Jackson mom says no reality show for Michael's kids

Prince Michael Jackson I (L), Paris Jackson and Prince Michael Jackson II, the children of the late pop star Michael Jackson, walk off stage during the memorial service for Michael Jackson at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, Tuesday, July 7, 2009.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Michael Jackson's mother, Katherine, on Wednesday denied a magazine report that his three children will appear in a TV reality series, saying the pop star would not have wanted them to be in the public eye.

Katherine Jackson's comments to celebrity website TMZ.com came after an Us Weekly magazine report headlined "Michael Jackson's Kids to Appear in A&E Reality Show" said the Jackson family was at odds over including the children in an upcoming show about how they are coping with his death.

Before he died in June at age 50, Michael Jackson shielded his children, Prince, 12, Paris, 11, and Prince Michael II, 7, from the media glare that surrounded him and would often have them wear carnival-like masks in public.

Katherine Jackson is now the legal guardian of the children, who made their first public appearance at the singer's televised public memorial in Los Angeles.

Us Weekly suggested television viewers would soon see more of Jackson's children on "The Jacksons: A Family Dynasty," that is tentatively set to air in December on cable network A&E. The magazine said on Wednesday it was standing by its story.

A&E neither confirmed nor denied the report but said the reality series revolves around Michael Jackson's brothers, Jackie, Jermaine, Tito and Marlon.

"Filming is taking place right now," A&E said in a statement. "As production moves forward, it is entirely possible that the brothers' paths will intersect with other members of the Jackson family, who may or may not be included in the finished series."

A&E said that it could not "at this point definitively know who else may make an appearance in the series."

The official spokesman for the Jackson family declined to comment.

Michael Jackson died in Los Angeles on June 25 from an overdose of powerful medication. Police are probing his death in an investigation focused on his doctors.

(Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis: Editing by Jill Serjeant and Sandra Maler)