In Santa Barbara, the media and fans were still anxiously waiting outside the courthouse.
It was already 2 PM, and the trial had lasted five hours without a recess, which was somewhat unexpected.
This situation must have been due to a major event that could influence the case's direction. Reporters had already set up their cameras, determined to get first-hand information.
Large television stations like ABC, NBC, and BBC had already broadcast live reports from the scene during their midday news.
Mass gatherings of over ten thousand people were rare; many celebrities and politicians couldn't attract such crowds for their events, and the incident was becoming increasingly hyped.
Some TV stations even started live streaming. Even though they could only see the tightly shut courthouse doors, the viewership surpassed that of the O.J. Simpson murder trial back in the day.
Conservatively, the online viewership had exceeded 30 million people, whereas the thrilling highway chase during the O.J. Simpson murder trial only had over 20 million viewers.
Online, many people were also sharing pictures and text messages, following the progress.
Creak!
A few minutes later, the courthouse doors opened. First, bailiffs came out to maintain order, and then many spectators began to emerge.
"Over here!"
Suddenly, an astute Female Reporter from NBC spotted Janet Avizo and her companions hidden in the crowd and immediately rushed over to interview them.
Seeing her actions, other reporters also noticed the group and followed suit.
However, upon realizing the reporters had noticed them, Janet Avizo and her companions, like cats seeing a mouse, quickly sped up and ran outside.
Are you kidding? If not now, when else would they run? What would they say if the media surrounded them? That they were about to win?
Seeing the vast number of people, they felt a chill in their hearts. If they incurred public wrath, there was a risk of being beaten to death.
Janet Avizo and her companions slipped away quickly. Unable to corner anyone, the reporters had to continue waiting. Fortunately, Michael also walked out at this moment.
Upon his appearance, the scene immediately erupted in a huge cheer, and countless shouts almost shattered the glass.
"Michael! Michael!"
"Michael, I love you!"
"Michael, look here, please look at me!"
Eric, Gadot, and little Elizabeth stood not far away, watching everything.
"It's truly insane. He just stands there, and he's a superstar. No one can overshadow his brilliance," Gadot said with emotion.
Eric pinched her cheek: "No need to be envious, baby. You will also become a top international star, and you too, Elizabeth. Believe me, you definitely can!"
Elizabeth Olsen nodded obediently, but her mind was still replaying the scene from the trial—it was too exciting and too embarrassing.
Seeing that Michael had no intention of leaving, the reporters breathed a sigh of relief, and all cameras focused on him.
"Michael, what's the trial's outcome? Are you confident you'll win?" asked a New York Times reporter.
Michael smiled brightly: "Of course, I will definitely win. There's no doubt about it. In fact, I've almost already won."
"All those accusations against me are baseless. I presented a large amount of human and material evidence, while Janet and her people couldn't produce any valid evidence."
Everyone recalled the hurried departure of those few people earlier, and comparing it with Michael's smile, they already had a general idea.
"Is it convenient to disclose the specific details?"
"Not at the moment, but my fans can rest assured that I will be fine. Thank you for your long-standing support. I will continue to create excellent songs for you to listen to."
"But your relationship with Sony is so bad. Last year, you even publicly feuded with Tommy Mottola, the president of Sony Music. Will Sony still record a new album for you?"
Hearing the reporter's question, Eric couldn't help but smile.
While paparazzi are indeed annoying, always liking to snap candid photos and create scandals, sometimes their penchant for stirring up trouble can be quite useful, like now.
Michael did not answer but handed the microphone to Mesereau.
"I am Michael's lawyer, Tom Mesereau. Regarding this question, we have reason to suspect that the documentary by Martin Bashir, which slandered Jackson, benefited Sony Music."
"Because Michael holds half of Sony Music's copyrights, Sony has always wanted to buy them back, but Michael has consistently refused to sell."
"That's why Sony resorted to despicable means to destroy Michael, thereby obtaining the coveted copyrights. This is a huge conspiracy."
"We have already filed a motion with the court, requesting to subpoena Sony Music and Martin Bashir, as they are very likely the people behind Janet Avizo."
As expected, once this big revelation was made, the entire street instantly erupted.
Reporters also showed excited expressions. This was an unexpected bonus; they hadn't anticipated an 'case within a case.' It was incredibly impactful, and they wouldn't have to worry about hot news topics recently.
They wanted to continue asking questions, but Michael had already waved goodbye to his fans and left.
At Neverland Ranch, Siti brought out the warmed dishes. Everyone was famished and immediately began to eat heartily.
After eating their fill, Eric and Michael soaked in the pool to cool off.
"Michael, today's trial has proven that Avizo and her people pose no threat to you. They are nothing but a disorganized mob. Now we need to shift our focus to Sony."
Michael hummed: "I can see that too. That recording already sealed their fate; the jury won't believe her lies anymore."
"As for Sony, since we've declared war, I plan to give frequent interviews recently and reveal what has happened over these years."
Seeing him finally make up his mind, Eric was quite relieved.
A gentleman can be outmaneuvered by principles, and a kind person is easily bullied. When necessary, one must be ruthless.
"Yes, since we've already decided to break ties, there's no need to show mercy. Besides the media, the most important thing is to rely on your fans."
"You have fan clubs all over the world, right? This is a very powerful force. Call on them to boycott Sony and put pressure on Sony."
"We must force Sony to compromise, not with a result as insignificant as firing one or two executives, but to terminate the contract."
"When necessary, as I said, exercise your power over that half of the copyrights. Let's see who can outlast whom."
"Sony has stock prices to maintain, shareholders to satisfy, and capital market bubbles to inflate. They can't fight a prolonged battle. As for your debt issues, don't worry, I'll cover them."
"Always remember our goal: leave Sony with the copyrights!"
