Jackson family faces criticism since Michael's death

It seems there's a "right" way to grieve, and then there's the very public "Jackson" way.

Observers tracking the moves of Michael Jackson's immediate family were rankled after an eyebrow-raising appearance by family patriarch Joe Jackson at Sunday night's BET Awards, where the 79-year-old briefly appeared to be hawking products for a business.

To some, the move "reeked" of hucksterism, the sad words of a salesman suddenly deprived of his moonwalking commodity. To the less cynical, it was merely a natural gesture from a man used to conducting his affairs through the media.

"Joe, on the red carpet, was an embarrassment," said Ian Drew, a senior editor at Us magazine. "It could not have looked more self-serving. It's what you've always heard about the family — they'll sell out anything, whenever they can."

There have, in fact, been a few actions by members of the Jackson family that have seemed suspect to followers, with Joe's award show "pitch" just the most notable.

On Saturday, Michael's mom, Katherine, who Monday was granted temporary guardianship of Michael's three children, was photographed leaving a Target store with a cart full of sleeping bags and toys. A touching display of a grandmother's love? Or, as some wondered Monday, a shrewd PR move by a woman looking to present herself in the best possible light for the courts?

The posts on TMZ.com, underneath a picture of Katherine headed to the parking lot, were not kind: "Without the kids, there is no $$$." "I'm sure that this woman has people to go out shopping for her." And, "It is laughable to think that a woman who sold her children should have anything to do with (Michael's)."

There was also the report this weekend in the Times of London, where one of Jackson's nannies, Grace Rwaramba, described a call from Katherine Jackson, days after her superstar son's death. Rwaramba said Katherine had raced to Michael's Holmby Hills rental home in the hours after the death to retrieve the piles of cash her son was notorious for leaving around. Sister LaToya Jackson had reportedly gone on the treasure hunt around the same time.

Others have speculated about the quick appearance of the two white Atlas Van Lines moving trucks that appeared at the home, the day after Michael's death. They wonder why one of the first things the family did, "while their youngest son's body was still warm," was to send moving vans to his home.