Michael Jackson: Imperfect Icon Who Became America's Global Face

This is a big world, with many remote corners where America is known only as a distant and different land. But Michael Jackson touched almost all of them.

The music star's death Thursday, at age 50 after suffering an apparent cardiac arrest is an international event. And we ought to recognize why that is so.

For all the eccentric – and ultimately unsettling – behavior that would see the "king of pop" ridiculed as the "king of weird" –-or worse-- Jackson was for a significant part of the 1980s and 1990s as much or more the face of America as Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush or Bill Clinton.

"He brought human beings together across the barriers of race and class and gender," explained Michael Eric Dyson, the author and commentator who is a professor of sociology at Georgetown University. "He projected into the world (the genius and strength) of African-American culture."

The better part of a quarter century before Barack Obama was credited with remaking America's global image, Michael Jackson presented the United States as a country where an African-American kid from Gary, Indiana, could on the basis of remarkable talent and drive -- as well as a musicologist's understanding of the soul and R&B traditions -- become fabulously successful, fabulously influential and fabulously wealthy.

"For all his tragic flaws as a human being, Jackson could legitimately be seen as the greatest entertainer of his generation," argues Richard Williams, the former head of head of artists and repertoire at Island Records who went on to become a savvy cultural commentator for Britain's Guardian newspaper.

One did not need to revere Jackson or his music to recognize that at a particular point in this country's long and complicated history of wrestling with its better angels and uglier demons, the singer projected to the world the sense and the promise of a multicultural and tolerant United States. Hip-hop empresario Russell Simmons summed it up: "Michael Jackson was my generation's most iconic cultural hero."

For a time, on the basis of the enormous popularity of his Off the Wall, Thriller and Bad albums, he was not just a dominant figure in popular music. He was the dominant figure in popular music. Inducted twice into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame – as a solo artist and as a member of the Jackson 5 -- he earned 13 Grammy Awards and 13 number one singles as a solo performer -- achieving worldwide sales in excess of 750 million albums.

The key word is "worldwide."

Jackson's 1991 hit "Black or White" charted at number one in the Australia , Austria, Belgium, Cuba, Denmark, Finland, France, Israel, Italy, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden, the Unites Kingdom, Zimbabwe and, of course, the United States.

"Black or White" was an angry song with an anti-racist message that was reinforced by a video digitally enhanced to show Jackson smashing windows with graffiti reading "KKK Rules" and "No More Wetbacks." The ubiquitous video featured the singer dancing with Africans, Asians, Native Americans, southern Asians and Russians.

Jackson was not an expressly political artist -- he told Ebony magazine in 1992 that "I never get into politics." Yet, because of his immense celebrity in the 1980s and early 1990s, his determination to treat people with AIDs respectfully (like that of Princess Diana and Elizabeth Taylor) took on significance that was both political and cultural. That commitment was most on display, following the death of Ryan White, when Jackson used public appearances – particularly one at Bill Clinton's inaugural gala -- to plead for more funding of HIV/AIDS research and care.

Jackson's charities were many: programs for refugees and the victims of violence such as Warchild, the "We Are the World" project and his own Heal the World Foundation, as well as the the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund, the Red Cross, UNESCO and for many years the United Negro College Fund.

His stumbles, especially in recent years, were disturbing, at times horrifying. There was about this desperate manchild more than a hint of the tragic and self-destructive.

The tragedy and the trials will be remembered, for a time.

But, as with Elvis Presley and so many brilliant artists whose lives ended after their stars had been tarnished, it will be the iconic influence – an influence stretching across boundaries of race, class, gender and nationality -- that is most remembered when we speak of Michael Jackson, and the ultimately most significant.

Comments (52)

1. My condolences and love, what he did well, he did better than anyone ever.

   Posted by winyahn at 06/25/2009 @ 8:12pm

2. Sad day for music. The impact he had on music will resound forever.

   Posted by Cccomfo1 at 06/25/2009 @ 8:45pm

3. Another very nice tribute Mr. Nichols. Well done.

   You have an amazing talent.

   Unfortunately, you have had to use it alot in the past.

   Posted by Benchrest at 06/25/2009 @ 8:46pm

4. face of america? no, face of pop music. let's not pay mr jackson more than his due. i doubt he'd appreciate it. i would miss him, but he's been a memory for so long already. and you can't take away memories; just choose which ones you want to surface. i'll take the "thriller" days. he was not just the king, he was IT, period. but what came after, i choose to forget. rest in peace, michael.

