Media, Niri Shan, nor the chief executive for the National Enquirer, David Pecker, had a comment for the Associated Press.

Britney Spears and Kevin Federline were married on September 18th, 2004. They had their first child together, Sean Preston Federline, on September 14th, 2005. On May 10th, 2006, Spears confirmed her second pregnancy on the Late Show with David Letterman last month. Britney Spears is the best-selling female artist of the 2000s, having sold 85 million albums. Her first two albums Baby, One More Time and Oops! I Did It Again were both diamond-selling albums, meaning they sold more than 10 million copies in the United States. Britney's albums include Baby, One More Time, Oops! I Did It Again, Britney, In The Zone, Greatest Hits: My Prerogative and has appeared in movies such as The New Mickey Mouse Club, Crossroads and In The Pink. Britney is also expected to release a new album in November 2006, with a world tour tentatively scheduled for 2007.

Britney Spears also made more headlines when she posed nude for the cover of Harper's Bazaar Magazine as well as for photos inside the magazine. That edition of Harper's Bazaar Magazine is due out July 25th.

[Additional Sources: MSNBC, Forbes, Yahoo News, Associated Press]