text: tabloid junkie " tabloid junkie " is a pop song performed by american recording artist michael jackson . the song appeared as the eleventh track on jackson 's ninth studio album , entitled history : past , present and future , book i , which was released in 1995 as a two - disc set . the song was written , composed , and produced by michael jackson , jimmy jam ( james harris iii ) and terry lewis . the song received generally positive reviews from music critics . " tabloid junkie " is a pop - rock song , with lyrics that pertain to media bias and negative coverage of rumors about jackson and his personal life , similar to previous songs recorded by jackson . " tabloid junkie " is the seventh song on history : past , present and future , book i to be aimed at the media . the track was not released as a single . background similarly to " leave me alone " ( 1987 ) and history : past , present and future , book i album tracks , " they don 't care about us " , " scream " and " this time around " , amongst others , " tabloid junkie " , co - written by jackson , shows jackson 's dissatisfaction with the media , particularly the tabloids , because of the bias and negative media coverage of false rumors and the 1993 child sexual abuse accusations made against him . ever since the late 1980s , jackson and the press did not have a good relationship . in 1986 , the tabloids ran a story claiming that jackson slept in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber to slow the aging process , with a picture of him lying down in a glass box ; jackson stated that the story was untrue . when jackson bought a pet chimpanzee bubbles , the media viewed it as evidence of jackson 's increasing detachment from reality . it was reported that jackson had offered to buy the bones of joseph " the elephant man " merrick ; jackson stated that the story was false . these stories inspired the nickname " wacko jacko " , which jackson acquired the following year , and would come to despise . jackson stopped leaking untrue stories to the press , so the media began making up their own . in 1989 , jackson released the song and music video " leave me alone " , a song about his perceived victimization at the hands of the press . the video shows jackson poking fun at both the press and himself . in the video , there are newspapers with bizarre headlines , jackson dancing with the bones of " the elephant man " , and an animated nose with a scalpel chasing it across the screen . in august 1993 , the relationship between jackson and the press soured entirely when he was accused of child sexual abuse . although never charged with a crime , jackson was subject to intense media scrutiny while the criminal investigation took place . complaints about the coverage included the media using sensational headlines to draw in readers and viewers when the content itself did not support the headline , accepting leaked material from the police investigation and of jackson 's alleged criminal activity in return for money , a lack of objectivity and using headlines that strongly implied jackson 's guilt . at the time , jackson said of the media coverage , " i will say i am particularly upset by the handling of the matter by the incredible , terrible mass media . at every opportunity , the media has dissected and manipulated these allegations to reach their own conclusions . " jackson began taking painkillers , valium , xanax and ativan to deal with the stress of the allegations made against him . when he left the united states to go into rehabilitation , the media showed him little sympathy . composition " tabloid junkie " is credited as a pop — funk song , that is similar to new jack swing . throughout the song , jackson sings in a quick - voice , which some music critics viewed as jackson " not singing " but " " . it is a plea to the public to not believe everything in the tabloids ; and the lyrics are about media bias and sensational journalism about jackson and in general . this can be heard in lyrics such as , " just because you read it in the magazine or see it on the tv screen don 't make it factual " . jackson uses the song to criticize journalists , commenting " with your pen you torture men " , describing how he was affected by the media coverage about him , and " speculate to break the one you hate " , describing how reporters used sensational writing to mislead people and cast him in a negative view . " tabloid junkie " is played in the key of a ♭ minor and in common time signature . it has heavy beats throughout with jackson beatboxing throughout . jackson 's voice range is from c ♭ 4 to b ♭ 7 . the songs tempo is moderate and its metronome is 111 beats per minute . reception " tabloid junkie " received primarily positive reviews from contemporary music critics . james hunter , a writer for rolling stone , described " tabloid junkie " , as well as " scream " , another track from the album , as being " two adventurous jam and lewis thumpers " that " work completely " , commenting that " jackson 's slippery voice is caught in mammoth funk - rock constructions " . hunter noted that the " choruses of ' tabloid junkie ' in particular sing out with quick - voiced warnings about the failings of media truth . " robert christgau , a film and music critic , who gave the album * * honorable mention ( ) , listed " tabloid junkie " as being one out of two of the albums highlights . jim farber , of the new york daily news , commented that " tabloid junkie " sounded " like virtual satires " of the " beat - heavy sound devised " by jam and lewis in the 1980s . david browne , of entertainment weekly , noted that " tabloid junkie , " comes as " close to transcendence as anywhere on the album " and described the chorus , " just because you read it in the magazine or see it on the tv screen don 't make it factual " as jackson 's " , most driven refrain in years . " although browne praised the song , he commented , " the rest of the song , however , is mucked up with fake tabloid - tv snippets about his ' life , ' and on the verses jackson 's delivery is so terse ( he 's not singing , he 's ) that his lyrics are all but obliterated . handed a golden opportunity , he throws it all away — but then , it wouldn 't be the first time . " deepika reedy , of the daily collegian , described the " rust in songs " like " tabloid junkie " as having a " raw aspect " that jackson " hasn 't approached since a near - miss with ' billie jean ' . " patrick macdonald , of the seattle times , noted that " tabloid junkie " was a " disingenuous attack on sensational news stories " about jackson , remarked that most of stories were " planted " by jackson himself . track listing album track : " tabloid junkie " - 4 : 32