If we look at this carefully, the deal is that Michael Jackson began to be demonized because he was seen as effeminate (particularly in the USA, where
homophobia is rampant- plus he was African American, another target in a very racist society). Outside the USA this was not such an issue as it was here (nor
were the charges against him, which he was acquitted of).
So I think in the end the basis lies in a homophobic America (that equates homosexuality with pedophilia) that saw him as a "freak" primarily because he was feminine and didn't seem interested in women. That left the door open to abuse and attack, which fed on itself, which he got regularly from the media and the general public who didn't like what they saw. Plus, the "adoring" public loves to build someone up only to tear them down. It's like when you're on the highway and idiots have to stop and look at the car crash on the side of the road- people want drama, and they often create it by making stars and then hoping for, and sometimes creating, their downfall. Now, factor in someone who is seen as gay (and black, and unable to defend himself), and it's open season in American.
And look at tabloid magazines and newspapers (particularly in the USA and UK, where they fed this anti-Jackson insanity)- why are they so popular? Because people love scandal and love to see powerful or popular people fail.
These attacks created the "reality" that most people consider fact about Jackson (perception becomes reality). True, Michael Jackson was eccentric and child-like and terribly naive and misinformed, but this was most likely due to the fact that he was denied a childhood, abused, had very bad self esteem issues, was not particularly intelligent (or at least not able to communicate his intelligence or use it for his benefit), was used and manipulated from the time he was a child, and eventually grew up to be very damaged, addicted to drugs and reliant upon people who were using him to make money, at his expense. All this should be considered when thinking about this guy.
I'm not excusing anything bad he may have done, but it seems very doubtful that he actually did anything bad if you look at the available evidence (in regard to child molestation- other things I don't look kind on, like him buying up the rights to The Beatles music while his "friend" Paul McCartney was trying to retain them, which led to McCartney's feud with Jackson. Jackson said he regretted this and would release the music back to McCartney after Jackson's death- however, this was an empty gesture being that McCartney was much older than Jackson. If Jackson knew he hurt McCartney, he could have just gave the rights back to him while he was still alive- but this is a side issue).
To summarize all the critique you hear about the guy - he was a "freak"; he said he shared his bed with kids (he didn't say sex, and this seemed to be coming from a man who had regressed to a childlike state, not from a pedophile, according to experts) but the media and pundits ran with the quote; he "dangled" his baby over a balcony; and had been accused of pedophilia (a charge that he was acquitted of once); he altered his appearance (something woman do regularly with surgery in the USA).
He was a huge target for exploitation, and attack, and he was being driven insane (watch the Martin Bashir documentary Living with Michael Jackson for evidence of this). And that fed on itself, creating more "reality" around him (in the public's mind) that assisted in his isolation, abuse, downfall and death.
About the recent media coverage- I think Jackson deserves recognition, though not the 24 hour news we've seen on CNN, etc- that's the public's desire for celebrity and drama, and the media doing it's best to dumb-down the masses and get out of doing real news. There are much more important issues that are going unreported. But he was extremely talented and had a huge impact on music, which cannot be said for people like Farrah Fawcett (whose main impact on the world was her hair style, as she was a terrible actress for most of her career- her status and "worth" was a public assigning value to someone based on her image alone, rather than anything she did, thought, created, etc). So, people with talent and who create something in life are usually worthy of attention and recognition they receive. I just wish the news channels reported some news.
Sean
So I think in the end the basis lies in a homophobic America (that equates homosexuality with pedophilia) that saw him as a "freak" primarily because he was feminine and didn't seem interested in women. That left the door open to abuse and attack, which fed on itself, which he got regularly from the media and the general public who didn't like what they saw. Plus, the "adoring" public loves to build someone up only to tear them down. It's like when you're on the highway and idiots have to stop and look at the car crash on the side of the road- people want drama, and they often create it by making stars and then hoping for, and sometimes creating, their downfall. Now, factor in someone who is seen as gay (and black, and unable to defend himself), and it's open season in American.
And look at tabloid magazines and newspapers (particularly in the USA and UK, where they fed this anti-Jackson insanity)- why are they so popular? Because people love scandal and love to see powerful or popular people fail.
These attacks created the "reality" that most people consider fact about Jackson (perception becomes reality). True, Michael Jackson was eccentric and child-like and terribly naive and misinformed, but this was most likely due to the fact that he was denied a childhood, abused, had very bad self esteem issues, was not particularly intelligent (or at least not able to communicate his intelligence or use it for his benefit), was used and manipulated from the time he was a child, and eventually grew up to be very damaged, addicted to drugs and reliant upon people who were using him to make money, at his expense. All this should be considered when thinking about this guy.
I'm not excusing anything bad he may have done, but it seems very doubtful that he actually did anything bad if you look at the available evidence (in regard to child molestation- other things I don't look kind on, like him buying up the rights to The Beatles music while his "friend" Paul McCartney was trying to retain them, which led to McCartney's feud with Jackson. Jackson said he regretted this and would release the music back to McCartney after Jackson's death- however, this was an empty gesture being that McCartney was much older than Jackson. If Jackson knew he hurt McCartney, he could have just gave the rights back to him while he was still alive- but this is a side issue).
To summarize all the critique you hear about the guy - he was a "freak"; he said he shared his bed with kids (he didn't say sex, and this seemed to be coming from a man who had regressed to a childlike state, not from a pedophile, according to experts) but the media and pundits ran with the quote; he "dangled" his baby over a balcony; and had been accused of pedophilia (a charge that he was acquitted of once); he altered his appearance (something woman do regularly with surgery in the USA).
He was a huge target for exploitation, and attack, and he was being driven insane (watch the Martin Bashir documentary Living with Michael Jackson for evidence of this). And that fed on itself, creating more "reality" around him (in the public's mind) that assisted in his isolation, abuse, downfall and death.
About the recent media coverage- I think Jackson deserves recognition, though not the 24 hour news we've seen on CNN, etc- that's the public's desire for celebrity and drama, and the media doing it's best to dumb-down the masses and get out of doing real news. There are much more important issues that are going unreported. But he was extremely talented and had a huge impact on music, which cannot be said for people like Farrah Fawcett (whose main impact on the world was her hair style, as she was a terrible actress for most of her career- her status and "worth" was a public assigning value to someone based on her image alone, rather than anything she did, thought, created, etc). So, people with talent and who create something in life are usually worthy of attention and recognition they receive. I just wish the news channels reported some news.
Sean
, pretty cool!
but he will stay with us
forever in his songs!