   Posted by SHUNK at 06/25/2009 @ 9:45pm

5. Thank you for this nice article. He said he wasn't political? That's interesting. Some of the articles are tracing the multiracial appeal of the music to Jackson's "training" at Motown -- the crossover hit factory. Breaking down the barriers must have been a central aim for him.

   Posted by RLawrence at 06/25/2009 @ 10:06pm

6. I am really angry tonite about how much coverage Jackson's death has recieved. It illistrates to me what a shallow country we really are. With all thats going on in the world, cable tv devoted ALL its broadcast time on every cable station to the death of Michael Jackson. It's not that I disliked him or his music, though I didn't think much of either, it is obsessive coverage of him thruout his life and now his death is just over the top. I am disgusted with it all. Im going to cancel my cable tv service once and for all.

   Posted by proletariatprincess at 06/26/2009 @ 01:23am

7. RIP. Amazing pop talent, profoundly self-wounding. And as both, a most appropriate face of worldwide pop culture (though not of the US).

   Posted by sloper at 06/26/2009 @ 01:41am

8. A talent, with incredible popularity and a VERY long career (fair or unfair comparison, he DID have a longer career than Elvis or John Lennon)....but his post-mortem impact will gradually fade.

   He wasn't as innovative as the rock-a-billys like Carl Perkins or Elvis...or the blues guys like Muddy or John Lee Hooker or Robert Johnson...or 60s rock guys like the Beatles or Stones or The Doors. He combined disco and R&B for a distinctive "80s" sound and influenced dance and music videos, but I don't see a BIG continueing impact on musical evolution. Even at present, while pop music has "Jacksonian" influences, rap has little and alternative/garage even less.

   You might say he's the "godfather of 'American Idol' or 'So You Think You Can Dance'"...but not sure that's much of a compliment.

   Posted by Mask at 06/26/2009 @ 07:53am

9. Michael Jackson's death causes me to reflect on the ugliness of humanity. Not just the comment above, but what we seem to do to all of our "temporary heroes".

   The uncritical adulation that alway acompanies celebrity only precedes by moments that time when we yank the pedestal out from underneath so we can watch them flounder in a pit of scorn.

   It seems we are like the barbaric seven-year old child who painstakeningly spends hours building up a sand castle ultimately for the perverse pleasure of playing Godzilla and destroying it.

   May he rest in peace.

   Posted by Darin_the_Big_Fat_Troll at 06/26/2009 @ 08:33am

10. DOWN and OUT? NEED A JOB? THINKING OF SELLING AMWAY OR $5 HANDJOBS?

    DON'T DESPAIR---GOP, INC CAN HELP!! TAKING APPLICATIONS NOW!!

    Do you have immense talent as...

    ...A closeted homosexual with craddle-robbing tendencies and a drinking problem to boot?

    ...An airport men's room romantic with a very wide stance (all the way into the next stall)?

    ...A pontificator on unshakable moral values and the sancticty of God's covenant of marriage between man and woman -- that you are able to deliver with a straight face while zipping your pants up after another roll in the whorehouse hay?

    ...A pompous and pious moralist on the ethical compass and good governance that can pivot at a moment's notice to South American junkets on the public's dime for extra-marital whoppee, spiced with expressions of email amour that would embarrass a particuarly dense teenager had he composed such drivel?

    ...A misgoynist capable of dumping your car-accident disfigured wife for a woman young enough to be to your daughter or serving up divorce papers to the cancer-stricken wife in a hospital bed?

    ...A rhetorical uber-hawk, capable of delivering bombastic poolside polemics about the rigors of American security and the glories of militarism when your own war-time record consisted of woozily executing disco dance moves while heavily inebriated?

    ...Or more run-of-the mill but useful talents such as exposing covert agents, screeching on TV about mushroom clouds, gutting the constitution and fair electoral practices?

    The sky is the limit with GOP and total absence of intellect or scruples poses no hindrance!

    Postions now open include:

    * Congressman!

    * US Senator, ShittyRedState!

    * Head, Republican Governers Association!

    * Presidential Candidate!

    APPLY NOW!!!

    Posted by PhilMcCrevice at 06/26/2009 @ 08:39am

11. In a parallel universe, could a trimmed-down DARIN be saying something like...???

    "BILL CLINTON'S IMPEACHMENT WHEN CENSURE WOULD DO & WHEN THE FIRES OF AMERICA'S ENEMIES WERE VISABLE BEYOND THE PERIMETER causes me to reflect on the ugliness of humanity. Not just the comment above, but what we seem to do to all of our 'temporary heroes'.

