Chapter 171: Multiple Attacks, Hunting for Sony

In Santa Barbara, media and fans were still waiting anxiously outside the court.

It was already two o'clock in the afternoon. The trial had lasted for five hours without a recess, which was somewhat beyond expectations.

This situation must have occurred because a major event that could affect the direction of the case had occurred, and reporters had already set up their cameras and were determined to get first-hand information.

Major TV stations such as ABC, NBC, and BBC have already broadcast the situation on the scene during their midday news.

Large gatherings of tens of thousands of people are rare. Many celebrities and politicians cannot attract so many people to their events, and the incident has become more and more heated.

Some TV stations directly started live broadcast. Even though only the closed court door could be seen, the number of viewers was more than that of the Simpson murder case that year.

According to conservative estimates, the number of people watching online has exceeded 30 million, while the number of viewers of the thrilling highway chase in the Simpson murder case was only over 20 million.

On the Internet, many people are also scrolling through pictures and text messages, paying attention to the progress.

squeak!

A few minutes later, the court door opened. First, the bailiffs came out to maintain order, and then many people who were there to listen began to come out.

“Here!”

Suddenly, a female reporter from NBC spotted Janet Arvizo and others hiding in the crowd and immediately rushed over to interview them.

Seeing her actions, other reporters also noticed a few people and rushed forward.

When they found that the reporters had noticed them, Janet Arvizo and her companions quickened their pace and ran outside as if they were a cat seeing a mouse.

Are you kidding? If they don't run now, when will they run? What will they say when they are surrounded by the media? Say we are about to win? Seeing so many people makes them feel scared. If they incur public anger, they may be beaten to death.

Janet Arvizo and her group slipped away very quickly, and the reporters couldn't stop them and had to continue waiting. Fortunately, Michael came out at this time.

When they saw him appear, the scene suddenly erupted into huge cheers, and countless shouts almost shattered the glass.

"Maiko! Maiko!"

"Michael, I love you!"

"Michael, look here, please look at me!"

Eric, Gadot and little Elizabeth stood not far away and watched everything.

"It's crazy. As long as he stands there, he is a superstar and no one can cover up his brilliance," Gadot said with emotion.

Eric pinched her cheeks and said, "Don't be jealous, baby. You will become a world-class star in the future. And you, Elizabeth, believe me, you can do it!"

Ao Mei nodded obediently, but the scene of the trial was still echoing in her mind. It was too exciting and too embarrassing.

Seeing that Michael had no intention of leaving, the reporters breathed a sigh of relief and all the cameras were pointed at him.

"Michael, what is the result of the trial? Are you confident of winning?" asked a reporter from the New York Times.

Michael smiled brightly. "Of course, I will win. There is no doubt about that. In fact, I almost won already."

"The charges against me are all fabricated. I produced a large amount of witnesses and evidence, but Janet and the others could not produce any valid evidence."

Everyone thought of the hurried escape of those people just now, and compared it with Maikou's smile, they already had an idea in their minds.

"Would you mind telling me the details?"

"It's not convenient for now, but my fans can rest assured that I will be fine. Thank you for your long-term support. I will continue to create excellent songs for you to listen to."

"But your relationship with Sony is so bad. Last year, you had a public war of words with Tom Mottola, the president of Sony Music. Will Sony still record a new album for you?"

Eric couldn't help but smile when he heard the reporter's question.

Although paparazzi are indeed annoying and always like to take secret photos and create scandals, their love of stirring up trouble can be very useful sometimes, like now.

Michael did not answer, but handed the microphone to Meserio.

"I am Michael's lawyer, Tom Meserio. Regarding this issue, we have reason to suspect that Martin Basher's documentary that defamed Jackson was produced with the benefit of Sony Music."

"Because Michael holds half of Sony Music's copyright, Sony has always wanted to buy it back, but Michael has never sold it."

