As a rule, I think the less said about the excessive Michael Jackson coverage in recent weeks and days, the better. It goes without saying that the spectacle has morphed beyond news into something else entirely. And if Wolf Blitzer and Brian Williams and lots of other 'serious' journalists want to pretend, day after day, that Jackson's June death continues to constitute breaking news, then that's their problem.

But I think that this CNN chyron from late Wednesday afternoon does deserve comment, as it seems to have crossed all kinds of decency boundaries. And yes, it read, “What are Jackson kids really like”:

Honestly, WTF? It's creepy enough that serious journalists chew up airtime discussing the custody possibilities of Jackson's kids. But to now poke and prod around the lives of elementary school-aged kids of a dead celebrity in hopes of finding out what they are “really like”? (Note that CNN had no interest in the kids when their father was alive.)

It's just beyond the pale for any mainstream news org. And CNN, for one, needs to rethink where it's going with this often pointless Jackson coverage.