    The uncritical adulation that alway acompanies celebrity only precedes by moments that time when we yank the pedestal out from underneath so we can watch them flounder in a pit of scorn AND SET UP GOP CAMPAIGN THEMES VIA IMPEACHMENT IN 1998 FOR THE NEXT GOP CAMPAIGN IN 2000.

    It seems we are like the barbaric seven-year old child who painstakeningly spends hours building up a sand castle ultimately for the perverse pleasure of playing Godzilla and destroying it, SELF-DESTRUCTIVE SPITEFULNESS WHICH IS THE ESSENCE & DEFINITION OF HATEFUL RIGHTWING POLITICS..."

    Posted by Darin_the_Big_Fat_Troll at 06/26/2009 @ 08:33am

    Posted by PhilMcCrevice at 06/26/2009 @ 08:46am

12. Michael Jackson was a true artist. He drew equally across race and economic strata.

    He could make a conservative white hippy like myself look forward to hearing him, because he was FUN.

    Yes his life was mixed up, tragic, confused, and a whole stream of negative adverbs and adjectives you can attach.

    But no objective person can deny that this was a man with an enormous gift to entertain the world; or that he genuinely cared about people, of every race, ethnicity, and background.

    RIP Michael

    Posted by antisocialist at 06/26/2009 @ 08:44am

    Posted by antisocialist at 06/26/2009 @ 08:47am

13. In case anyone is interested in a late piece of evidence for yesterday's topid, there is this:

    http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124597505076157449.html

    The Climate Change Climate Change

    The number of skeptics is swelling everywhere.

    By KIMBERLEY A. STRASSEL

    The backlash has brought the scientific debate roaring back to life in [countries such as Australia, Japan, the U.S., Poland, Czech Republic, France, and New Zealand.]

    The number of skeptics, far from shrinking, is swelling. Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe now counts more than 700 scientists who disagree with the U.N. ...

    Joanne Simpson, the world's first woman to receive a Ph.D. in meteorology, expressed relief upon her retirement last year that she was finally free to speak "frankly" of her nonbelief...

    A group of 54 noted physicists, led by Princeton's Will Happer, is demanding the American Physical Society revise its position that the science is settled...

    Dr. Ian Plimer, a well-known Australian geologist... published "Heaven and Earth," a damning critique of the "evidence" underpinning man-made global warming. The book is ... [s]o compelling ... that Paul Sheehan, [an] ... ardent global warming believer -- in April humbly pronounced it "an evidence-based attack on conformity and orthodoxy, including my own, and a reminder to respect informed dissent and beware of ideology subverting evidence."

    ...

    Posted by Darin_the_Big_Fat_Troll at 06/26/2009 @ 09:00am

14. "Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe now counts more than 700 scientists who disagree with the U.N. ..."-------------Posted by Darin_the_Big_Fat_Troll at 06/26/2009 @ 09:00am

    Hmmm...out of HOW MANY?

    BTW...how many Republican Presidential candidates will he find?....heheh

    Posted by Mask at 06/26/2009 @ 09:14am

15. You might say he's the "godfather of 'American Idol' or 'So You Think You Can Dance'"...but not sure that's much of a compliment.

    Posted by Mask at 06/26/2009 @ 07:53am | ignore this person | warn this person

    Ah yeah right. You are talking about Jackson with comparisons to Elvis, the Stones and the Beatles - and the other 50% of your honorable mentions don't even make the grade of "world wide" recognition. Every musician draws on the past - Elvis, The Stones, and the Beatles - none of which can or should be credited with invention of 'rock and roll,' but surely credited with spreading it's mass appeal. MJ did that for his own particular genre. Doesn't matter whether you like his music and dance or not. A 'hats off' is well deserved.

    Posted by OneVote at 06/26/2009 @ 09:16am

16. Earlier this month, a former Bush and McCain advisor unveiled a "Top 10" list of most likely Repugnant to follow Obama.

    Notice anything about Number6 and Number10? Twenty-percent of this list has imploded in a week's time!

