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Showing reviews 1-5 of 196
 Innocence is not always a good quality. July 22, 2009
L. Power (San Francisco)
384 out of 390 found this review helpful
I don't know if you're like me, but ever since Michael Jackson passed away, I have been really curious to know the truth.
I don't think there has ever been anyone more misrepresented in human history than Michael Jackson. He said in an interview that '99.9% of what's written about me is not true.' He said this long before he ever went on trial.
After he was found 'not guilty' of the 10 charges, he was still treated as if he was guilty by the media. Forced to leave the country, to go to Bahrain, like a bird tossed out of its nest, never to return to Neverland again.
I wondered: 'well if he's innocent of the trial charges, what about the 1993 case where there was a settlement..'
When Aphrodite Jones went to numerous publishers, nobody wanted to publish a pro Jackson book, a book that would tell the truth about the trial. She actually had to self publish.
"In this world there are facts, and there are opinions. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions, not to their own facts." Senator Patrick Moynihan.
I cannot tell you what a relief it is to read a truthful book about Michael Jackson. The further you get into this book, the more you realise how Michael was not only not guilty but truly had the innocence and nature of a 10 year old child.
This naivete made him easy prey for a predatory reporter such as Bashir, who got a career making opportunity to film a documentary for free only to taint it with his own duplicity, sinister interpretation and innuendo. He reputedly sold the documentary to ABC for $7 million, and got a job as anchor, destroying MJ in the process without a second thought. After all, would a pedophile invite a camera crew into his home, and admit to sharing a bedroom with 10 year old kids. If children were abused, would there not be an immediate change in their behavior. Would their parents also staying at the house not notice this?
No.. Pedophiles act out of compulsion, cannot control themselves, and usually have hundreds of victims.
This naivete made him easy prey for the Arvizos who did the round of other celebrities such as Chris Tucker, George Lopez, and even Jay Leno looking for a handout. These guys got wiser sooner.
Among the many revelations in this book: The Arvizos deny on four separate occasions after the Bashir documentary that any molestation ever took place, on audio tape, on a rebuttal video, to DCFS workers, and to Gavin Arvizo's school principal.
Only after visiting the same civil attorney used in the 1993 case, after all this did Arvizo make a final return to Neverland. It is then he alleges the incident happened. Under cross examination, it is established that if Arvizo got a criminal conviction, he could sue MJ in a civil action until he was 18.
In the trial, the 1993 evidence was introduced. Jordan Chandler refused to testify against Michael Jackson. His mother did appear as a witness and surprisingly said she never had any qualms about her son being around Michael Jackson.
Janet Arvizo gave wild and wacky testimony, alleging that MJ conspired to keep her family captive at Neverland, and that he planned to abduct her son. Meanwhile she charges thousands of dollars for beauty treatments on the Neverland account in a local town, gets dental treatment for her soon paid by Jackson, alleges MJ made her fly to Miami to give a rebuttal interview. The truth is she found out MJ was in Miami and had Chris Tucker charter a jet for her to fly out with her children.
Janet Arvizo previously alleged sexual assault against JC Penney when her son was arrested for shoplifting. She claimed a security guard tweaked her nipple 25 times. She won a large settlement. Mesereau exposed glaring inconsistencies in the evidence in that case, particularly her claims that she had been assaulted yet the police photos taken shortly after showed no signs of assault, or even a need for medical attention, yet days later she turns up to an attorney with fresh color photos with bruises. She lied to a newspaper about having not having medical insurance, and lied about the cost of treatment to get them to raise money for her family.
What will amaze you as you read this book, is how many viewed Michael Jackson as a meal ticket for life. Disgruntled former employees who had lost multi million dollar lawsuits made the most outrageous allegations, which were skilfully dismantled and disproven by the incisive cross examination of Tom Mesereau.
About the 1993 agreement, Jackson said on the Prime Time Diane Sawyer interview, that the only reason he was sitting there giving the interview was that the photographs taken of his parts did not match up with the description of the accuser. There are many more surprises waiting between the covers of this book.
If you are filled with a burning curiosity to know the truth, you can feel confident that this book is true. If you are curious to explore even further I may post some links in the comment section below.
