Just this month, Leslie Stahl was making ink for helping launch WOWOWOW.com with some of her girlfriends. Around this time last year, however, her ink was stained red with rumors she was behind a slew of Katie Couric-bashing leaks. And now, more crimson, this time for a March 2006 60 Minutes report she bludgeoned, with misleading information, made up facts, and conspiracy theories.

In reporting on hedge fund companies who use negative press to drive down the stock price of a company they’re looking to take over on the cheap, Stahl fingered SAC Capital of doing exactly that with pharmaceutical giant Biovail Corp. SAC, Stahl alleged, was having negative items about the company planted in order to convince shareholders they needed to dump their shares.

Only problem? The lawsuit filed by Biovail accusing SAC of doing just that was the real frivolous part of all this.

In fact, it was Biovail who was guilty of the misdeeds; the SEC on Monday sued the company for “repeatedly overstated earnings and hid losses in order to deceive investors” and “actively misled investors and analysts about the reasons for the company’s poor performance.” (Biovail has settled for $10 million, without admitting wrongdoing.)

So all the while 60 Minutes was warning small-time shareholders about the evil SAC and its kin, it was the company whose defense CBS came to that was guilty of fleecing investors. And they should’ve known: When 60 Minutes ran its story, Biovail was already under SEC investigation.

Stahl refused to make herself available for comment; 60 Minutes said it stands by its story.

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