    "The Next Republican President" by Mark McKinnon [From THE DAILY BEAST]

    1. Mitt Romney. Republicans like orderly succession, and he's got the $$.

    2. Tim Pawlenty. Reformer, populist elected in a blue state.

    3. John Thune. Central casting and liked by all factions.

    4. Mike Huckabee. A national show and evangelical base.

    5. Sarah Palin. The juice and interest level of an American Idol finalist.

    6. Mark Sanford. Pork-busting fiscal conservative from key state (South Carolina).

    7. Bobby Jindal. He seems to be saying, "Wait," and may be one of the few who can.

    8. Newt Gingrich. No one understands better how to start a revolution.

    9. Jon Huntsman. Brilliant move by Obama keeping his friends close and his enemies in China. But if he solves an early crisis and comes home, look out.

    10. John Ensign. A U.S senator spending time in Iowa. 'Nuff said.

    Posted by PhilMcCrevice at 06/26/2009 @ 09:38am

17. It illistrates to me what a shallow country we really are....It's not that I disliked him or his music, though I didn't think much of either, it is obsessive coverage of him thruout his life and now his death is just over the top. I am disgusted with it all....

    Posted by proletariatprincess at 06/26/2009 @ 01:23am

    I stand with the "proletariat" on this one...except I cancelled my cable coverage some 10 years ago. See my comment moments ago at the first Jackson thread by Richard Kim:

    KIM: "Our fascination with Whack-o Jack-o....was with the way he personified our culture's most central ambitions to whiteness, immortality, wealth, real estate and fame."

    What you mean, is superficiality, in the pursuit of what others perceive of you....hence his obvious hate towards being born black, cute as he was. Looking at a progression of photos of him, he took a knife to his Afro nose and never stopped.

    His early music had some highlights but the advent of music video, with imagery so dominating & which covered up the mediocrity & shitiness of his later music, was a key part of his accelerated self-loathing.....

    This man-child does not belong to this world anymore....his negatives have outweighed his positives for quite some years.

    May he rest in peace and AT PEACE with his tortured soul!

    Posted by Happy at 06/26/2009 @ 09:41am

    Posted by Happy at 06/26/2009 @ 09:50am

18. TUFF WORDS:

    "Marriage is the cornerstone on which our society was founded. For those who say that the Constitution is so sacred that we cannot or should not adopt the Federal Marriage Amendment, I would simply point out that marriage, & the sanctity of that institution, predates the American Constitution and the founding of our nation. It predates the founding of our nation & even the landing at Plymouth Rock. Marriage, as a social institution, predates every other institution on which ordered society in America & the world as a whole, has relied, including even the church itself...It is not right to mold marriage to fit the desires of a few, against the wishes of so many, and to ignore the important role of marriage."

    --JOHN ENSIGN, pieties from the Senate floor, July 2004

    *Ensign from the House floor pn President Bill Clinton: "He has no credibility left"

    *Ensign affiliation: The Promise Keepers (!!!)

    *Ensign's rating from the Christian Coalition: 100%!

    *MAX BLUMENTHAL on Ensign's rejection of relatvism, moral equivalence and other forms of degeneracy: "In September 2007, Ensign attempted to leverage his power as chairman of the Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee to force then-Senator Larry Craig to resign after he pleaded guilty in August 2007 to soliciting sex from an undercover cop in a men's restroom. However, Ensign made no such demand of Sen. David Vitter, the Louisiana Republican who in July 2007 admitted to an affair with a high-priced prostitute. On ABC's This Week, Ensign tried to explain his confusing standards, claiming that Craig "admitted guilt. That is a big difference between being accused of something and actually admitting guilt…David Vitter never did that." [David "John" Shitter admitted his deeds during a press conference]

    Posted by PhilMcCrevice at 06/26/2009 @ 09:50am

19. "The better part of a quarter century before Barack Obama was credited with remaking America's global image, Michael Jackson presented the United States as a country where an African-American kid from Gary, Indiana, could on the basis of remarkable talent and drive..."

    2 points...

    1. Barak hasn't remade Americas global image...he has only presented the globe with the liberal loon section of America positions on "economical suicide by uber spending other peoples money that hasn't been earned yet at a faster rate than Bush ever dreamed", as well as the coming uber inflation that will give the "people" $ 20 happy meals...it gave another people a Furher...

    2. Does this mean a black person from the arm pit of Gary, Indiana has a chance on pure talent and his own efforts can make it in America without the "help" of endless govt programs, quotas and set asides for past generations deeds?? In American anyone with drive and talent can make it...careful boys...you might make people think they can do it on their own..

