The unexplained de-ranking of books on Amazon.com this weekend kindled an inferno of Internet outrage, the LA Times says, primarily because it was misreported that only gay & lesbian themed titles were affected.
Amazon spokesperson Drew Herdener sent the newspaper a statement, blaming the entire situation on a 'cataloguing error' and explaining that in fact some 57,310 titles were removed from its ranking system and withdrawn from sale (they couldn't be found by search), spanning categories including Health, Mind & Body, Reproductive & Sexual Medicine, and Erotica.
As the LA Times commented, "This is an embarrassing and ham-fisted cataloguing error for a company that prides itself on offering complete selection." It added, "We've just heard that Amazon is planning to release more information about the glitch."
Lots of material to keep bloggers and Twitterers happy indefinitely.