IN HAEC VERBA: Complaint Filed Against Historic City News

May 5, 2010
Honorable Jonathan Leibowitz, Chairman
Federal Trade Commission
600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20580 via fax to 202-326-3442

Re: “HISTORIC CITY MEDIA,” PLAZABUM.COM and SHAMEFULPEOPLE.COM
IN ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA – UNFAIR AND DECEPTIVE TRADE PRACTICES IN VIOLATION OF SECTION 5, FTC ACT OF 1914 AND ANTITRUST LAWS

Dear Chairman Leibowitz:

Respondent HISTORIC CITY MEDIA is a website operated by MICHAEL GOLD f/k/a “MICHAEL TOBIN.’ HISTORIC CITY MEDIA and GOLD/TOBIN operate two hate websites, plazbum.com and shamefulpeople.com, which are engaged in hate speech, to -- racist, misogynist, sexist, homophobic, obscene and indecent, directing anger at local activists in St. Augustine and St. Johns County and calling for the homeless to be run out of town.

Will you please direct the staff to investigate whether HISTORIC CITY MEDIA, the front for two hate websites, is violating Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act by engaging in unfair and deceptive trade practices in interstate commerce? HISTORIC CITY MEDIA’s trade dress and presentation recently misled AMTRAK officials. A web search by AMTRAK misled AMTRAK into thinking that HISTORIC CITY MEDIA was a responsible journalistic outlet, resulting in AMTRAK inviting MICHAEL GOLD et ux to ride on a May 1, 2010 Inspection Tour of the route of possible train service from Miami to Jacksonville, Florida. HISTORIC CITY MEDIA’s website misled AMTRAK into giving GOLD et ux two valuable tickets on the Inspection Trip, wasting AMTRAK resources and giving faux credibility to KKK-style hate websites. Enough.

Under your Chairmanship and President Obama’s leadership, we look forward to FTC investigating and prosecuting Respondents to the fullest extent of the law, without fear or favor.

Sincerely,




On Saturday, May 1, 2010, a special AMTRAK Inspection Trip took public officials from Miami to Jacksonville, in hopes of reviving passenger service in Florida. Florida passenger service stopped in 1968 when Florida East Coast Railway fired all the union members, who sought higher wages and benefits. See Miami Herald and St. Augustine Record articles, below.
Among the special guests aboard the AMTRAK Inspection Trip train were MICHAEL GOLD f/k/a “MICHAEL TOBIN,” proprietor of something he calls “Historic City Media” and two hate websites, plazabum.com and shamefulpeople.com. GOLD f/k/a TOBIN was accompanied by his wife. On one of his websites, GOLD said his wife was his publisher.”
Steve Kulm, Director of Media Relations with Amtrak and a staffer explained that AMTRAK does not currently serve St. Augustine and had no information on local news media. An AMTRAK staffer researched the web for the names of journalists who had reported “positive stories” on AMTRAK’s proposed expansion. Their web search led them to “Historic City News” and AMTRAK “extended an invitation.” At that time, AMTRAK did not realize the nature of “Historic City News” and thought it was a responsible journalistic enterprise. Learning of GOLD’s hate websites, AMTRAK apologized.
AMTRAK Media Relations Director Steve Kulm told this blog that, in hindsight, “with information, [the invitation] is a decision that would not have been made.”
It strongly appears that AMTRAK staffers were affirmatively misled by GOLD’s “Historic City Media” into thinking that GOLD was somehow a legitimate news outlet, rather than a front for hate websites. I have asked the Federal Trade Commission to investigate ”Historic City Media” and whether it is misrepresenting itself, as it journalistic organization, when it is in fact one man’s opinions.
MICHAEL GOLD’s hate sites feature comments from anonymous posters, including government officials and candidates and developers, using their own names and NICs. The primary hate website, plazabum.com, was founded December 23, 2006 after GOLD and other ranting posters were kicked off the St. Augustine Record’s “Talk of the Town” bulletin board, which was shut down due to abusive posting.
Plazabum.com was founded for the express purpose of running the homeless out of town. It has since branched off to include graphic, obscene and indecent homophobia, racism, misogyny, sexism and hatred of every progressive in St. Augustine and St. Johns County.
GOLD is a licensed private detective and is licensed to carry a concealed handgun.
GOLD’s family business, JR Uniforms, received at least $606,000 in no-bid uniform contracts from the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Department over ten years.
GOLD f/k/a raised $250,000 for controversial St. Johns County Republican SHERIFF DAVID SHOAR f/k/a “DAVID HOAR” in his 2006 race.
Not one public official from St. Johns County or the City of St. Augustine Beach was invited.
This fact was brought up at Monday night’s St. Augustine Beach City Commission meeting.
Vice Mayor ERROL JONES and ex-Mayor GEORGE GARDNER reportedly boarded the plane in Melbourne.
AMTRAK denied that St. Augustine City Commissioner NANCY SIKES-KLINE arranged for the invitation for GOLD. Commissioner NANCY SIKES-KLINE has posted under her own name on plazabum.com when running for office. SIKES- KLINE was also known as bullg8rlady on “Talk of the Town” and plazabum.com
GOLD recently demanded that Google® take down an excerpt posted on this blog from his “Historic City News” – that excerpt evidenced GOLD’s plagiarism and being a puppet for City Manager WILLIAM B. HARRISS – that excerpt was in fact a word-for-word recital of a City of St. Augustine press release on the resignation/retirement of controversial City Manager WILLIAM B. HARRISS. GOLD has also demanded that Google® take down a photograph of RANDY BRUNSON and State’s Attorney R.J. LARIZZA.
GOLD’s irrational outbursts against African-Americans, Gays, women and others are an embarrassment to St. Augustine, and giving tourists the wrong impression about St. Augustine because of his hate sites.
On Christmas Eve 2007, GOLD posted that he wanted to see a local woman who has cancer die a horrible painful death.
St. Augustine and St. Johns County residents are scratching their heads wondering why: (a) the operator of multiple hate sites was feted by AMTRAK, along with his wife, whom he falsely called his “publisher,” while (b) St. Johns County Commissioner J. Kenneth Bryan, an African-American, was not invited (and neither was anyone from St. Johns County, St. Augustine Beach or other local governments).
It’s our money.



Controversial St. Johns County, Florida private investigator, bagman, no-bid uniform salesman, political hitman and dirty trickster MICHAEL GOLD f/k/a "MICHAEL TOBIN" with Sheriff DAVID SHOAR f/k/a "DAVID HOAR," who refuses to disavow GOLD's tactics publicly.


Pinocchio MICHAEL GOLD f/k/a "MICHAEL TOBIN" rode AMTRAK train with AMTRAK CEO and public officials based on falsely presenting himself as news media.