    Posted by YourJomamma at 06/26/2009 @ 09:55am

20. More MAX BLUMENTHAL on ENSIGN and his roomate SEN. TOM COBURN:

    "On June 17, a day after Ensign's revelation, Coburn pleaded for forgiveness. 'If you look at it in the light of everybody makes errors, at least he fessed up and resolved the problem with his family,' Coburn said, 'so I think it speaks well of his corrective force.' Coburn also told a crowd of reporters of his 51-year-old roomie, 'He is a bright young man. Lots of people make mistakes.'...

    The disclosure of Coburn's role in the scandal not only raises questions about the extent to which he participated in a coverup, but may also prove damaging to his reputation as perhaps the staunchest advocate of conservative sexual mores in Senate history. Coburn is the senator who denounced NBC's broadcast of Schindler's List as "an all-time low, with full-frontal nudity." He has warned of "rampant" lesbianism in Oklahoma public high-school bathrooms...

    'Our culture that too often glorifies promiscuous sex without consequences should not be surprised by this scandal,' Rep. Coburn declared at the height of impeachment proceedings targeting President Bill Clinton... 'The tragic consequences of the president's behavior should prompt us to reassert the high moral standards that form the foundation of our freedom.'...

    I (MB) left the following questions on his voicemail with a request for Coburn's comments:

    -Did Coburn urge Ensign not to use condoms? Did he ask Ensign if he used condoms with Cindy Hampton?

    -Did Coburn urge Ensign to get tested for STDs including AIDS?

    -Does Coburn trust Ensign not to have sex with multiple partners again?

    -Will Coburn continue to share a Capitol Hill apartment with Ensign or will Coburn move out?..."

    Posted by PhilMcCrevice at 06/26/2009 @ 10:05am

21. Easy there Phil..cut back on the coffee and get back on the meds...

    Maybe after seeing a picture of the mistress and meeting her...you might think differently...

    after all, infidelity has always been a resume enhancer for the Dems...even Barney Boy...so be fair...

    Let's see what the risk was about..maybe it will bounce him into the WH..

    Posted by YourJomamma at 06/26/2009 @ 10:13am

22. Fighting thru his massive manboobs and rolls of flab at the keyboard, YourJomamma pompously intones: "Does this mean a black person from the arm pit of Gary, Indiana has a chance on pure talent & his own efforts can make it in America without the 'help' of endless govt programs, quotas and set asides for past generations deeds?? In American anyone with drive and talent can make it..you might make people think they can do it on their own."

    Tuff words for a no-talent nobody who, like a George W ConservaLoser, construes overcoming adversity as paying soemone to clean the vomit caked onto his frat sweatshirt. We also notice that he rails against "quotas"--he can't define them though.

    More from JO on race, from Feb'09. Very revealing. JO sez that THEY "enter the country or live there and breed like crazy..Europe is hitting 25% Islamic soon, and US is hitting 35% Hispanic..PLUS..they are draining the social system of cash and resources while putting nothing back in of equal or greater values...plus being illiterate in their own language, the added pressure of the host country to "help" them is over bearing...add to this the fact that the liberals in the host country actually sue in court to give the invaders(un resticted and illegal immigrants) more rights than the host citizens, like push 1 for English and native language voting ballots, in state tuition...it won't take long and the Israelis will be voted out of their own country..legaly... learn from the Muslims in Europe and the Mexicans in the US how to invaded, destroy and take over a more sophisticated and wealthy society using their own wealth, productivity, generosity, and the local liberals against the locals in their own country, combined with the gigantic birth rates...victory with out a shot being fired.."

    Posted by PhilMcCrevice at 06/26/2009 @ 10:23am

23. YourJomamma at 06/26/2009 @ 10:13am: "infidelity has always been a resume enhancer for the Dems...even Barney Boy..."

    So, in the revisionist conservaLoser history that is larded with moral equivalences and wholesale relativism as well as unswerving devotion to the facts...Barney Frank is married, with kids, and a full-throated cultural warrior for the the traditional family in line with Promise Keeper hallucinations !?!?

    LOL!!!

    Posted by PhilMcCrevice at 06/26/2009 @ 10:30am

24. I see Phil is competeing with Mask for top librarian..

    but, Philly, unlike Mask..you can't refute anyone with facts...just emotionalism of a 7 year old girl..

    yes, Phil, I did posts those gems..and you have yet to refute them factualy..as you never seem to refute anyone with facts or proven them wrong...you just demonstrate your loosely wrapped space between your ears...

    good ad hominems, tho.

    and your posts reveal quite a bit about your failed medical history.

