Jackson Fans Pay Tribute on Twitter

LOS ANGELES - As the shocking news of Michael Jackson's death began to spread Thursday, the Internet and social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook exploded with tributes and expressions of shock and grief.

On Twitter, the volume of Jackson-related messages -- up to 5,000 per minute at its peak -- slowed the site considerably.

"We saw over twice the normal tweets per second the moment the story broke as people shared their grief and memories," Twitter co-founder Biz Stone said in an e-mail.

The tweeting tripped up Twitter briefly, but engineers quickly responded to keep the service running.

Twitter wasn't the only site being bombarded by the scores of people searching for news on the King of Pop's death. Keynote Systems, a company that tracks site performance, reported that the average time it took to access the home pages of top media sites jumped from 4.2 seconds to 8.9 seconds in the hours after his death was announced.

Even though it was already a big day for news sites with the death of actress Farrah Fawcett, the continued interest in the protests in Iran and the sex scandal involving South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford, Jackson's death virtually knocked all other news off the front pages.

Akamai's Net Usage Index, which monitors global news consumption online, found that Web traffic to news sites increased by about 50 percent, peaking around 6:30 p.m. ET.

So many people wanted to verify the early reports of Jackson's death that the computers running Google's news section interpreted the fusillade of "Michael Jackson" requests as an automated attack from about 5:40 p.m. through 6:15 p.m. ET.

On YouTube, traffic flowed to music videos of Jackson, while thousands posted videos of themselves sharing their thoughts on Jackson.

Others were using Facebook to organize vigils and celebrations of Jackson. One in San Francisco with nearly 50 confirmed guests hoped to recreated the "Thriller" dance. "It's a terrible day for us all. We will now start remembering him for what he was, the greatest star ever," Australian Christos Winter wrote on his Facebook fan page.

Within a few hours of the news of Jackson's death, his 1982 album "Thriller" was the No. 1 album on iTunes. Several of his discs were also in the top 10 of the digital store.

At one point, Twitter's tracking tool Twist reported that 30 percent of all tweets on the site were related to Jackson's death. One TV report said more than 66,000 tributes had been posted on Twitter.

Here's a sample of some of the comments and tweets from fans and celebrities around the world.

John Mayer: "I truly hope he is memorialized as the '83 moonwalking, MTV owning, mesmerizing, unstoppable, invincible Michael Jackson. I think we'll mourn his loss as well as the loss of ourselves as children listening to Thriller on the record player. Dazed in the studio. A major strand of our cultural DNA has left us. RIP MJ."

Dane Cook: "I'm dedicating my show 2night to Michael Jackson. THRILLER got me laid. Well... At least thats what I told my friends."

Jane Fonda: "I am stunned. My friend, Michael Jackson is dead. He lived with me for a week on 'Golden Pond' set after 'Thriller.'"

Ice T: "Rest In Peace Mike. People can say what they want but you were 100% original. WE will always love , miss & remember your GREATNESS."

Ashton Kutcher: "Rip Sending love and light to family and friend but especially his kids. I plea to the public to refuse to consume media that does not respect the anonymity of Michaels children."

P. Diddy: "Michael Jackson showed me that you can actually see the beat. He made the music come to life!! He made me believe in magic. I will miss him!"

Billy Bush: "What an awful day…trying hard to verify reports. I was last person to have MJ on camera, calling my sources. This is unreal"

Lindsay Lohan: "NO OMG sending my love and prayers out to Michael and his family"

Star Jones: "Death comes to all. But great achievements build a monument. He IS and WAS the greatest entertainer of all times...Peace to you brother."

Marlon Wayans: "My prayers, my love, my heart goes out to michael jackson and the entire jackson family. I pray so hard for them. I’m crushed! Please pray."

Pete Wentz: "Prayers and thoughts with michael jackson. I have never felt this before in my life. I could measure my childhood 2 now on an mj growth chart. if this is true. Rip. The last legend. Can we all bow our heads. STOP wht you are doing. And have a one minute moment of silence and pray for michael jackson. The world’s gr8test!"

Miley Cyrus: "michael jackson was my inspiration. love and blessings"

Ludacris: "If it were not for Micheal Jackson I would not be where or who I am today.His Music and Legacy will live on Forever.Prayers to the famR.I.P."

MC Hammer: "I have no words.. I loved Michael Jackson.. RIP.."

Ellen Degeneres: "So sad to hear about Michael Jackson. His music changed our lives. The world has lost an amazing singer and dancer. I will miss him."

Kim Kardashian: "Wow