When Michael Jackson was first accused of crimes against children during
the summer of 1993, few of his former showbiz pals came out
publicly to defend him, as a media circus ensued.
With radio science from many of his alliances
in the world of entertainment, Michael Jackson relied on a tight circle
of trustworthy individuals during this traumatic time.
This largely included his family,
minus LaToya
but including Janet, as well as his good
friend Elizabeth Taylor.
Presuming that a lot of those
in the public eye were hesitant to defend Michael or pass comment about
the developing scandal for concern that they would fall victim to press
and public backlash, damaging their own careers and future projects.
One could argue that the Jackson family,
as Janet put it recently, were already, quote, guilty by association.
So to defend Michael was an act also
to protect their own public image and careers in the spotlight.
Elizabeth Taylor,
who had been a star in Hollywood for so long and gone through too many scandals
to concern herself a backlash had little to lose as the former actress was focusing
her energies on her AIDS foundation and other charitable causes
during this time.
However, bucking the trend was a fellow performer at the very peak of their
stardom and the best selling artist at the time, Whitney Houston.
Not even considered a close friend,
but more of a contemporary and a long time admirer of Jackson, Whitney had much to lose
speaking out of tone about the scandal, including film and endorsement offers.
As Janet Jackson recently shed light on the real implications Michael's
troubles had on her own career, revealing that she lost a multimillion
dollar sponsorship and endorsement deal with Coca Cola as a result of the scandal.
However, in February 1994,
when Michael Jackson had just settled out of court with a $20 million payout,
there was much self-reflection by the media as to how they responded to the scandal,
as well as the increasing intensity and viciousness of the tabloid press.
Whitney chimed in on how journalists reacted to the news story.
In a TV Guide interview, she proclaimed,
you do not convict someone of a crime that you have no idea they committed,
Houston said.
I hate the media for doing that to him.
Houston said that false tabloid reports
that she was hospitalized for an addiction to diet pills the year before first made
her aware of the problem and how this media scrutiny negatively affected black
entertainers far more than their white counterparts.
I see white folks do things -
I see a lot of things that I wouldn't even think about doing and nobody cares.
Nobody talks about it, and it goes right under the rug.
I think a lot of emphasis is placed
on black people because there are not many who are able to succeed.
So when one does it's like, Uh-oh.
As a victim of press intrusion for the best part of a decade herself,
Whitney Houston first hand experienced the thin line black artists had to toe
when compared to their white contemporaries in the industry. In order
to crossover from black and RnB music stations to the pop charts,
from the start, Whitney was pressured to conform to conventions that were
thought to appeal to mainstream white audiences.
Exuding grace and elegance with fancy clothes, hair and makeup,
Whitney Houston's public image was devoid of her own personality and taste.
She was coached on what to say and how she
should behave, so to maintain the persona they had cultivated for her.
When other female contemporaries, like
Madonna, were allowed far more creative control over their image and artistry,
using media hyped controversy to spearhead their superstardom into new heights,
instead of it killing off their careers entirely.
Where the likes of Madonna could pose nude countless times,
swear 14 times and reference her drug use on live television,
Whitney Houston experienced criticism for her weight and marriage, rather than
the focus being on the trailblazing moves she was making in her career.
Similarly, where the other King of music,
Elvis Presley, would experience little backlash for dating his wife-to-be a 14
year old Priscilla, Michael Jackson's lifelong career
and character was savagely torn apart by the World's media due to unproven
allegations and an admission to sleepovers and playing video games.
Although Michael Jackson was careful
to maintain a wholesome family friendly image, Whitney Houston could sympathize
with another black artist that also felt the pressure to maintain perfection within
the public eye. In fear of becoming a victim of intense media scrutiny
that could overshadow a life's worth of accomplishments.
This racist contradiction as to how the media responds to black artists
and music was becoming increasingly evident in 1994,
with much hyped mass hysteria surrounding hip-hop and the coined gangster rap genres
as they grew in popularity and crossed over to mainstream listening audiences.
With many moral commentators calling to censor hip hop artists due to their
explicit lyrical content pertaining to sex, drugs and violence.
When white rockers for decades had built whole careers based off their 'drug,
sex and rock n roll' alter egos. It appears that groups like Guns
N Roses, Motley Crue and Kiss could embrace their 'live fast die young' lifestyle,
sleeping with whoever, falling out of bars with multiple visits to rehab facilities,
with little effect on their careers or restrictions on their music.
In the same TV Guide interview, Houston defended rapper Tupac Shakur's
rights not to be censored as a musician despite his recent troubles with the law.
At this time, Shakur had been charged with shooting two off duty police officers
in Atlanta, sexually assaulting a woman in New York City and was convicted earlier
that month for assaulting a former employer.
Even if Tupac is saying something
that some people don't like, it is a way of expression, Houston said.
However, members of the press didn't see
eye to eye with Whitney Houston's assessments.
As Daily News columnist, Ralph Wirtz, put
it, quote, what Houston and Jackson are victims of, along with a lot of other
people of all races, are many things, but not racism.
They are victims of a media that doesn't know when to say when.
If the tabloids don't think your star
shines bright enough that people want to read about you, you won't be in them.
I think this is the tabloid's motto,
the bigger the star, the more outrageous the story.
If we can't find something true that is. As the years went on,
Whitney Houston became increasingly outspoken about the hoops
black entertainers like herself and Michael Jackson had to jump through
in order to prove themselves and find success in the 1980s.
During a 2001 interview with MTV,
Houston recalls the early days of music television and how the new medium was
exclusively out of bounds for all black artists.
That is, until Michael herself and a string of other music stars broke
through those barriers, and in turn, broadened the conventions of pop music.
Yeah, I remember that I couldn't get on.
I remember that it was a major breakthrough for African American
entertainers to be on MTV because it was solely for rock artists.
I remember Michael Jackson making a very big breakthrough.
And then Tina Turner, along with myself and Bobby Brown
and a few others that were major breakthrough artists on MTV.
But I do remember the hassle of introducing
black artists to MTV because,
let's face it, was solely for white artists at that point.
But again, you have to be outstanding to break down the walls,
and Michael and a few others are outstanding.
So it was cool, very cool.
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