The rumors and stories surrounding Michael Jackson’s death aren’t going to go away any time soon. How did he die? What will happen to his unreleased songs? Is the Jackson Three a realistic proposition? All these questions and more are set to be answered in the coming months.

The huge outpouring of grief surrounding Jackson’s death has caused some consumers to do something they haven’t done in a long while—pay money for music. His records are hitting the upper echelons of the charts all over the world, and the LA Times estimates that global sales have reached the 9 million mark since Jackson’s death.

Like most of these stories, there’s no actual verification of this figure. The LA Times has plucked the “9 million record sales” figure from “a source.” Sony hasn’t denied it, so the newspaper is running with 9 million sales as a cold hard fact. No names or methodology are revealed, but never let the facts get in the way of a good story. One thing is for sure: Michael Jackson sales are through the roof, with everyone from Amazon and Best Buy to jukebox manufacturers reporting a huge upturn in sales/plays of his songs.

[LA Times]