Dancing the dream: Michael Jackson and his Chinese fans

A new book of Michael Jackson's poems and essays is set to provide new insights into the superstar's soul. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Jackson's Chinese fan club ran a series of stories on MJJCN.com and its WeChat account, calling on the country's media to not carry the "fabricated" news about the photos without verification.

One fan surnamed Yang says: "I'm shocked to see a great artist and philanthropist slandered seven years after his death."

Chinese fans quote Jackson as saying: "Lies run sprints, but truth runs marathons."

The icon has for years remained less controversial in China than in his homeland, where he became a divisive figure after he was charged and acquitted on seven counts of child molestation and two counts of providing an intoxicant to a minor under 14.

Former Santa Barbara senior assistant district attorney Ron Zonen told media he believes the images were used to "desensitize the children ... There's not much question in my mind that Michael was guilty of child molestation."

Chinese fans have commemorated the icon with flash mobs and candlelit vigils since his 2009 death. They rented time on Shanghai's biggest outdoor screen, the 140-meter-high, 43-meter-wide Citigroup Tower on the Bund last week.

"Michael Jackson has never performed on the mainland," says Xu Hao, who rented the screen with a friend.