Unabomber . . . The Penthouse Connection

Three national publications -- The New York Times, Time and Newsweek -- are now struggling with an offer from the so-called Unabomber: publish a long article detailing his views, and he'll end his 17-year terror campaign. ButPenthousemay take them off the hook. TIME New York correspondent Jenifer Mattos reports that Bob Guccione, chairman of General Media International, on Thursday issued an open letter to the Unabom suspect offering to publish the 37,000-word manuscript himself in Penthouse, OMNI or another magazine he owns "in the hope that it will receive the widest possible dissemination by the media so we can save lives." Guccione told TIME today that he couldn't understand other editors' uneasiness about the issue: "I would do it in an instant. . . . In this instance, we should indulge him 100 percent. No censorship, no discussion with editors and the FBI and all that crap. Just publish and be damned." So far, Mattos notes, the Unabomber hasn't called.