NEW YORK (AP) – Now that Oprah has spoken, and forgiven, don’t count on any major changes in James Frey’s “A Million Little Pieces” or in how publishers ensure the accuracy of memoirs.

With the force of a Supreme Court ruling, Oprah Winfrey phoned in to “Larry King Live” this week, at the end of an hour-long interview with Frey, and reaffirmed her support for his memoir of addiction.

She declared that the allegations that Frey had fabricated some parts – including a three-month prison stint that apparently never happened – were “much ado about nothing” and that the book should be judged by its redemptive power.

On Thursday, the book’s publisher, Doubleday, announced that Frey was writing a brief author’s note for future hardcover and paperback editions. Spokeswoman Alison Rich would not say what would be in the note.

Memoirs sometimes contain disclaimers acknowledging that some names and events have been changed.

The dispute set off a debate over what obligations publishers have to make sure that memoirs adhere to the facts. But some publishers said that they must depend on the writers because too many memoirs come out to fact-check them all.

“I think it changes nothing,” Jane Friedman, chief executive of HarperCollins, said of the Frey scandal.

Grove/Atlantic president Morgan Entrekin said: “It’s impossible to establish with certainty the factual accuracy of every piece of nonfiction we publish; we would grind to a halt. “I don’t know what we could do. It’s just the nature of the beast.”

For days, Frey had been intensely criticized – and defended – by publishers, authors and readers. Winfrey’s endorsement last fall made the book a million-seller, and her rejection could have finished it off and made publishers wary of the whole genre.

“I know a lot of us were nervous about what Oprah was going to say. It was a dramatic moment,” Entrekin said.

Although Doubleday reported a small number of customer complaints, and many unhappy readers have posted e-mails on Winfrey’s Web site, the controversy appears to be helping sales.

Not only has “A Million Little Pieces” remained at No. 1 on Amazon.com, the sequel, “My Friend Leonard,” has moved into the top 5.

“I think probably the matter is over and people will go on reading it,” says Cathy Moseley, a book seller at That Bookstore in Blytheville, Ark.