    Posted by YourJomamma at 06/26/2009 @ 10:37am

25. BTW, Phil...

    I heard the Jackson 5 has an opening...

    I KNOW you are more than qualified ...

    Posted by YourJomamma at 06/26/2009 @ 10:41am

26. Most likely GOPer to succeed - or at least run v. Obama ... none of the above. Try the multibillionaire who recently re-re-registered as a GOPer while buying himself the right to run for an illegal 3rd term as NYC mayor.

    Not sure what this has to do with MJ however.

    Posted by sloper at 06/26/2009 @ 10:42am

27. His early music had some highlights but the advent of music video, with imagery so dominating & which covered up the mediocrity & shitiness of his later music, was a key part of his accelerated self-loathing.....

    Posted by Happy at 06/26/2009 @ 09:50am

    Sure you are not forgetting something here Hap? MJ was a big part of the advent of music video - a guy who could actually make an entertaining video. Even your Country Western stars (I am guessing thats your favorite genre being from Texas and all) got on board later on when they saw the potential.

    Posted by OneVote at 06/26/2009 @ 10:52am

28. Even your Country Western stars (I am guessing thats your favorite genre being from Texas and all) got on board later on when they saw the potential.

    Posted by OneVote at 06/26/2009 @ 10:52am

    Nope, grew up in FL.....Southern & CALI rock: Allman bros., Lynnard Skinard, Doobies, Eagels, Fleetwood Mac, Jagger & Co., Zepplin, Hindricks, Jefferson xyz.....mixed in w/Elton John, Pink Floyd, Cream/Clapton, Traffic, Beatles!

    Some great music that will last, unlike the Hip-Hop horse manure now covering the world!

    Posted by Happy at 06/26/2009 @ 11:00am

29. Posted by Happy at 06/26/2009 @ 11:00am

    I thought Elvis had the first video with "Jail House Rock"...

    Posted by YourJomamma at 06/26/2009 @ 11:05am

30. Posted by PhilMcCrevice at 06/26/2009 @ 09:38am

    That esteemable list is shortening, Phil.

    Ensign and Sanford imploded....Pawlenty bowed out...Jindal looked foolish in his SOTU rebuttal...

    and as far as Everybody's Poster Girl (especially sjchermak's)....she apparently can't handle TV comics or bloggers who PhotoShop...

    how's she supposed to handle Ahmadinejad or Kim Jong-Un????

    Newt?....his VARIOUS views on Sotomayor, not real helpful.

    Mitt's got the money and perhaps learned some lessons from 2008. I'd go with him....if only to watch Larry/antisoc go nutsy....sorry, Larry...heheh.

    Posted by Mask at 06/26/2009 @ 11:22am

31. I don't care for Jackson's music.

    I don't care for Empty Vee.

    I don't care for disco.

    I. Don't. Care.

    Rock and Roll Forever!!!

    Posted by Balrog at 06/26/2009 @ 1:19pm

32. Fortunately his body will be put to good use. Being 99% plastic, I'm told he will be melted down to make Legos, thereby giving the children a chance to place with HIM for a change.

    Posted by CHIP THORNTON at 06/26/2009 @ 1:53pm

33. Some great music that will last, unlike the Hip-Hop horse manure now covering the world!

    Posted by Happy at 06/26/2009 @ 11:00am | ignore this person | warn this person

    Well - I never bought and never will buy a MJ album. Saw a recent concert featuring a reunion of Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood (Blind Faith). It was really good.

    Posted by OneVote at 06/26/2009 @ 2:55pm

34. It was on PBS.

    Posted by OneVote at 06/26/2009 @ 2:56pm

35. It's all nice and all about his talent but he was a CHILD MOLESTER. Doesn't this overshadow his 'talent'?

    Posted by woodyee at 06/26/2009 @ 3:50pm

36. Well - I never bought and never will buy a MJ album. Saw a recent concert featuring a reunion of Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood (Blind Faith). It was really good.

    Posted by OneVote at 06/26/2009 @ 2:55pm

    that was a great concert. Love both guys!

    all the way back to the Traffic years...Winwood was just 16 yrs old.

    Posted by antisocialist at 06/26/2009 @ 3:56pm

37. Met Winwood backstage a few years back. Nice guy, very down to earth. Acted more like he was trying to get a lucky break, rather than like the icon that he is...

