THE SIMPSON VERDICTS : Mixed Reactions From Overseas

The O.J. Simpson trial received mixed reactions abroad. In France, the Simpson saga received scant attention, according to Reuters. One Frenchman even confused the football legend with a cartoon character, presumably from “The Simpsons,� which has a far bigger following in France. British newspapers remade their front pages to make way for news that the jury had reached a verdict on and the story led morning radio and television news bulletins. In Austria, leading newspapers stopped their presses Tuesday evening for the verdict of the O.J. Simpson trial and evening TV newscasts were dominated by the ruling. “It doesn’t involve Austria in any way and a year ago hardly anyone knew who O.J. Simpson was. Now everyone knows. It’s just a great story,� said evening copy desk editor Alexander Fieber of the Vienna daily Die Presse. Israeli Simpson-addicts were not so fortunate: The media had completely shut down six hours before the verdict, and would remain so for a full 30 hours, in observance of Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement.