So on CNN Monday night, Aaron Brown said during his Morning Papers segment that somebody bet him 100 bucks that The Oregonian wouldn't put Michael Jackson on Page One. Well, we did (I'm wondering where my cut is), and we weren't alone.

Of 249 American front pages at the Newseum on Tuesday, 228 had a significant Michael Jackson presence on Page One. The other 21 had a small-ish teaser, or nothing at all. Most of the 21 are small papers that emphasize local news, with a couple of exceptions, most notably the State Journal-Register of Springfield, Ill. (circ. 55,700), and the Kalamazoo Gazette (circ. 56,000, and an afternoon paper, which may have contributed to the Jackson play).

Even among the 228, you could practically feel some of them holding their noses.

Aw, c'mon, buddies! Relax! It doesn't hurt. I promise.

Update: An alert reader points out that the Patriot-Ledger is also a PM and perhaps deserves some slack. OK, slack granted.