WORLD> Fans in Shock
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WORLD> Fans in Shock
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Fans moonwalk, hold worldwide vigils for Jackson
(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-06-27 17:14 "My heart is heavy because my idol died," Garcia said. Newspapers around the world covered their front pages with pictures of Jackson, who publicly morphed from a bellbottom-wearing child star to a pale-skinned, thin-nosed man with lipstick, eyeliner, and a troubled personal life. Many Japanese TV channels switched to special programming while Mexico's TV Azteca invited Jackson imitators to participate in a special program it will devote to the entertainer in coming days. One such imitator, Uruguayan singer Jorge Drexler, performed a duo, acoustic version of "Billie Jean" with Mexican actress and singer Ximena Sarinana on Thursday night in Mexico. "I am sad," Drexler was quoted by El Universal newspaper as saying. "I danced a lot with him (Jackson) when I was a kid." Fans snatched up recordings of Jackson's music around the world: A major Japanese online retailer was flooded with orders for Jackson's recordings, and music stores in Mexico City's touristy Pink Zone had sold out of his compact discs. "Sales have been impressive," said Ana Reinish, marketing manager for the Mexican music chain Mixup, without elaborating. "I'm sure it's going to break records, more than for any other artist who has died. We've never seen anything like this."
But at least one expert says it is dangerous to draw any connection between a drop in Iran-related tweets and the weakening of the opposition. "If you are a cleric in Iran wishing for the international community to stop paying attention to this extraordinary story in your back yard, you are certainly glad for this distraction" of Michael Jackson's death, said John Palfrey, a Harvard Law School professor and faculty co-director of Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet & Society. "But I would be very careful about giving it a sense of cause and effect: 'The Michael Jackson story has risen on Twitter and Iran has fallen and therefore"' it has negatively affected the opposition movement. "That's an extraordinary overstatement," he said. Governments from around the world recognized Jackson's passing, with former South Korean President Kim Dae-jung, who had met the singer, remarking that "We lost a hero of the world." Mexican President Felipe Calderon made a reference to Jackson during a ceremony commemorating the international day against illegal drug use and trafficking saying, "What a paradox today that ... one of the greatest idols of several generations and the largest seller of pop music died precisely because of this ... excessive use of drugs." In fact, the official cause of Jackson's death has not been determined and is not expected to be known for weeks, although Brian Oxman, a former Jackson attorney and a family friend, told NBC's "Today" show Friday that he had been concerned about Jackson's use of painkillers and had warned the singer's family about possible abuse. In November 1993, Jackson canceled the rest of his "Dangerous" world tour to seek treatment for addiction to painkillers prescribed after reconstructive scalp surgery. Whatever led to Jackson's death, his passing left a deep impression on fans and fellow singers worldwide. "Michael Jackson was the king of artistic brilliance," Colombian pop star Shakira said in a statement. "With his death ... a legend is born that will last until the end of time."
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