Jerrick Miles

Project 1

1301 English Composition

Professor Hammett

 

“Conspiracy of the Death of Michael Jackson”

   

          How could a perfectionist, songwriter, revolutionist, and father end his own life carelessly? Born in Gary, Indiana, Jackson was an inspiration to others producing many pop hits at a young age with his brothers while in the Jackson 5, leading him into his solo career (“Michael Jackson Biography). In the words of Michael Jackson, “I’m never pleased with anything. I’m a perfectionist, it’s a part of who I am” (Michael Jackson Quotes”, 1). With gaining such a large audience, his death was a shock to many, inspiring the creation of many conspiracies surrounding his death:

1. Did Michael Jackson fake his own death?

2.  Was Michael Jackson murdered in a setup attempt?

3. Was a drug overdose his true cause of death?

Let's explore the various possibilities of the way Michael Jackson died, with the most common being the possibility of a drug overdose.

         Who was Michael Jackson? Michael Jackson had curly black hair, a great smile, a light nimble voice, and he was humble. Jackson grew up in Gary, Indiana; and was surrounded by his family in his two-bedroom house childhood home with his other siblings. In his hometown it is estimated that over one third of the structures there were considered blighted in a 2015 survey (Gary, Indiana: City of..). The environment was different from living in an urban upstate area with many opportunities; however, he was able to reach his goals from what he could accomplish. During this time, Jackson also experienced abuse from his father both mentally and physically. In Jackson’s song “Childhood” he says:

“Have you seen my Childhood? I'm searching for that wonder in my youth...

…Before you judge me, try hard to love me. Look within your heart, then ask.

            Have you seen my Childhood? (Jackson 1:21-2:13)

Jackson’s father would encourage success through punishing his children when they made mistakes. In an interview with Martin Bashir Jackson explains, “He used me as the example. It was like do it like Michael. You know he practiced us with a belt in his hand and if you miss a step…. expect to be (demonstrated being whipped)” (Living with Michael Jackson). In a constant fear of being punished, Jackson was pushed to become a skilled artist. Although Jackson faced a lot of personal issues throughout his life, he focused on the present and the best he could make out of it.

In an environment where the audience and attention was always in Jackson, there was an explosion of different feelings, such as insecure. A feeling of insecurity was bound when each action he took was watched and observed. Michael Jackson became insecure with conflicts between himself. Dealing with a skin disease commonly known as vitiligo would cause many to speculate whether he had bleached his skin, but in fact, he concealed his disease with makeup. Through all of his plastic surgeries and treatments, many still suspected different conclusions starting many rumors such as him wanting to become whiter. Jackson felt in denial and even ashamed of being his true self in the face of the public.  Emphasizing internal conflicts, Jackson says:

People think they know me, but they don't. Not really. Actually, I am one of the loneliest people on this earth. I cry sometimes because it hurts. It does. To be honest, I guess you could say that it hurts to be me. (On Fame, Loneliness, Pain…)

This was one of the reasons Jackson opened the Neverland Ranch, to let kids experience the childhood he never had.

Jackson hid his problems from the world, which made him mysterious. This led to serious allegations, such as Jackson being accused of sexually molesting a thirteen-year-old boy at Neverland (Michael Jackson Biography). Ultimately leaving an impact on how many of his supporters saw him as an individual and a popstar.

 Jackson was a perfect example of how showing compassion to another person can lead into a rabbit hole.  He grew up not knowing what a childhood was, but when he tried to relive it, the media tortured him for it. In the documentary “Living with Michael Jackson” Martin Bashir says, “you’ve had a tough week this week haven’t you because the media have been accusing you of being irresponsible with your children” (Living with Michael Jackson). Jackson had to go to the lengths of covering the face of his children to protect them from the perception of the media. Although there were issues that arose over the course of Jackson’s life. He was mysterious, insecure, and humble human being who swept the crowd with his capabilities. With the creation of the Thriller album, it was able to break racial barriers in music and also became the best-selling album worldwide by 1983.

