| JACKSON 'WHIPPED NOT BEATEN'
Michael Jackson's father Joe insists he never beat his son -- because he used a switch and a belt rather than a stick.
In an extraordinary interview with British journalist Louis Theroux, who had tried to see the "Thriller" star himself but lost out to fellow journalist Martin Bashia, svengali Joe denies claims of violence towards his superstar son, insisting he only "whipped" him.
When quizzed by Theroux about his troubled son's controversial upbringing, a fuming Joe responds, "I never beat him -- you beat someone with a stick.
"I whipped him with a switch and a belt."
Elsewhere in the explosive BBC interview, Theroux tries to tackle rumors of Michael's homosexuality and plastic surgery, to be beaten down by Joe and a pal who appears with him.
Before speaking to Joe Jackson, Theroux researched his controversial subject for a year and came to the following conclusion: "(Michael's) a remarkable, talented, kind, gentle, loving individual, but he's also troubled for reasons I don't fully understand." | |