"That's why Sony wants to destroy Max through despicable means in order to get the coveted copyright. This is a huge conspiracy."

“We have filed an application with the court to subpoena Sony Music and Martin Basher because they are likely the ones standing behind Janet Arvizo.”

Just as expected, as soon as this big news came out, the whole street was boiling.

The reporters also showed excitement. This was a pleasant surprise. They didn't expect that it would involve a case within a case. It was really awesome. They didn't have to worry about the recent news hotspots anymore.

They wanted to continue asking, but Mike had already waved to the fans and left.

At Dream Manor, Siti brought out the hot meals. Everyone was starving and started eating immediately with big mouthfuls.

After eating, Eric and Michael took a dip in the swimming pool to cool off.

"Michael, today's court scene has proved that Arvizo and his people are no threat to you at all. They are just a bunch of rabble. Now we have to shift our focus to Sony."

Michael hummed, "I can see that, too. That recording has already sentenced them to death. The jury won't believe her lies anymore."

"As for Sony, since war has been declared, I plan to give intensive interviews in the near future and tell you what has happened over the years."

Eric was actually relieved to see that he had finally made up his mind.

A gentleman deceives others with his own way. A good person will be deceived and will become bad when necessary.

"Yes, we have already decided to break up, there is no need to show mercy. Apart from the media, the most important thing is to rely on your fans."

"You have fan associations all over the world, which is a very powerful force. Call on them to boycott Sony and put pressure on Sony."

"We must force Sony to compromise. It should not be a painless solution like firing one or two executives, but we must terminate the contract."

"When necessary, as I said, use your half of the copyright to see who can outlast the other."

"Sony has a share price to maintain, shareholders to satisfy, and bubbles in the capital market to blow. We can't fight a protracted war. As for your debt problem, rest assured that I will cover it."

"We must keep our goal in mind and leave Sony with the copyright!"

Michael clenched his fists and nodded heavily.

As the trial came to an end, a storm of public opinion began to gather that afternoon, and major newspapers, television stations, radio stations, and websites began to follow up on the report.

At the same time, the online army that Eric had prepared in advance began to appear in major forums and chat rooms to set the tone and stir up the heat.

More than a month ago, he began to write countless articles, analyzing the incident from all angles.

Why is Michael Jackson always being criticized?

"A kid who grew up in the slums became the king of the pop world in 20 years!"

"Exclusive revelation: Sony's love-hate relationship with Michael Jackson."

"What methods did Sony use to persecute Michael Jackson?"

"Jody Chandler: This is an apology that is ten years late. I must tell the truth of that year."

"Michael Jackson's philanthropy, he did a lot for the world."

The latest novel is published first on Liu9shuba!

"List of Sony Music's ten major crimes!"

"Pedophile? Philanthropist? What kind of person is Michael Jackson?"

The contents of these articles are mostly true, of course there are some rhythmic things mixed in, and it is difficult to find out if nine are true and one is false.

At the same time, middlemen were arranged to provide insider information to many gossip tabloids.

These tabloids will not review the authenticity of the content. They will publish whatever they are given. The more eye-catching it is, the more actively they will publish it.

One or two local tabloids or regional radio stations do not have much influence, but when hundreds of tabloids work together, the topic is instantly hyped up into a regional hot spot.

Once this section takes the lead, other gossip tabloids must follow suit in order to gain traffic.

By the next day, major national television stations began to follow up further.

Interviews with key figures such as Jody Chandler, a former Sony Music employee, and the team behind the out-of-court settlement with Michael Jordan in 1993 were released one by one.

"Yes, I want to apologize to Michael again. All of this was caused by my scumbag father and the other two. I only had the courage to speak out today."

"I've worked at Sony Music for 15 years, and I know something that others don't know. In 1993, Michael was actually touring the world."

"At that time, the team behind Maikou paid the money without his consent and reached an out-of-court settlement, which gave many people the bad impression that Maikou was a pedophile."