    Posted by Balrog at 06/26/2009 @ 6:07pm

38. debating whether his music was this or that is pointless. the point of nichol's piece is that this man was more famous around the world than anyone before and maybe even after. bushmen probably know the name "michael jackson" before they know "monica lewinsky". the story of his death transcends the music. on a personal note, regarding the music, if you've never been affected by a jackson five song, you're just plain cold hearted.

    Posted by lonthaniel at 06/26/2009 @ 6:22pm

39. Some great music that will last, unlike the Hip-Hop horse manure now covering the world!

    Posted by Happy at 06/26/2009 @ 11:00am

    Ahem.

    Thanks for illustrating just how out of touch you are.

    There's been horrible pop music as long as there has been music. Specifically since music has been mass marketed.

    Sort of like some of the bands you mentioned. Just to let you know, in terms of cheesy, poorly written, horribly derivative crap, The Eagles are the Britney Spears of the "classic rock" world. Sorry : (

    Oh, by the way, there are indeed some acts out there, that while classified by the likes of you as "hip hop horse manure" are actually quite good, extremely well produced, and not to mention interesting.

    Darn if only you could spend your internet hours slightly more constructively, you may be aware of this.

    As to MJ, his life was much sadder than his death. It seems as though America has once again been given her chance to act like a bunch of melodramatic monkeys. Much better people die all day, every day all over the world.

    Posted by TexasFlood at 06/26/2009 @ 10:35pm

40. Also, to the author of this piece, I don't much appreciate having my "face" be a mentally ill accused child molester.

    Thanks.

    Posted by TexasFlood at 06/26/2009 @ 10:39pm

41. I like "ABC" and Jackson 5 songs.

    He was a huge star but a tragic figure as well.

    Even with all the tributes and adoration, there is still a dark cloud over his memory because he was accused of some vile things.

    Posted by koroviev at 06/26/2009 @ 11:26pm

42. "He brought human beings together across the barriers of race and class and gender," explained Michael Eric Dyson . . ."

    Michael Jackson may have acted "androgynous" in his later years, but in no way, shape, or form did he bring human beings together across the barrier of gender. Michael Jackson never took any responsibility for patriarchy and was not evenly remotely pro-feminist.

    Posted by ktrig at 06/27/2009 @ 12:23am

43. "Jackson was for a significant part of the 1980s and 1990s as much or more the face of America as Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush or Bill Clinton."

    Once again, John Nichols shows his male-centric views. Hey, John, the face of America is also Gloria Steinem, Condi Rice, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Aretha Franklin, Barbara Streisand, Gloria Estefan, Madeleine Albright . . . get the drift?

    Posted by ktrig at 06/27/2009 @ 12:27am

44. that was a great concert. Love both guys!

    all the way back to the Traffic years...Winwood was just 16 yrs old.

    Posted by antisocialist at 06/26/2009 @ 3:56pm

    It was superb! Me too!

    Posted by OneVote at 06/27/2009 @ 08:13am

45. Posted by TexasFlood at 06/26/2009 @ 10:35pm | ignore this person | warn this person

    Good music is "good" music - period.

    Posted by OneVote at 06/27/2009 @ 08:20am

46. Good music is "good" music - period.

    Posted by OneVote at 06/27/2009 @ 08:20am

    Amen!

    Posted by Happy at 06/27/2009 @ 10:02am

47. Posted by OneVote at 06/27/2009 @ 08:20am

    Uh...horseshit.

    #1, good is totally subjective, and #2, I'm sure fans of the Jonas Brothers would completely agree with you.

    Posted by TexasFlood at 06/27/2009 @ 9:07pm

48. If the reported eight figure settlement in the child molestation case is correct one would have to wonder why Michael Jackson's attorney, the superb Johnny Cochran, would ever counsel his client to pay in excess of ten million dollars in hush money to silence an accusation of child molestation. Cochran would have never allowed his client to be extorted and slandered so one can safely assume he thought that Jackson was guilty.

    Whatever his tremendous talents were we should not be praising and idolizing a pedophile. There's something quite repulsive about all the crying and all the adulation from these fans. A great musician, a great singer, a great dancer, YES. But that is all drowned out by his sickening and disgusting behaviour with young boys. Inexcusable and worthy of a jail sentence (which he should have received years ago), and most definitely not praise.

    Posted by mjkoch at 06/28/2009 @ 09:07am

49. "Once again, John Nichols shows his male-centric views. Hey, John, the face of America is also Gloria Steinem, Condi Rice, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Aretha Franklin, Barbara Streisand, Gloria Estefan, Madeleine Albright . . . get the drift?