I hope you find this helpful.
Update: As of August 30,2009, I have now reviewed Michael Jackson: The Magic and the Madness.
The 2005 actual trial coverage only runs to 17 pages out of 700 odd, with 40 pages about the events leading up to it. It's nowhere near as detailed as Aphrodite Jones book, yet it's interesting to read a different account, and he uncovers interesting facts about the JC Penney case. He also lays down a precise timeline before the trial happened, which could make you wonder why this case ever went to trial. The 2009 edition adds the trial and the final years, to the previous edition written before the 2005 trial. Very little duplication between these two books.
Update Nov 3, 2009: If you have not already seen This Is It, I highly recommend it. Considering it is a rehearsal, the standard of filming the sequences is very high, Michael's voice still has it's magic, it features new complete video with MJ being chased by Humphrey Bogart, and new video to go with other classic songs such as Thriller. Truly some magical moments, and interesting to see the level of detail that goes into this type of production. A masterful job by Director Kenny Ortega, and a fitting tribute to Michael Jackson.
Michael Jackson Conspiracy is a must read. June 28, 2007
263 out of 274 found this review helpful
When District Attorney Tom Sneddon smugly announced that Michael Jackson was to be criminally charged, and that Neverland was being raided, he was so blinded by greed, jealousy and vengeance that he could not see that the degenerate family he had sided with, the Arvizo family, in order to try and take Michael Jackson's freedom from him, and ruin his reputation, all so that Sneddon could bask in glory, would actually bring Sneddon the ultimate humiliation. Sneddon's case against Michael Jackson was built on lies, and was created by liars, and Sneddon got exactly what he deserved, failure!!!
When Michael Jackson was put on trial, accused of having molested Gavin Arvizo -- who had learnt from his family how to extort people -- the media refused to tell the truth. The media refused to acknowledge, or discuss, what was actually going on in the courtroom that was favorable to Michael Jackson. The testimony that pointed to Michael Jackson's innocence, the success Michael Jackson's attorneys had in exposing the prosecution case for what it was, sham, was ignored by the media, the media refused to tell the truth.
When prosecution witnesses who desired to fill their pockets with Michael Jackson's money, who hoped to become rich by selling false stories, who falsely accused Michael Jackson, and who made up as many lies as possible, as horrible as possible, to extort as much money as possible from Michael Jackson, were exposed, it was ignored by the media, the media refused to tell the truth.
When the accuser, Gavin Arvizo, and his family, mother Janet Arvizo, and siblings Star Arvizo and Davellin Arvizo, stumbled over their lies, contradicted themselves continually, became argumentative when presented with facts that proved they were liars and extortionists, it was ignored by the media, the media refused to tell the truth.
When Michael Jackson's young cousin testified that the accuser, Gavin Arvizo, and Gavin's brother Star tried to get him to masturbate in their presence, it was ignored by the media, the media refused to tell the truth.
When it was revealed that Michael Jackson's former employees only claimed to have seen inappropriate behavior by Michael Jackson AFTER THEY WERE OFFERED MONEY AND PAID BY TABLOIDS/THE MEDIA, it was ignored by the media, the media refused to tell the truth. (Michael Jackson successfully sued these former employees many years ago, they still owe him money.)
When Michael Jackson's current employees testified that the accuser, Gavin Arvizo, and his family slept in guesthouses at Neverland (and not in Michael Jackson's bedroom), that they caused a great deal of trouble at Neverland, left a huge mess at Neverland, damaged and defaced property at Neverland, attacked the animals at Neverland, pulled knives on Neverland employees, stole from Neverland employees, stole from Michael Jackson, extorted Neverland employees by lying about their financial circumstances, extorted the government by lying about their financial circumstances, extorted other celebrities by lying to them and falsely accusing them, caused trouble wherever they went, and to whoever was unlucky enough to befriend them, overall having been shown to be users, liars, thieves, troublemakers and criminals, it was ignored by the media, the media refused to tell the truth..... until now.
