Controversy Volume III: Michael Jackson - Unmasked II: Dismantling The Neverland Accusations

In December 2008, #1 NY Times bestselling author and award-winning film director Ian Halperin sent shockwaves around the world when he reported that the world's most famous musician Michael Jackson had only six months to live. Six months later, the King of Pop was dead. His book Unmasked skyrocketed to the top of the NY Times bestseller list. It examined Jackson's final years and the real cause of his tragic death.In Unmasked II, Halperin examines shocking allegations made by two former Jackson associates - Wade Robson and James Safechuck - made in the documentary film Finding Neverland that awakened a sleep ghost from a decade-long slumber. The film appeared once and for all to lay to rest any doubt - a once beloved icon was in fact a monster. Once again child molestation allegations were at the center. However, this time The King of Pop was not here to defend himself. Both men, however, claimed that they were not interested in money and had only come forward to embolden other abuse victims to speak out. It is these words that set off alarm bells for author Halperin and reminded him of the previous Jackson accusers whose dubious claims were shown to have almost certainly been motivated by money all along. Deciding to dig deeper into the court records, Halperin discovered some very telling evidence that appeared to contradict the men's claims of selflessness.Jackson had always claimed that he liked to be around young boys because he had been deprived of a normal childhood. His behavior, therefore, was akin to the kind of sleepovers and play dates that most children participate in during their childhood. Halperin concludes that, although the singer's pattern of behavior was undeniably creepy, the testimony of dozens of eyewitnesses corroborate Jackson's innocence. Along with scores of contradictions and inconsistencies elsewhere in their stories, it suggests that Robson and Safechuck mostly told the truth about their encounters with Jackson. That is why they came off so convincingly on camera. But when they ran into financial difficulties, they almost certainly added the molestation allegations in order to cash in from the estate.And, although Unmasked II largely exonerates Jackson from the accusations that threaten to erase his legacy, it provides a warts-and-all perspective on Jackson's life and personality and blames his arrogance rather than naiveté for ignoring the years of warnings from friends and family about his relationships with children and the public optics.Halperin reveals the untold truths about the scurrilous accusations agains Jackson, uncovering a plethora of new evidence that the child molestation allegations against him were part of a huge cash grab to extract millions of dollars from the late superstar's estate.Praise For Ian “A judicious presentation of explosive material” -The New Yorker“Halperin comes to the story determined to get to the truth”- The Times of London“A pop culture masterpiece” - LA Weekly