Joey Kennedy says former employer al.com is using his name in an effort to sell newspaper subscriptions

Joey Kennedy and three of his
animal friends
(From B-Metro Magazine)

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Joey Kennedy says al.com is using his name in an effort to sell subscriptions, just weeks after firing him.

In a post yesterday at his Facebook page, Kennedy said he is considering possible legal action. Al.com, the digital equivalent of The Birmingham News, fired Kennedy on February 19.
He reached a severance agreement with al.com on March 6 and signed on as a columnist for B-Metro Magazine. Also, Kennedy and his wife, Veronica, are launching Animal Advocates of Alabama, a Web site about animal-related news and advocacy.

Kennedy seemed stunned yesterday to learn that representatives for his former employer were using his name in an effort to sell newspapers--even hinting that he was about to return to the fold. Said Kennedy on Facebook:

Well, one tries to move on. The company that fired me for "making threats" and "being too personally involved in my stories" is now putting people out in stores around the city telling potential subscribers that they are negotiating with me to return to Alabama Media Group and The News. I've not been a party to these "negotiations," yet they're using my credibility and standing in the community to sell subscriptions to their 3-day-a-week paper.

How does Kennedy feel about this strange turn of events?

I'm insulted, offended and just plain angry. I've consulted with my lawyer and we're deciding what to do next. This is wrong on so many levels. I did nothing but exemplary work for this group for more than 33 years. They cast me aside, and now try to use me to sell subscriptions. How do you describe this?

Three terms come to my mind to describe it--"sleazy," "underhanded," and "dim-witted." Oh, and I mustn't forget "shameless."

How would you describe al.com's treatment of one of Alabama's best-known journalists? Please send your adjectives, adverbs, and other descriptive phrases to us via the comments section.