Leaving neverland
Perhaps the biggest “surprise” was that, despite all the hype, ratings in both countries were shockingly soft. In the week or so since HBO and Channel 4 proceeded on their hellbent course to shove this doc down the throats of the USA and UK (despite pending lawsuits filed by both the Michael Jackson estate and Brett Barnes), we have seen the fall-out take many predicted twists, as well as a few surprise ones. Obviously, there has been a lot to talk about since then.
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That is, if we want to be able to live with ourselves in the aftermath.
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And before we start trying to dismantle that legacy based on nothing but the words of two white men who joined his long list of hangers-on, we’d better be looking long and hard at the facts. This is all a long way of saying Michael Jackson worked hard - damn hard - - to build what he achieved. But beyond that, he became a world icon in a way that only a very few American artists have achieved. In the 45 years of his life that he gave to the public, he managed to break records, to achieve what few black artists before him had done (including owning, at one time, half the Sony-ATV catalogue), and to build a legacy that is intricately woven into the fabric of U.S. This was a man who worked non-stop from the age of five to build his legacy. We have Michael Jackson, whose story has already passed into the realm of an American mythical figure, a poor black kid who worked his way up from nothing to become one of the most legendary musical figures of all time. enabling it? Dan Reed’s controversial film has indeed accomplished one positive goal even before its scheduled broadcast, although it may not be the goal he intended.įor sure, the film has helped shed much needed light on the underbelly of #MeToo, revealing some startlingly dark truths about who the movement is designed to protect-and who it is willing to sacrifice.īut first, let’s back up and look at the key players in this drama. Why is the “woke” crowd so determinedly asleep at the wheel on this? And an even more troubling question: Why are so many of the most influential journalists in the U.S. At a time when Michael Jackson’s life should be the subject of fond remembrances and reflections on his artistic legacy, we instead get this, the equivalent of a posthumous, 21st century lynching based on nothing but the uncorroborated testimonies of two men whose civil case against his estate has already been dismissed, not once but twice. The fact that it is a black man who also just happened to be one of the most beloved and powerful figures in entertainment is, of course, the very matter at the heart of the film’s controversy, along with the fact that we are into the tenth anniversary of his passing. Instead, there are many justifiable reasons to argue why this film is simply a new twist on the age-old concept of lynching a black man based on white lies. But a closer look reveals many disturbing reasons to argue that this agenda-driven film has little to do with either journalistic integrity or concern for sexual abuse victims. At least, that is according to the hype that has been drummed up around it. and Channel 4 in the U.K., may appear deceptively at first as an important film for the #MeToo era, highlighting the alleged sexual abuse that Michael Jackson inflicted on two young boys who idolized him and fell-by grand and parental design-into his circle. The current hype that has been built around Leaving Neverland, a film directed by Dan Reed and funded and distributed by HBO in the U.S.
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I spent several weeks on a piece that was eventually published on. I have actually been working very diligently and quietly (and sometimes not so quietly!) behind the scenes to get the truth about Leaving Neverland out to a bigger platform. I apologize that my promised follow-up post has been so long coming, but I wanted to let you all know the reasons for this.