"Michael was actually against the settlement all along. He wanted to sue, but his team betrayed him. The leader of the team was the then publishing director of Sony Music."

"It is hard not to wonder if there is a conspiracy behind this. Perhaps the hunt for equity has already begun."

"I have worked at Sony for eight years and have been responsible for logistical statistics. I can guarantee that Michael Jackson's album sales have been stopped since three years ago."

"As long as album sales do not increase, Jackson's income will decrease, but normal people know that stagnation is impossible, so it is obviously artificial manipulation in order to drag down Jackson's finances and force him to hand over the copyright."

After these reports and articles were broadcast, they quickly ignited Michael's fan base around the world. He has a large number of loyal fans in Europe and North and South America.

Even in the Middle East, many of his songs were allowed in.

However, at this moment, the vortex of public opinion has not yet been completely formed, because the vast majority of the people who like to watch the show have not yet been fully mobilized.

They are in a state of not caring about anyone and are just watching for fun. They have not yet joined the wave of siege on Sony.

Sony Music has not made any response to this, perhaps it has not yet figured out how to respond.

Time came to noon of the next day, and the secretly filmed video of Martin Basher suddenly circulated on the Internet and major TV stations.

The scumbag reporter's smug and ambiguous smile almost pointed out by name that I did this under the instructions of Sony and that Sony was the mastermind behind all this.

The article may be based on hearsay, but the leak of this video almost brought Sony Music to its knees.

Maikou also began to accept interviews, telling about his experiences over the years. Combined with the unfair judicial treatment he had received before, many people who had originally maintained a spectator attitude were finally moved.

Humans are emotional animals, and most people have a sense of justice in their hearts.

Especially when upholding justice only requires you to talk and curse at people, and does not require you to take action yourself or donate money or materials, many people are willing to contribute.

As a result, the wave of condemnation against Sony Music and Martin Basher is growing louder and louder.

The first to speak out for Michael were the major charitable groups. After all, Michael was one of their financial sponsors, and everyone had taken tens of millions of dollars out of his pocket.

The situation is now almost clear. Michael is on the side of justice, so it is reasonable for us to stand up and support him.

American Cancer Society: "Michael Jackson is a noble philanthropist. He has donated millions of dollars every year since 1995. We absolutely believe in his character and call for an end to the persecution of him."

Children's International Academy: "Michael is a star who loves charity and cares about children's causes. It would be the biggest irony to say that he is a pedophile!"

Make-A-Dream Foundation: "Mr. Jackson is definitely one of the most enthusiastic stars we have ever seen in charity. He donated quietly but rarely talked about it. His deeds deserve to be known by everyone."

UNESCO: "We will publish the details of Michael Jackson's donations over the years so that the public can better understand such an outstanding person."

The wave of public opinion was overwhelming, and accusations were overwhelming. The whole society demanded an answer from Sony Music and the BBC.

Sony Music continued to play dead and remain silent, and deployed a large number of security guards to guard the gate of its headquarters in New York to prevent any incidents from occurring in the short term.

President Tom Mottola didn't even show up, and was nowhere to be found at home or in the office.

The BBC is even worse off. It can be said that a huge pot was dropped on them without them knowing it. They were still interviewing in Santa Barbara yesterday, but they didn't expect that the boomerang would hit them in the face today.

This matter may not be related to the BBC's senior decision-making. It is more likely to be Martin Bashir's personal behavior. But the company has to pay for the private behavior. After all, he is your reporter and the documentary is broadcast by you.

Due to the suddenness of the incident, the BBC only issued a brief announcement, saying that it would conduct a thorough internal investigation, and Martin Bashir also disappeared.

As the midnight bell rang, a gunshot once again caused public opinion to boil!

(As for the content of the trial, you can just watch it for fun, the real trial is not like this. In reality, Michael's lawsuit lasted for more than three years, but for the sake of plot continuity, we compressed it to about half a year.) (End of this chapter)