Prince Jackson testifies against AEG Paris: Michael said nanny 'lied a lot' Compare Michael Jackson in 2001 to 2009
"None of this is new -- zero -- and there was no FBI involvement," said CNN Special Investigations reporter Drew Griffin. "It just sounds like recycled tabloid reports from 20 years ago."
Griffin saw and reported on the same material more than a decade ago as a local Los Angeles reporter.
"The bottom line is this stuff was not in the FBI files," said Tom Mesereau, the lawyer who successfully defended Jackson against child molestation charges in a lengthy trial in 2005. "The FBI closed the investigation. It sounds like a bunch of utter nonsense."
Journalist Diane Dimond, who is no defender of the pop icon, also attacked the Sunday People article.
"It is obvious the paper took this old story and proceeded to make it seem new by adding numbers to it -- 24 boys paid off $35 million by Michael Jackson," Dimond said. "The problem is there's no evidence to back up the claim that Jackson made that many payoffs."
Dimond's book "Be Careful Who You Love: Inside the Michael Jackson Case" details her coverage of allegations of improper relationships between Jackson and boys.
The tabloid report was published at a critical time for the Jackson family, as its wrongful death lawsuit against a concert promoter entered its 10th week and while Jackson's daughter, Paris, is being treated after a reported suicide attempt.
"The files will also dismay Jacko's kids, Prince, 16, Paris, 15, and 11-year-old Blanket, who have not yet come to terms with losing their father," the Sunday People story said.
Michael Jackson considered the British tabloids' use of "Jacko" to be a derogatory term.
Griffin, Dimond and Mesereau each point to Paul Barresi, a former porn actor who lost his private investigator's license for fabricating evidence, as the person who possessed the material published Sunday.