The City Editor of a sleazy tabloid goes against his own journalistic ethics to resurrect a twenty year old murder case... with tragic results.

Hinchcliffe, the ruthless publisher of a sleazy New York tabloid, is concerned that the ethical journalistic policies of City Editor Randall have caused a drop in circulation. He pressures the newsman to run more sensational stories including resurrecting the twenty year old Vorhees Murder Case. Although the perpetrator's actions were ultimately judged justifiable, and she has been subsequently living an exemplary life in anonymity, Hunchcliffe insists Randall revisit the story. Randall assigns Isopod, an alcoholic degenerate, to dig up anything lurid that he find. The unprincipled reporter fraudulently insinuates himself into the Vorhees' home masquerading as a minister and gets the expose he sought. Yellow journalism triumphs, and a decent woman's name gets dragged through the mud again... with tragic consequences.—[email protected]

A jaded newsman laments that some reporters furnish the manure while some grow the flowers. Editor Joe Randall's newspaper is suddenly in the manure biz. To increase readership and revenues, he's pressured against his principles to come up with a sensationalist tale or two. So Randall revisits a love-nest murder of years past. Circulation soars. But living people - real people - involved in the story are suddenly victimized. Randall could never imagine the tragedy to follow.

In the highly competitive New York City market, the Evening Gazette newspaper is losing circulation, the paper's owner, Bernard Hinchecliffe, and many of the department heads putting the blame solely on the shoulders of Managing Editor, Jos. Randall, who has of late gone highbrow in the paper's editorial approach as opposed to the unofficial policy of the sensational they feel is more appealing to the masses. With those department heads firmly behind him, Hinchecliffe, to boost circulation, makes the executive decision for Randall to resurrect/update the twenty year old story of Nancy Voorhees, who killed her lover for refusing to marry her, that updated story to be presented serialized. If Randall and his team are able to discover the current details behind Nancy, they will learn that she, after her release from prison, has led a respectable life as wife to Michael Townsend, a bank employee, and mother to Jenny Townsend. Michael is the only person who knows Nancy's past, and that he is not Jenny's biological father. Jenny is engaged to Phillip Weeks, who comes from a respectable upper middle class family. The question then becomes if anyone, such as Randall's faithful secretary Miss Taylor, who is secretly in love with him and is often his voice of reason, will be able to convince him not to proceed before it's too late in the truth coming to light ruining the lives of the innocent people at the center of the story.—Huggo

Circulation numbers at The Evening Gazette newspaper have fallen. The publisher, Bernard Hinchecliffe, puts it down to the Managing Editor, Jos Randall, going with more factual, positive stories than the sleaze and slander the newspaper usually prints. To boost circulation he has Randall produce a series of articles on Nancy Voorhees, a woman who killed her boss 20 years ago but was acquitted. Voorhees is now living happily in obscurity under her husband's name. Randall sends his reporters in, incognito, to find out more about her current life.—grantss