          After the death of Michael Jackson, three main conspiracies were underlined. The first theory points to the idea that Michael Jackson faked his own death. The second conspiracy suggests that Michael was murdered in a setup attempt. However, the third conspiracy questions if a drug overdose was Michael Jackson’s true cause of death. The first conspiracy theory points to Michael Jackson faking his own death to avoid his financial problems. “In early 2017, investment banker David Dunn took the stand in the US Tax Court in Los Angeles and said Jackson was “on the edge” of going bankrupt before his death- fueling theories that the pop legend may simply have changed his identity in order to escape his financial problems” (Michael Jackson ‘alive’: Five Conspiracy Theories About His Death). Peter Puzzo, a mortgage broker reports, “Michael’s main problem was that as his income dwindled in recent years, he never changed his spending habits. In 2005, a forensic accountant testified that Michael was spending $20-$30 million more per year than he earned and was in debt by as much as $285 million” (Puzzo, 1). Although the evidence seems convincing, this conspiracy theory is unlikely because at the time of his death, Jackson was worth over $500 million dollars and left behind millions in his will. “In his will, MJ left 40 percent of his assets to his three children, to be split equally. Twenty percent of his wealth was left to multiple children’s charities, and the 40 percent that was left all went to his mother, Katherine” (Who’s the Richest Jackson?). This proves that this theory is not likely because he was still able to leave millions to his family, and even charities.

       The second conspiracy suggests that Jackson was murdered in a setup attempt. Antoinette Bueno, an Entertainment Tonight journalist, reports on an interview with Rolling Stone, where Michael Jackson’s daughter, Paris Jackson, expressed her belief that her dad had been murdered. “...Paris says she also “absolutely” believes Jackson was murdered. ‘Because it’s obvious.’ she says. ‘All the arrows point to that. It sounds like a total conspiracy theory… but all real fans and everybody in the family knows it. It was a set-up… He would drop hints about people being out to get him. And at some point, he was like ‘They're going to kill me one day’” (Bueno, 1). His sister, La Toya Jackson, furthered the theory by reporting that Michael believed he was going to be murdered for his music catalog. “La Toya Jackson has repeatedly said there was a conspiracy to kill her brother and that he knew he was going to die. He reportedly told her: ‘La Toya, I’m going to be murdered for my music publishing catalog and my estate” (Michael Jackson ‘alive’: Five Conspiracy Theories About His Death). This theory isn’t as far-fetched as one may believe. It is even reported by Jackson’s siblings that he was not in Los Angeles when his will was signed, leading them to believe the people who set him up killed him in order to have control over his catalogs and other important parts of his will.

       The last conspiracy theory questions if a drug overdose was Jackson’s true cause of death, which proves to be the most plausible compared to the other theories surrounding his death. With this theory there are two possibilities: Jackson was killed by his personal physician Conrad Murray, or he killed himself with drugs. Alan Duke, a professional fact-checker, wrote an article for CNN that highlights Murray’s involvement in Jackson’s death. “Murray was convicted of involuntary manslaughter three weeks ago after a trial in which prosecutors successfully argued that Murray’s reckless use of propofol to help Jackson sleep, without proper monitoring equipment, led to the singer’s death... Jackson died “not because of an isolated one-off occurrence or incident,” Pastor said. “He died because of a totality of circumstances which are directly attributable to Dr. Murray … because of a series of decisions that Dr. Murray made” (Duke, 1). Coincidentally, it was Dr. Conrad Murray’s lawyer who suggested it was probable that Jackson had killed himself. “Before his trial, Murray’s lawyer claimed that the singer “took desperate measures” because of his deteriorating finances” (Michael Jackson ‘alive’: Five Conspiracy Theories About His Death). A law enforcement official also reported on Jackson’s addiction. “A law enforcement official told ABC News that the star was “heavily addicted” to the painkiller OxyContin and was injected daily with that medication, along with Demerol” (Michael Jackson ‘alive’: Five Conspiracy Theories About His Death). The possibility that Michael was killed by Dr. Conrad Murray is very plausible; so much so that he was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to four years in prison, though he only served two years. When talking about the possibility of Jackson killing himself, Howard Weitzman, the lawyer who represented Michael Jackson’s estate, suggested the theory that Michael Jackson committed suicide is not a salable theory. So, of the two possibilities of Michael Jackson’s cause of death being a drug overdose, with Conrad Murray being the suspect checks out more.

