| Yale scholars pick apart
Jackson
Posted 26.09.2004
NEW HAVEN, Connecticut - Michael Jackson,
frequently savaged in the tabloid press, was picked
apart by more rarified critics as scholars gathered
for a conference on the pop star at Yale University.
Eighteen scholars from U.S. universities
discussed sexual, racial and artistic aspects of Jackson's
life and music Thursday and Friday in the first academic
meeting to study him.
Jackson "in many ways is the
black male crossover artist of the 20th century,"
said Seth Clark Silberman, who teaches about race
and gender at Yale.
"He has grown up in front of
us, so we have a great investment in him, even though
some people today may find his image disturbing."
Other universities have hosted conferences
about Madonna and other pop stars, Silberman said.
The conference avoided details of
the child molestation case against Jackson in California,
but it did look at how the media has reported on the
case. Jackson pleaded not guilty in April to child
molestation and conspiracy charges. His trial is scheduled
for January 31.
Still, panelists discussed how pedophilia
allegations have fed into false stereotypes about
gays. Although Jackson married twice and has children,
he has long battled rumors that he is gay, said Silberman,
who is writing a book about Jackson.
Since his days as a child star, Jackson
has made his image increasingly strange and contrary
to sexual and racial expectations, Silberman said.
Panelists discussed Jackson's plastic
surgery and his skin tone change from dark to light
(which Jackson says is due to a condition called vitiligo).
Todd Gray, who was Jackson's personal
photographer for four years, described how Jackson
asked him to retouch photos to make him appear lighter-skinned.
Record executives wanted Jackson to
appear masculine in photos, while Jackson preferred
pictures of himself kissing animals or hugging the
Mickey Mouse mascot at Disneyland, Gray said.
Jackson often explores racial issues
in his music, noted another panelist, Nora Morrison,
a graduate student from Harvard University. In the
video for "Beat It," she said, Jackson breaks
up a fight between a black gang and a white gang,
whose members then join in his dance moves.
Megan Burns, who is pursing a master's
degree in fine art, said she looks at Jackson as "a
self-created piece of art."
"He's contributed to the national
discussion of race and gender, and that is an invaluable
topic for all of us to discuss," she said.
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