Publishing my new book, The Michael Jackson Tapes: A Tragic Icon
\nReveals His Soul in Intimate Conversation, has been a fascinating and
\nat times painful education in the need for Michael’s most diehard fans
\nto deify him. The book is out only three days. But even as the book
\nand the Dateline NBC special highlighting the conversations has been
\nmet with international acclaim, near-universal praise, and instantly
\nentered the best-seller lists, that hasn’t stopped a Tsunami of angry
\nmessages from Michael’s most fanatical fans on their message boards,
\nsome laced unfortunately with anti-Semitism and even threats of
\nviolence. Their complaint: how dare I call Michael ‘tragic.’ How dare
\nI not declare unequivocally that he never molested a child. Most of
\nall, how dare I publish any book that does not completely extol their
\nfallen deity.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
First, the facts. The Michael Jackson Tapes was published because it
\nwas Michael’s desperate wish that it be so. For most of the
\nconversations Michael held the Dictaphone directly to his mouth so
\nthat not a word would be lost. In the conversations he refers to the
\nimportance of the book constantly. He wanted it to be as complete as
\npossible, even sending me to interview his mother for her perspective
\non her son, which ended up being one of the most fascinating chapters.
\nUnfortunately, when Michael was arrested on charges of child
\nmolestation in 2003, it became impossible to fulfill Michael’s sincere
\nwish that the book be published. Much as he wanted it, it simply could
\nnot be done. The public had little to no sympathy for Michael, even
\nafter he was exonerated in 2005. Michael was reviled everywhere. But
\nMichael’s death brought an outpouring of grief and a sincere desire on
\nthe part of the general public to more deeply understand a fallen
\nAmerican icon. And just as important, Michael’s tragically shortened
\nlife called out for redemption. Michael’s desperate wish that his soul
\nbe known to the public through the medium of these conversations and
\nthat the lessons of his life be used to help heal families could
\nfinally be fulfilled.<\/p>\n
It is clear to me now that Michael was so much more courageous and
\nhonest than some of his diehard fans wanted him to be. They are
\nuncomfortable with these conversations because they feel Michael is
\ntoo forthright, too honest, too open about his frailties,
\nshortcomings, and flaws. It seems incredible but the tables have now
\ncompletely turned. It is the people who claim to be his most diehard
\nfans who now wish Michael would have censored himself and portrayed
\nhimself as the perfect superstar. And, conversely, it is the general
\npublic, who before were extremely suspicious of Michael and wanted to
\nhear nothing from him, who have made the book and the NBC Dateline
\nspecial into an international phenomenon and arguably the most
\npositive statements about Michael ever to be released to the public.<\/p>\n
Why is Michael so breathtakingly honest in these powerful
\nconversations? Because, deep down he never wished to be worshipped. He
\nunderstood he was only human. And he wanted people to understand his
\npain and brokenness so that they would judge him more charitably. The
\nunforgettable and searingly honest tone of Michael’s conversations
\nsay, in essence, ‘Put yourself in my shoes before you judge me. And
\ntry and learn some lessons from my life, my sad childhood, so that you
\ndon’t repeat the same mistakes with your kids.’<\/p>\n
Should we not applaud his honesty? What would we prefer? The speeches
\nthat were given at Michael’s ‘Memorial service,’ a funeral cum concert
\nwhere speaker after speaker spoke of how there was nothing wrong with
\nMichael even though his appearance at the Staples center came in a
\ngold box because he had died of a drug overdose? Would we prefer
\ncelebrities getting up, misleading, and saying that the only
\nchallenges Michael ever faced was hatred from the media, even though
\nMichael himself repeatedly said something completely different, that
\nhe was the loneliest man on earth, that his fame was utterly empty for
\nhim, that he yearned endlessly for his father’s affection, and that
\nthe only thing that he wanted was to help families but was prevented
\nfrom doing so.<\/p>\n
Perhaps this is why Michael chose a Rabbi to share his deepest
\nthoughts with while holding the recorder to his mouth so that the
\nwidest possible audience would hear the conversations. Perhaps it was
\nbecause Michael understood that Judaism has no Jesus figure. The
\nHebrew Bible has not even a single perfect person. Everyone from
\nAbraham, to Moses, to David is portrayed as flawed. Still, what made
\nthem special was that they wrestled with their nature to live selfless
\nand morally centered lives amid a predilection to do otherwise.<\/p>\n
Deep down, Michael never wanted to be Jesus Christ. He yearned not for
\nmartyrdom but for redemption. He didn’t want to die but to consecrate
\nhis fame to a higher purpose. He felt trapped by superstardom and
\nwished to liberate himself by directing his celebrity to the service
\nof neglected children. Sadly, his management, many sycophants, and
\nthose on the gravy train got in the way as they feared that the more
\nMichael participated in family healing projects, like the lectures
\nthat I organized for him at Carnegie Hall, Oxford University, and
\nNewark, New Jersey, the less money he would make by singing in
\nconcerts and producing albums, even though he was in no mental or
\nemotional state to carry those obligations through, which is why it
\nwas no coincidence that he died just days before the ludicrous ’50’
\nLondon concerts were set to begin.<\/p>\n
But ultimately, Michael, like the rest of us, has to take
\nresponsibility for his own actions. In this book he does, which is why
\nthis is, warts and all, the most positive portrayal of Michael Jackson
\never produced. It is Michael in his own words. Michael going beyond
\nthe legend and coming across as fully human. Michael instructing
\nparents to learn from the terrible example of his own neglected
\nchildhood and reach out and love their kids. And Michael reaching out
\nfrom the grave, in a book he desperately wished to be published, to
\ndeclare to those who loved him most to stop this ridiculous campaign
\nto venerate him. For he was not a god but just a man. A man who made
\nmany mistakes in life, but who desperately reached for something
\nhigher and who was lost way too soon.\n<\/p>\n