We don't know about you, but we are so over this Shock magazine vs. Michael Yon hubbub.

But, its not every day we get a letter signed by Jack Kliger, president and CEO of Hachette Filipacchi, so we thought we would perk up just this one last time. If you've been living under a rock or are not psychotically obsessed with media, you may not be aware of the situation Shock magazine is currently in. (Hell, if you're not obsessed with media, you probably never even heard of Shock.) We'll do a quick summary for you before running their letter.

Shock is the latest launch by Hachette that aims to engage their audience (18-34) by running some semi-controversial photos and topics. Their last cover photo, which they bought from Getty Images, was not Getty's to sell, but actually belonged to photographer Michael Yon. After accusing Hachette of copyright infringement, Yon eventually agreed to settle, and claimed to be "satisfied" that the mag didn't intentionally steal the photo. Then, he bounced.

Well, Yon has a his own blog which has been encouraging readers to boycott the magazine, even causing Rite Aid and Eckerd to pull the mag from their stands. Since HFMUS doesn't a blog (ok, we realize they're a media superpower, but our interns sort of like Shock's website), we thought we'd run Kliger's email. How the powers respond, after the jump.

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I am writing you about the inaugural issue of our new publication Shock. First, thank you for your support. I do wish to voice my concern, however, over the attention photographer Michael Yon has drawn to its cover image of his photograph of an American soldier in Iraq.

As you may know, just as the issue was arriving on newsstands, Mr. Yon contacted us regarding copyright issues about the photo. Since Hachette is a worldwide publisher of over 260 magazines, we highly value and uphold the rights of photographers and handle copyright clearances as a matter of routine.

Even though we had purchased the rights to use the photograph through a reputable photo agency, we recognize that misunderstandings do occur. We acted quickly to address Mr. Yon’s concerns, attempted to settle the matter, and when he agreed to a settlement, Mr. Yon himself stated on June 5th via his on-line magazine that he was “satisfied” that we were “acting in good faith.” A few days later, Mr. Yon reversed his position and walked away from our talks. We were disappointed, but not surprised.

It is my personal belief that Michael Yon has benefited from and continues to exploit the controversy to promote his political agenda. Shock’s editorial position is to be provocative – and we welcome the debate. We hope that the compelling photographs in each issue spark discussion. However, we will not allow Mr. Yon’s tactics to intimidate us.

Mr. Yon appears to have taken on the role of self-appointed censor and makes the assumption that if a media outlet depicts the current war in Iraq in a way he considers to be unacceptable, they are anti-military and thus anti-American. To be clear, there is nothing in our story on Iraq that dishonors our troops, quite the contrary. That said, Mr. Yon sees it fit to use intimidation tactics – such as email campaigns to people like you — to paralyze us, the “offender.”

(For more background on Mr. Yon and his controversial past and relationship to the U.S. Army etc. please read this story published recently by The Los Angeles Times.)

While mainstream press has mostly ignored this story, like-minded bloggers have taken it up with a vengeance and Mr. Yon’s website enables anyone to simply press a button and send prepared statements and complaint letters to retailers, to Hachette executives, and to other bloggers en masse. He has a highly-organized campaign and, while we do not take issue with Michael Yon’s right to voice his opinion, it seems clear that those participating in this effort are not Shock readers, but rather Mr. Yon’s followers.

Because of Shock’s outstanding success in Europe, our research in the U.S. which clearly shows a market for this product here, and our plans to aggressively promote this new title to its intended demographic (18-34), we are confident that this magazine will strike a chord with the younger generation.

I hope this helps put the situation in its true light and invite you to contact me directly with your thoughts.

Jack Kliger

President & Chief Executive Officer

Hachette Filipacchi Media US