It's not a happy story (and not for the reasons you assume; for instance, search the latter story for "South Korea"). Bill Wyman tells it better than I think anyone else can, as an expert and well-regarded music journalist writing outside the confines of any mainstream music publication.
http://www.hitsville.org/2009/06/25/michael-jackson-and-the-...
and from 1992, with much more detail:
http://www.chicagoreader.com/michael_jackson/
It's not a happy story (and not for the reasons you assume; for instance, search the latter story for "South Korea"). Bill Wyman tells it better than I think anyone else can, as an expert and well-regarded music journalist writing outside the confines of any mainstream music publication.