Michael Jackson's Death & One Year Anniversary

[Princess]

Web struggles to cope as Michael Jackson news spreads

Leading websites struggled to cope with the huge traffic from people wanting to discover news on Michael Jackson's death.
TMZ.com, the celebrity news website that broke the story, went down several times through the day as visitors flooded the site. Other sites, such as Perez Hilton's popular gossip blog, also failed as people rushed to try to confirm the news.
The microblogging service Twitter also shut down temporarily, with the site receiving hundreds of thousands of tweets shortly after the King of Pop's death was first reported.
Twitter struggled to deal with the deluge of messages, with its founder Biz Stone saying: "This particular news about the passing of such a global icon is the biggest jump in tweets per second since the U.S. presidential election.


Internet analysts said that at its peak, roughly 15 per cent of all posts on Twitter mentioned Michael Jackson, while Iran's disputed presidential elections or the swine flu pandemic never reached over 5 per cent.
Google said that there had been a "volcanic" surge in interest in Michael Jackson, with most of the top 100 searches on the site related to the singer. All Facebook, which tracks Facebook usage, reported that Jackson's page appears to be attracting around 20 fans a second, predicting that it could fast become one of the top pages in all of Facebook.
Since the news aggregation site Drudge Report broke news of President Bill Clinton's affair with Monica Lewinsky almost a decade ago, blogs and social media sites have increasingly shown their power in reporting major news stories. Last night, the gossip website, TMZ.com, broke the story of Michael Jackson's death.
Traditional news outlets such as Sky News, the BBC and CNN were cautious in following the lead of TMZ.com, but told audiences that the website had a history of correctly reporting stories of the magnitude of Michael Jackson's death. The AOL-owned site was first to reveal that the actor Heath Ledger had died, but Michael Jackson's death is the biggest scoop in the 4-year site's history.
In America, Michael Jackson's Thriller album has climbed to number one on iTunes, while in the UK Michael Jackson's "Number Ones" album was racing up the charts, breaking back into the UK Top 10 selling albums this morning.

[Princess]

WASHINGTON (CNN) - It was one of the most fascinating White House photo ops since President Richard Nixon met Elvis.

At a White House ceremony on May 14, 1984, President Ronald Reagan awarded Michael Jackson with the Presidential Public Safety Communication Award for allowing the song "Beat It" to be used in a public service campaign against teen drinking and driving.

Reagan's comments that day were peppered with Michael Jackson song references:

"Well, isn't this a thriller? . . . I know why you're here, and with good reason - to see one of the most talented, most popular, and most exciting superstars in the music world today - Michael Jackson. And Michael, welcome to the White House," said Reagan.


"I hope you'll forgive me, but we have quite a few young folks in the White House who all wanted me to give you the same message. They said to tell Michael, 'Please give some TLC to the PYTs.' Now I know that sounds a little 'off the wall,' but you know what I mean. And, Michael, I have another message from our fans in the Washington, D.C., area. They said, 'we want you back.' So when you begin your greatly awaited cross-country tour, will you please be sure to drop off here in the Nation's capital?"

Later in his remarks, Reagan said, "Michael Jackson is proof of what a person can accomplish through a lifestyle free of alcohol or drug abuse. People young and old can respect that. And if Americans follow his example, then we can face up to the problem of drinking and driving, and we can, in Michael's words, beat it."

Jackson spoke a total of 13 words at the event: "I'm very, very honored. Thank you very much, Mr. President and Mrs. Reagan."

Source: politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com

[Princess]

[Princess]

Michael Jackson would think about - and discuss - his death sometimes, his ex Lisa Marie Presley writes in a candid new entry on her MySpace blog.

"Years ago Michael and I were having a deep conversation about life in general," Presley, 41, writes. "He stared at me very intensely and he stated with an almost calm certainty, 'I am afraid that I am going to end up like [Elvis Presley], the way he did.' I promptly tried to deter him from the idea, at which point he just shrugged his shoulders and nodded almost matter of fact as if to let me know, he knew what he knew and that was kind of that."

Presley, who vehemently denies claims that their marriage was "a sham," describes their marriage as "unusual." "I do believe he loved me as much as he could love anyone and I loved him very much," she writes of their 20 month union. (The two wed in the Dominican Republic in May 1994 and divorced in Jan. 1996.)

But Presley now writes that the relationship was too emotionally taxing. "I became very ill and emotionally/spiritually exhausted in my quest to save him from certain self-destructive behavior and from the awful vampires and leeches he would always manage to magnetize around him," she writes. "I was in over my head while trying."

Nevertheless, Presley remembers her ex fondly. "He was an amazing person and I am lucky to have gotten as close to him as I did and to have had the many experiences and years that we had together," she posts. "I desperately hope that he can be relieved from his pain, pressure and turmoil now. He deserves to be free from all of that and I hope he is in a better place or will be."

[Princess]

The Jackson family issued a statement Saturday, conveyed by family patriarch Joseph Jackson. In full, it reads:

In one of the darkest moments of our lives we find it hard to find the words appropriate to this sudden tragedy we all had to encounter. Our beloved son, brother and father of three children has gone so unexpectedly, in such a tragic way and much too soon. It leaves us, his family, speechless and devastated to a point, where communication with the outside world seems almost impossible at times.

We miss Michael endlessly, our pain cannot be described in words. But Michael would not want us to give up now. So we want to thank all of his faithful supporters and loyal fans worldwide, you - who Michael loved so much. Please do not despair, because Michael will continue to live on in each and every one of you. Continue to spread his message, because that is what he would want you to do. Carry on, so his legacy will live forever.

In addition, Joseph Jackson wishes to personally convey: "My grandchildren are deeply moved by all the love and support you have shown for them and their father, Michael Jackson."

Joseph Jackson & Family

Source: people.com