If BellSouth was trying to look Grinch-like coming into Christmas, they certainly did so - is there some kind of corporate competition for "best stupid PR stunt" going on that we don't know about? How else to explain the tantrum like outburst over New Orleans' plan to offer free WiFi:

Hours after New Orleans officials announced Tuesday that they would deploy a city-owned, wireless Internet network in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, regional phone giant BellSouth Corp. withdrew an offer to donate one of its damaged buildings that would have housed new police headquarters, city officials said yesterday.

...

City officials said BellSouth was upset about the plan to bring high-speed Internet access for free to homes and businesses to help stimulate resettlement and relocation to the devastated city. Around the country, large telephone companies have aggressively lobbied against localities launching their own Internet networks, arguing that they amount to taxpayer-funded competition. Some states have laws prohibiting them.

Of course, one of BellSouth's PR flacks disputed the story from the mayor's office. Not quite as stupid as Sony paying graffiti artists, but it's right up there.