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Sadly, anyone who gets into the public spotlight, for whatever reason, is going to have detractors, and some of those people are going to use the ease and anonymity of the Internet to engage in bashing. Back in the "old days," they'd have sent letters or mouthed off in public.

I've been involved in media fandoms for a few different TV shows, and my experience attending conventions has taught me that there's a frightening number of unbalanced/ unstable people out there, people who have a hard time separating fiction from reality. Those were the ones who'd be stalking actors, writers, etc., and sometimes even threatening physical violence against them. I've heard of people who will follow singers and bands all over the country, attending every single concert in a tour. Whether they love or hate the thing they're focused on, they're obsessed. While some of the Johnny-bashing is done by mean-spirited losers with too much time on their hands, some of it, I think, is being done by people with issues that go a lot deeper than just not liking a particular figure skater.

When I attended SOI this past spring, Sasha Cohen couldn't get too close to the audience for handshakes at the end, because of problems she's had with obsessive fans literally almost accosting her on the ice. There was a woman a few seats down from us who made a lunge and had to be restrained by security guards. I later overheard people talking, saying that the woman in question was very well-known to the tour management.

So it doesn't surprise me that Johnny has had to close down his My Space account. It's a shame. Obviously, the best thing we can do is here is to let him know of our continued love and support, on-line, at competitions, and for those who are lucky enough, in face-to-face contact. He's said over and over how much he values and appreciates his fans, so he knows we've got his back.

--EA Week