    Posted by ktrig at 06/27/2009 @ 12:27am"

    Say whu???

    Get your jaded feminist agenda out of this blog now. As wierd as he was, Michael Jackson was still more popular than 90% of the ladies you listed. Gloria Estefan? Say what?

    Also, to the guy who is randomly inserting political messages in a blog about Wacko Jacko, you probably need to pop some of the same painkillers that MJ overdosed on.

    Okay... back to the topic.

    Anyone who is a product of the 80's realizes the greatness of Michael Jackson, no matter what bizarre problems he had. Musical genius? Probably. But just a damn good entertainer more than anything. Whether it be concerts, tributes, or music videos, no one can deny the guy could put on a show. His music just makes you want to dance. He is also one of the most enigmatic celebrities in quite some time. Even before the "enigma" involved his sexual preferences, he was the guy who gave The National Enquirer plenty of articles.

    However, spare me the articles about the injustice of childhood celebrity. When you inject demerol every damn day, that's your own fault. I don't have much pity for that, or the theme of MJ being an over-sensitive kind soul who couldn't cope with a rough world. Cry me a river.

    It's funny how so many of our biggest celebs in the 80's such as MJ and Eddie Murphy now appear as pretty blatant closet homosexuals yet no one picked up on it during that decade. Times change, I guess.

    Posted by KookyChristian at 06/29/2009 @ 10:13am

50. To you IlyaKuryakin and those like you, I would say you obviously have some internal problems you need to work out. Futhermore, where is America's common sense? Common sense will tell that some cultures do not typically respond in the same way others do. For instance, in the black culture, we strongly believe religously that kids are precious. MJ felt abused as a child. His own faith would not let him molest a child. If the media is correct in their potrail of him as "childlike and niave" then where are psychiatrist with their finding proving that black children molest black children. The problem with the media is that so many people believe it instead of using their on deductive reasoning. In this past week, I've heard him compared to many, even Elvis Presley who the media crowned as "The King". This was the same man that the media claim was strange and a substance abuser. However, why did the media choose not to call him a "statutory rapist" when he brought an underaged Priscilla to live with him at Graceland. Is our world so biased that "what is good for one is not good for another"? Or was it simply that since her parents had given their consent that it was alright for everyone else. Where was America's outrage on this? Why didn't America give MJ support when the first child's parents were found to be liars and the second child's parents were found to be extortionist. So if you can believe the media, the second child's parents had fed off MJ's kindness and financial support for over a year but when he decided that they were making no efforts to become self-sustaining he ended his support. It's amazing that we as Americans are still so bias against each other. If he was found not guilty in court, who are you to still say he was guilty?

    Posted by HaveTheFacts at 07/01/2009 @ 12:11pm

51. Please accept my apology for the misspelling of the "portrayal". I was simply typing the way I was thinking....sorry.

    Posted by HaveTheFacts at 07/01/2009 @ 1:23pm

52. WOW! Some people can really have sick minds and unfortunately for us all, our laws have not been able to convict the guilty in all this mess which is and has always been the MEDIA. The intensity of those placing comments on this site is so extreme, I wonder if MJ's house was full of flies since that's the only way many of you could possibly be so right in your conviction of MJ. And if you had proof, why didn't you come forward in the trials so that he would be convicted. Hmmm...let me guess...I know....it's because you really don't have proof; it's all speculation; and you've simply formed an opinion based on the media hype you've seen and heard....so here's some food for thought. I think I can make a case for a large percentage of people to be molestors and pedophiles...how about this...how many of you good citizens have slept next to unrelated kids at camp or among them at a slumber party?...well if you did, then you should carry the same label you're giving MJ. It doesn't matter if you are on an air mattress or a sleeping bag...if we go by the media's analogy, adults sleeping with a child is WRONG!...and since I took naps or slept with my sons, I guess I'm a molester too...WRONG!... but I'll tell you this...because of my own childhood, there's no way on God's green earth that I would ever do to another child what was done to me!...and you can take that anyway you want! So stop mouthing-off, use your common sense, and stop bashing someone that you know nothing about. MJ had more people around him than the Pope. And with as many kids that went through his ranch, he should have had people lined up on the courthouse steps ready to testify to his guilt. All the money in world couldn't buy that kind of silence. So where were they?

    Posted by HaveTheFacts at 07/01/2009 @ 2:03pm