Some of the contacts concerned rumours that turned out not to be true about people including Widdecombe, whom the paper heard had been arrested for drink driving.
Detectives are trawling through 9,200 pages of material seized from a private investigator used by Rupert Murdoch's tabloid to hack into voicemails, a case management hearing to decide how best to handle the flood of lawsuits against the paper heard.
Law was named today, along with Labour MP Chris Bryant, in a group of five test cases who will be the first to have their legal action over alleged phone hacking at the paper heard by the high court.
"I read the candidates' views in the local paper, heard them on Radio Kent and looked them up on the web," he said.
Maybe you've never heard of Scott Rogowsky, but more than likely you've seen him on some talk show, read about him in the paper, heard him on a podcast, or made eyes at him while the "Quiz Daddy" hosts a lively round of HQ Trivia, a mobile quiz game that's apparently taking over America.
Whenever Craigslist.org, a do-it-yourself online bulletin board, enters a new city, local papers hear that proverbial sucking sound.
Ferguson denied the charge and requested a paper hearing, and before today's ruling hinted that he suspected the matter had become personal.
He has requested a paper hearing, which means he will send a written submission rather than appearing in person.
He denied the charge and an Independent Regulatory Commission made the decision after a paper hearing, which meant the Scot chose to send in written evidence.
The FA's statement read: "The charge, which the player admitted and requested a paper hearing, was that he acted in a way which was improper and/or brought the game into disrepute in that the comment was posted on his Twitter account and included a reference to a person's sexual orientation and/or disability".