       Jackson died on June 25, 2009, but his death is still affecting his family and his millions of fans all over the world. His family continues to seek closure even though Dr. Conrad Murray was convicted over 10 years ago. Fans continue to play his music, charting his music decade after decade. Michael Jackson has impacted the music industry that will forever be shown throughout history.

Michael’s Jackson death was a shock to many, which fueled many conspiracies about what truly happened to him such as:

1. Did Michael Jackson fake his own death?

2.  Was Michael Jackson murdered in a setup attempt?

3. Was a drug overdose his true cause of death?

The evidence from the case of Michael Jackson’s death leads to the correlation that Conrad Murray killed him by causing his drug overdose.

 

 

Work Cited

ALISA ARAGONDominion Lending Centres – Accredited Mortgage ProfessionalAlisa is part of DLC Canadian    Mountain View based in Maple Ridge. “Why Michael Jackson Died Broke and How to Learn from His              Mistakes.” Dominion Lending Centres, 28 Dec. 2016, https://mrmortgage.ca/general/why-michael-jackson-diOed-broke-and-how-to-learn-from-his-mistakes/.

Bueno, Antoinette. “News Portal, Radio News, Politics, Finance, World News, Lifestyle, Arts,       Lifestyle.” e, 24 Jan. 2017, https://e-today.us/paris-jackson-believes-dad-michael-jackson-was-murdered-all-the-arrows-point-to-that-entertainment-tonight/.

Duke, Alan. “Conrad Murray Sentenced to Four Years behind Bars.” CNN, Cable News Network, 30 Nov. 2011, https://www.cnn.com/2011/11/29/justice/california-conrad-murray-sentencing/index.html.

“Gary, Indiana: City of the Century: Abandoned America.” City of the Century | Abandoned America, https://www.abandonedamerica.us/gary-indiana.

Living with Michael Jackson. Directed by Julie Shaw, Granada Television, 2003.

Michael Jackson. Biography. https://www.biography.com/musician/michael-jackson

“Michael Jackson Biography - Singing with the Jackson 5, Striking out as a Solo Artist, Inspired Dance Moves, Growing Popularity.” Singing with the Jackson 5, Striking Out as a Solo Artist, Inspired Dance Moves, Growing Popularity - JRank Articles, https://biography.jrank.org/pages/2808/Jackson-Michael.html.

Michael Jackson - Childhood (Official Video) - Youtube Music. https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=puQEcN_iI9o&list=OLAK5uy_kUDpgk4yWnyIVfpftIeU0icvhlKAROmx0.

"Michael Jackson Quotes." BrainyQuote.com. BrainyMedia Inc, 2021. 17 September 2021.

Neveling, Andre. “The Richest Jackson Family Members, Ranked.” South China Morning Post, 9 Oct. 2021, https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/celebrity/article/3151738/whos-richest-jackson-familys-net-worths-ranked-michaels.

“On Fame, Loneliness, Pain and Desire for Love.” Fame, Loneliness, Desire:: True Michael Jackson, https://www.truemichaeljackson.com/man/fame-loneliness-desire/.

Staff, The Week. “Michael Jackson 'Alive': Five Conspiracy Theories.” The Week UK, The Week, 29 Aug. 2018, https://www.theweek.co.uk/96125/michael-jackson-alive-five-conspiracy-theories-about-his-death.

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