My answer would immediately have to be “no” but it makes for good gossip fodder for Rush & Molloy, who claim that the reason Valerie Plame has canceled tomorrow’s People For the American Way-hosted talk – and possibly any other future appearances – not because of CIA concerns but because of an edict handed down by Simon & Schuster. “From our perspective, the book is in progress and is expected to be published in the near future,” Simon & Schuster spokesman Adam Rothberg told the gossipists. “It has always been a known fact, as a former employee, that [her] book would be subject to a review” by the CIA. “I think everybody agrees a better time to do the event would be closer to when the book comes out.”
But a source believes “she was bullied by Simon & Schuster not to appear, since her editors want to maximize the publicity” for when the memoir hits bookstores. But really, let’s go with the prevailing theory that the CIA’s unhappiness about Plame writing any sort of book about her time with the Agency – especially since she was a Non-Official Cover, the most secretive level – instead of some publishing conspiracy-based one….