Well, CNN didn't confirm it - they just reported what other sites had been reporting (it stated that in the article). Either way, it seems to be true.
Godspeed, Michael.
He probably faked his death... Along with The Elvis, Adolf Hitler, Kurt Cobain, Adlai Stevenson, and an assorted elite few whom all share an island paradise in some God-forsaken corner of the world, sitting by the pool all day drinking Coolaid and Margarita's...