Michael Jackson's daughter Paris says paparazzi caused her long-term trauma

She appeared on Red Table Talk and spoke to Willow Smith about their similar childhoods, careers, mental health and sexuality.

Associated Press

15 Jun, 2021

Paris Jackson, stopping by Red Table Talk for a frank discussion about living under the media glare, reveals she suffers long-term anxiety and trauma from enduring countless camera clicks by paparazzi since she was a child.

“I experience auditory hallucinations sometimes with camera clicks and severe paranoia and have been going to therapy for a lot of things but that included,” Jackson says. “I’ll hear a trash bag rustling and flinch in panic.” She adds: “I think it’s standard PTSD.”

Jackson, the daughter of Michael Jackson, has a one-on-one discussion with fellow paparazzi target and friend Willow Smith on Wednesday’s edition of the online talk show that airs on Facebook.

During the show’s introduction, Smith says she met Jackson on the set of mom Jada Pinkett Smith’s TV show “Hawthorne.” Smith and Jackson soon forged a bond over growing up with parents in the spotlight, and over love of music, modelling, and issues like mental health, sexuality and body image. One way Jackson says she keeps some privacy is by asking people in her home to sign non-disclosure agreements.

Jackson, who has dated men and women, tells Smith that while there is tension with some of her family members over her sexuality, she has leaned on her brothers — Prince and Prince Michael II — and longtime family friend Omer Bhatti.

“They’ve always been super-supportive,” she says, noting that to better connect with his sister, Prince Jackson in high school joined a student-run club that unites LGBTQ+ and allied youth. “Not a lot of people can say they have siblings that support them like that.”

In 2020, Paris Jackson and then-boyfriend Gabriel Glenn — who formed the acoustic duo The Soundflowers — had a docu-series on Facebook Watch called Unfiltered, which provided a glimpse into her private life. Jackson revealed self-harm and suicide attempts in her testimonials, and said music was a way to channel her pain. She released her debut solo album “Wilted” in November.

Red Table Talk has recently made headlines with interviews with Olivia Jade Gianulli, Kelly Osbourne, and when Pinkett Smith and her husband, Will Smith, discussed their marriage.