Aphrodite Jones, a reporter, ashamed of her behavior during Michael Jackson's trial, having realized that she was wrong, has written this book - "Michael Jackson Conspiracy" - which is pretty much a compact version of Michael Jackson's trial. It details exactly what happened in the courtroom at Michael Jackson's trial (using actual trial testimony), the facts that were revealed and exposed, the witnesses and what they stated, how Michael Jackson's defense team managed to successfully destroy prosecution theories and witnesses on a daily basis, how the media did not want to report anything that was favorable to Michael Jackson or his defense team, how some media reporters had already secured deals to have access to Michael Jackson if he was to be found guilty and imprisoned (which is disgusting, because this behavior implies that these jerks preferred that a child had been molested so that they could profit), and how Michael Jackson was found NOT GUILTY by a jury that saw right through the lies, right through the Arvizo family, right through District Attorney Tom Sneddon and his sham case, and right through the media garbage that has been circulating for years about Michael Jackson.
So, if you want the truth about Michael Jackson, how he has become a target for liars who want to become instant millionaires, and the victim of a media that promotes and prefers lies, read "Michael Jackson Conspiracy".
Great overview of the trial! June 21, 2007
F. Malik (Los Angeles, CA. United States)
129 out of 135 found this review helpful
During Michael Jackson's trial in 2005, the media did not report anything positive about Michael and were completely unfavorable toward him. For them, reporting anything negative and salacious was the way to go in order to sell their stories, and in return, gain viewers, readers, and more advertising dollars.
Fortunately for Michael, the jury was forced to listen to the facts of the case, not the biased media coverage. Aphrodite Jones has done a wonderful job of focusing almost solely on the facts of the case and the testimony and evidence presented during the trial. It is because of those reasons that the book is highly riveting and eye-opening. All of her trial quotes are taken from court transcripts, and give the reader a "fly on the wall" approach, as if the trial was being relived. As a person who attended the trial whenever I possibly could, Ms. Jones' account of the proceedings are spot-on, and she should be commended for presenting the trial in a fair and objective manner.
The vast majority of the public was misled by a biased media, and I highly recommend that this is THE book to read to gain true insight into not only the trial, but what went on around Michael Jackson before and during the trial. I think many people would be shocked to discover how badly the accuser and his family were caught in so many lies and contradictions. Simply put, the prosecution had no case whatsoever, and this is the ONLY conclusion anyone can come to after reading this book.
Thank you Ms. Jones, for laying it all out for the world to see.
Brave book July 16, 2007
J. Coyle (Lancaster, UK)
47 out of 50 found this review helpful
This is a fascinating read, not just because of its subject matter but because the author herself was, like most other members of the media, predisposed to think that Jackson was guilty of at least some of the charges brought against him. She admits to being prejudiced and reveals just how she came to realise that this time the media got it very wrong indeed.
Ms Jones has thoroughly researched the book examining witnesses' testimonies, court transcripts, etc, and she reveals how the jury, onlookers and Jackson himself reacted throughout. Yes, you do feel that you are in the courtroom.
The disparity between what actually went on in there and what the media reported is astonishing. And there's some interesting information about British journalist/interviewer Martin Bashir too.
The background information about Neverland itself was all new to me. For example, it is only through reading this book that I realised that Michael Jackson's bedroom was not at all like the type of bedroom most of us have, i.e, just one room. Jackson's was a huge two storey, mezzanine construction - more like a flat than a room. I'm not saying Jackson was wise to have boys staying in his room (nor in his bed) but once you realise just how big this space was it kind puts a different perspective on these sleepovers.
Aphrodite Jones also reveals that Jackson himself was not at Neverland for much of the time; it was his home but it was more a social experiment, an escape for children who were sick or poor. It's such a shame it didn't work out. If he had lived elsewhere but just run the place as a separate entity/charity things might have turned out differently. Or if only he'd only have stuck to surrounding himself with animals rather than other peoples' children he'd be viewed by the majority as eccentric rather than potentially dangerous or evil.
I found the photographs of Neverland are startling. Everywhere is so cluttered - like a teenage boy's room. In fact, Jackson comes across as naive, vulnerable, lonely, somewhat deluded and while extraordianrily generous, lacking in emotional intelligence and 'street' savvy when it came to handling people who had their own agendas.
