It is not because Michael said he shared a bed with children.
What Bashir did is this. He went to set up Michael with 1993 allegations because he beloved the allegations were true. His first step was to trick Michael to invite a group of kids.
See how Bashir and his team film boys in that group in July 2002, well before he meets Gavin. Bashir then gives excuses as to why Michael's team cannot keep the footage, because the agreement was for Michael to store the footage.
The next thing Bashir did was to target a child who had stayed in Michael's home, trick Michael into sitting with the kid to talk about charity, then ask the kid leading questions which would cause the kid to talk about staying in Michael's home.
Bashir asked a leading question "does Michael let you move freely in his home?"
If you recall, Bashir had already filmed them in the kitchen, they were now seated in the lounge, the only other place Gavin could think of with such a leading question was Michael's suite. Bashir had this set up well.
But then when the kid said Michael slept on the floor, Bashir saw this as his chance to jump at Michael and say "what do you get from this?" another awkward question insinuating some sort of twisted gratification.
Michael answered as best as he could, albeit with emotion, "the most loving thing is to share a bed with someone, have the bed, I will sleep on the floor"
Subsequently, the media edited Michael's words to exclude the part "I will sleep on the floor", so as to insinuate even more sinister things.
When Bashir felt that he had failed to frame Michael, he planned to attack him again in the last interview. But his plan was to first trick Michael into signing a release.
Then he brought up Gavin and his cancer, Michael smiled.
Then Bashir attacked Michael about sharing a room. This time, the strategy was to fault Michael for sharing a room, after the "sharing a bed" strategy had failed.
Michael repeated he never shared a bed but slept on the floor.
When Bashir continued to try and prode him so as to fault him and make him appear at fault, that is when Michael gives an example well in the past, with the Culkins before 1993, by saying "I have shared a bed with many children, and then he generalise "I have shared with all of them" and gives a recollection of the Culkins hanging out and all jumping on his bed.
Michael adds, "if it's family? like close family?" or a child without a happy childhood?"
Of course people in families hang out together even in the bedroom. Kids jump on the bed, take a nap where they want. Michael has a large family and so when he refers to "all of them", he's referring to his family and close family.
But Bashir goes away, edits the documentary, injects the 1993 allegations, gives innuendo through commentary, and insinuates that "kids are still invited to visit" even though he's the one who asked Michael to invite the 50 kids, and "kids have sleepovers", even though Michael said very few people stay over, it was clear when Bashir began filming that Michael was alone at Neverland unlike the times pre-1993 and Michael had last seen Gavin in 2000, so it was malicious to say "invited to sleep over".
For the viewer, they saw the 50 kids, had the 1993 innuendo rehashed, saw Gavin talk about sleeping in Michael's bed, had Bashir's innuendo and just believed what he had to say.
When the reality is this.
Michael was asked to help Gavin
Michael last saw Gavin in December 2000
Bashir came into Michael's life in 2002
He sent an email asking Michael to film a group of 50 kids to show charity at Neverland
He asked Michael to invite some kids he had helped
Bashir targeted the 12yr old Gavin and used the group of kids he deceived Michael to invite, as basis to inject 1993 innuendo about "still invited and sleepovers"
He set up Michael with Gavin and placed leading questions and attempted to put Michael in awkward situations
At the end of the interview, he brought up Chandler's vile allegations which left Michael distressed
He then went off, edited the documentary and breached the agreement for Michael to review, so as to create a shock documentary
Now everyone faults Michael that he said "sleep in bed with children"
When all Michael was emphasising is that I did not share a bed with this kid but even if I was to share, as I have done in the past, I would never harm a child.
Bashir wanted Michael to talk about this, knowing any such discussion would be used to create scandal.
If Michael had an aide present, he would have stopped Bashir's questions, e.g. if Karen was present when Gavin was interviewed or in the last interview, they would have seen what Bashir was trying to do.
TRIAL
If Bashir was sincere about his intentions, why did he refuse to answer questions in the trial?
It came out that he had told someone that he would try to get into Michael’s life and fault him.
Why did he deceive Michael it was about charity when his intention was to use charity to justify 1993?
And if you don’t believe Bashir had malice, after Take 2 was aired, Bashir was quoted as saying "he’s pathetic, he thinks he has so much money that he could brainwash people about 1993"
Bashir wanted to make a career in the US, he believed in 1993 and that Michael had used his wealth to "get off". Infact after the documentary aired in US, Bashir was interviewed saying "Michael Jackson has so much money that the FBI cannot go into his home".
That was a deliberate effort to stair up trouble and cause Michael to be accused.
He spent 7 months scheming what questions to use to set up Michael and how to put him in awkward situations.
Michael’s words came out because he was put in a defensive situation to justify why he let a terminally ill and dying kid sleep on his bed.
If it was you and you were put on the defensive like that, you would say almost a similar thing? What’s wrong with the kid sleeping on the bed? I slept on the floor on a sleeping bag.
If you were pushed again, you would say. Hey!!, My family have stayed in my bedroom, what’s the big deal.
But them someone takes it away, edits and insinuates things you did not expect to be included, after being lied to that the whole thing was to show your charity.
People may blame Michael about 1993. But remember, then he was accused for sharing a bed, so he said, well, I will not share a bed this time, I will sleep on the floor.
Then Bashir realises Michael did not share a bed, so he tries to fault him for sharing a room so as to create scandal.
Now who in their right mind would harm a child, let alone a dying child?
It takes a very very very sick person to insinuate an allegation of abuse in such a situation and believe me, Michael could not have seen this coming, that someone would take a cancer kid he helped and use them to insinuate abuse. IT IS OFF THE RADAR!!
So for Michael, it came as a body blow.
Was he supposed to turn around and say "I was wrong?"
Of course he was not wrong, because he knew he helped a child and took measures and slept on the floor, and he would never harm a child, let alone a dying child.
Those who were wrong were those who took this child to insinuate abuse.
Every time they shifted goal posts so as to accuse Michael.
In 1993 he shared a bed, they faulted him.
In 2000, he slept on the floor, helping a dying child, Bashir faulted him, saying why don’t they stay in the guest house
During the 2003 saga, Arvizos were put in the guest house, then they still faulted him, why do they stay in your home.
For Michael’s he couldn’t win one way or the other, except to leave his home.
I mean, how can you have a vast home where you cannot invite people to stay even in the guest house, without the media trying to scandalize you?
After Bashir he could not even meet the German family in his main house, he had to go to the guest house.
But after the trial, he could no longer invite anyone in his home.
And you tell me Michael was wrong because of what he said?
Apportion blame correctly. People came to set him up and to try and scandalize anything he said.
