DIAL M FOR MERCY Simpson

A humbled Jessica Simpson is trying to repair the damage caused by her duplicitous ex-PR guru, Rob Shuter, who was fired by her manager-father last Thursday after a botched publicity stunt. Sources say the singer has been placing personal calls to the editors of the major celebrity weeklies to voice regret over Shuter's machinations, which culminated in a recent People magazine cover story claiming she had found love with sensitive guitar hero John Mayer.

Some are comparing these off-the-record phone calls—supervised by a publicist at her record label, Epic—to the grueling apologies 12-steppers are required to make to the people they vomited on or otherwise offended while drinking. "She's in Rob-o-holics Anonymous," laughs one call recipient.

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