My only criticisms of the book are that Ms Jones' text concentrates on peoples' appearances a little too much; I felt she almost implied that when it xcame to witnesses beauty equals truth. I'd have welcomed more indepth analysis by Aphrodite Jones on the whole affair and its aftermath.
But a brave book. Buy it!
Amazing read--A MUST if you want to know the truth! July 21, 2009
Desiree Hill (Las Vegas, NV USA)
24 out of 24 found this review helpful
A LONG REVIEW BUT PLEASE READ AS I TRIED TO BE HELPFUL! :)
ETA 9/7/09 at 1:30AM: Michael Jackson fans, if you would like to read the actual day to day transcripts of the 2005 case against Michael Jackson here is a website:
[...] Ms. Jones' book is good but these are AMAZING! (Court Transcripts are in notepad format and can be downloaded)
Aphrodite Jones' book is superb. My sister and I read it aloud in two days because it was THAT interesting.
When Michael was on trial in 2005 I was a sophomore-soon-to-be-a-junior in high school. I never really followed MJ's music, to be honest, and I saw the Martin Bashir documentary. Basically, my earlier notions of MJ were as negative as the media would want them to be. I believed he was probably guilty of the 1993 allegations, though I was too young to have even cared then (I was 4 and just wanted to marry MJ then!), thinking that whatever had went on was at the most benign exploration with a like-minded peer. (So WRONG was I! ): )
Back to Jones' book: it made me see clearly. I was greatly saddened by MJ's death and the way he was slowly being character assissinated by tools in the media machine so I bought this book wanting to feel some sort of comfort.
I'm SO glad I did! Jones presents in this piece excellent research into the Arvizo allegations. She UNEQUIVOCALLY proves that MJ was framed and that the media was too hellbent on a witch hunt to even highlight that fact (this makes me sick to my stomach!).
The Arvizos were liars. The mother and father basically used their children (esp. Gavin, the alleged victim) as leverage to gain sympathy with those to which they came into contact who happened to have money! Do you remember the corporate media tools ever acknowledging the FACT that the Arvizos swindled Chris Tucker and George Lopez, and attempted to swindle Jay Leno? Yeah, I, too, don't remeber any of that being exposed...
The best part of Jones' book is that she presents MJ's trial as if you were there watching the action without the big-bad media's filter. For example, instead of hearing about Macaulay Culkin sharing a bed with MJ, you experience Culkin's testimony: he says he shared a bed with MJ AND NOTHING EVER HAPPENED! Other boys testified saying the SAME THING!
Most heartbreaking was Jones' detailing of the outtakes of the Martin Bashir interview. Let me say, Bashir is a disgusting human being, a malignant narcissist who was more interested in fulfilling the disgusting corporate media machine's desires to humiliate MJ than to be a fair-minded journalist. As someone who went to school (I was in the 8th grade) and talked with friends about the Bashir doc, I remembered that hatchet job called an interview. We laughed about it and said MJ looked CRAZEE.
The outtakes, however, reveal MJ to be a beautifully, candid human being, so sweet and kind that you wished you got to go to Neverland.
Aphrodite Jones wrote a winner. Period. I so urge you to buy this book and read it because their is no bias, no BSing--just the TRUTH. And if you are unmoved by what you read then you have been too brainwashed by the corporate media machine!
Michael Jackson was obviously innocent (since 1993, by the way, as well) and I was left utterly dumbfounded at the fact that the media neglected to tell the more interesting story of a kind-hearted, charitable celebrity being swindled by a family of sociopathic greedy monsters. That is much more interesting than a bunch of obviously trumped up charges brought by a bloodthirsty, fame hungry DA Tom Sneddon.
I will never call my mother "Michael Jackson" again just because she *loves* babies and children so much. How callous and cruel of me. I am ashamed because that is exactly how the media wants you to think.
Michael, I'm SO sorry! I should have never, EVER believed such ugly things that unenlightened people still want to hold on to so tightly. Please, no hard feelings? You are an amazing person... :)
Showing reviews 1-5 of 196
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