Tubridy’s decision comes after watching Leaving Neverland.
The HBO documentary, Leaving Neverland, aired for the first time this week, and detailed allegations of abuse by Wade Robson and James Safechuck, who say Jackson molested them when they were children.
Accusations of sexual crime dogged Jackson throughout his life, and he stood trial for a charge of sexually abusing a minor in 2004. He was found not guilty. Jackson died in 2009.
Leaving Neverland contains an in-depth exploration of accusations against Jackson by Robson and Safechuck, and details claims on how the assaults were carried out. The descriptions are graphic and deeply disturbing.
Many have had a strong reaction to the film, and Ryan Tubridy has said he is unlikely to play Jackson’s music on his RTÉ Radio One programme ever again.
“The chances are, you won’t hear one again on this programme being played again, because it just leaves one very queasy at the thought,” he said.
“If a quarter of what those say happened to them at the hands of Michael Jackson then we all have to sit down and reassess our approach to that pop star and that icon, and probably, I have to say, his back catalogue.”
Tubridy is not alone in his decision. According to CNN, multiple radio stations in Canada and New Zealand have also taken the decision to ban the music of Jackson, who was one of the most popular recording artists of all time.
BBC Radio 2 has also issued a statement to NME saying it has not pulled Jackson’s songs from the air.
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