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Jackson's Former Photographer: Michael a Good Dad With a Drug Problem
Reuters/Fabrizio Bensch
The past week has been filled with more Michael Jackson speculation than we even thought possible...and there's no end in sight.
Jackson's former personal photographer, Ian Barkley, spoke exclusively to E! News about the King of Pop's parenting, his apparent problems and various things he witnessed during his years spent traveling the world with the artist.
Barkley was hired in 2002 to document Jackson in all of his endeavors. "Michael liked having me around," says the photographer.
Throughout his years with the star, Barkley grew to know Jackson and his family intimately, gaining personal insight into a life shrouded in privacy. The ex-employee paints a portrait of Jackson as a doting father, saying that he and his three children, Prince Michael, 12, Paris, 11, and Blanket, 7, had a "really good" relationship.
"His kids totally love their dad and he was extremely protective over them," says Barkley. "Even when we were just around his staff, he was protective."
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