Michael clenched his fist and nodded heavily.
With the conclusion of the trial, a storm of public opinion began to gather that afternoon. Major newspapers, TV stations, radio, and websites all started to follow up with reports.
At the same time, the online trolls Eric had prepared in advance began to frequent various forums and chat rooms, setting the pace and stirring up excitement.
For over a month, he had been busy fabricating countless articles, analyzing the incident from all angles.
"Why is Michael Jackson always slandered?"
"A child who grew up in the slums, he became the King of Pop in twenty years!"
"Exclusive Revelation: The Love-Hate Relationship Between Sony and Michael Jackson."
"What methods did Sony use to persecute Michael Jackson?"
"Jordi Chandler: This is a decade-late apology. I must tell the truth about what happened back then."
"Michael Jackson's Path of Charity: He Did So Much for This World."
"Listing Sony Music's Ten Major Crimes!"
"Pedophile? Philanthropist? What kind of person is Michael Jackson?"
The content of most of these articles was true, of course, mixed with some sensational elements. It was hard to detect the 'nine truths and one lie.'
At the same time, intermediaries were arranged to provide insider information to many gossip tabloids.
These small newspapers would not verify the authenticity of the content; they would publish whatever they were given, and the more eye-catching it was, the more actively they would publish it.
One or two local tabloids or regional radio stations indeed had no influence, but when hundreds of small newspapers worked together, the topic instantly became a regional hot spot.
When this group took the lead, other gossip tabloids had to follow suit for traffic.
By the next day, national television stations began to follow up even further.
Interviews with key figures such as Jordi Chandler, a former Sony Music employee, and the team behind Michael's 1993 out-of-court settlement were successively released.
"Yes, I want to apologize to Michael again. All of this was orchestrated by my scumbag father and two others. Only today do I have the courage to speak out."
"I worked at Sony Music for fifteen years, and I know some things others don't. In 1993, Michael was actually on a global tour."
"At that time, Michael's behind-the-scenes team paid the money and reached an out-of-court settlement without his consent, which led many people to believe Michael was a pedophile, creating a bad impression."
"Michael actually always opposed the settlement; he wanted to go to court, but the team betrayed him, and the team's leader was precisely Sony Music's distribution director at the time."
"It's hard not to wonder if there was a conspiracy hidden within, perhaps this hunt for equity had already begun."
"I worked at Sony for eight years, always responsible for logistics and statistics. I can guarantee that Michael Jackson's album sales stopped being counted three years ago."
"As long as album sales don't increase, Jackson's income will decrease. But any normal person knows that stagnation is impossible, so it's clearly artificial manipulation, meant to cripple Jackson's finances and force him to give up his copyrights."
After these reports and articles were broadcast, Michael's global fans were quickly ignited. He had a large number of loyal followers in Europe and various countries in North and South America.
Even in the Middle East, many of his songs were allowed.
However, at this moment, the vortex of public opinion had not yet fully formed, because the vast majority of onlookers had not yet been fully mobilized.
They were in a state of not caring about anyone, simply watching for entertainment, and had not yet joined the wave of attacking Sony.
Sony Music also did not make any response to this, perhaps because they hadn't yet figured out how to respond.
Time thus came to noon on the second day, when Martin Bashir's secretly filmed video suddenly circulated online and on major television stations.
This scumbag reporter's smug, ambiguous smile was almost explicitly stating, "I did this at Sony's instruction; Sony is the mastermind."
Articles and reports still had an element of speculation, but the leak of this video almost hammered Sony Music to death.
Michael also began to accept interviews, recounting his experiences over the years. Coupled with the unfair judicial treatment he had previously received, many people who had initially maintained a 'watching the show' attitude were finally mobilized.
Humans are emotional creatures, and most people possess a sense of justice.
Especially when upholding justice only requires you to speak out and curse people, not to personally act or donate money or goods, many people are willing to contribute.
Thus, the wave of condemnation against Sony Music and Martin Bashir grew larger and larger.
First to speak out for Michael were various charitable organizations. After all, Michael was one of their'sugar daddies'; who hadn't taken tens of millions of dollars from his pocket?
Now that the situation was almost clear, and Michael was on the side of justice, it was only right and proper for them to stand up and support him.
American Cancer Society: "Mr. Michael Jackson is a noble philanthropist. He has been donating since 1995, contributing millions of dollars annually. We absolutely believe in his character and call for an end to his persecution."
Children International College: "Michael is a star who loves charity and cares about children's causes. To say he is a pedophile is the greatest irony!"
Make-A-Wish Foundation: "Mr. Jackson is absolutely one of the most enthusiastic celebrities we've seen in public service. He quietly donates but rarely talks about it. His deeds deserve to be known by everyone."
UNESCO: "We will release Michael Jackson's detailed donation records from previous years to help the public better understand such an excellent person."
The tide of public opinion was raging, with overwhelming accusations. The entire society demanded a response from Sony Music and the BBC.
Sony Music, however, continued to play dead and remained silent. The headquarters in New York had a large number of security guards stationed at its entrance to prevent any extreme incidents.
President Tommy Mottola didn't even show his face; he couldn't be found at home or at the company.
The BBC was even worse off. One could say a huge black pot was inexplicably dumped on them. Yesterday, they were still interviewing in Santa Barbara, and today the boomerang hit them in the face.
This matter may not have been related to the BBC's high-level decisions; it was more likely Martin Bashir's private act. But a private act is paid for by the company, who made him your reporter, and your company broadcasted the documentary.
Due to the suddenness of the incident, the BBC only issued a brief announcement, stating that it would conduct an internal thorough investigation. Martin Bashir also vanished without a trace.
And as the midnight bell chimed, a gunshot once again sent public opinion into an uproar!