Lily Ta

At the moment, I feel like Tumblr is a secret hub for people to share their own sorrows, and sometimes depression.

Yes, my reason for getting on Tumblr today is one of those reasons. To write away my anger.

Dad and I just had a heated dispute with Mom about the entangled bubbles of stress that her irrationally short temper and social media misuse have been causing for other members. 

In the middle of the quarrel, I lost control of myself and started to yell out and bestir as if I were being abducted. My dad freaked out as my Mom shouted, “If you have the courage, go die.” My mind immediately directed me to the wooden door where I constantly hit my head hard against it. Yet, I didn’t feel the pain. It was numb. The anger made me numb. 

Amid the enmity, I walked away, slammed the door, gave it up to her. Back to my room, I felt like hitting something to release the negative energy stacked inside my body.

I looked at the punching mattress which I used for Sanshou class. But then decided to hold my anger back. My brother was sitting there. I didn’t want to punch and yell and cry hard like a psychopath, transmitting all of the negativity to my teenage brother. His teenage struggles were enough, I thought.

So, I am here to share the poem I wrote as an alternative solution to violently punching/ breaking something:

Your inner enemy

Anger is the worst enemy

It belittles what you have been building

Breaks the loves that you try to attain

Anger whispers in your ears:

Go die

Go hurt

yourself

your beloved

Revenge is the sweetest reward

Let’s fest on bitter tears and heartbreaks

Let’s drink the mourning souls

Anger makes you feel you are the prey 

while you are the preyer

Anger blinds your eyes

Anger turns black to white

Anger switches sinful to innocent 

After angers, there are deep holes of sadness

Making you feel sorry for what you 've said

Making you feel guilty of what you ‘ve broken

After angers, there are more wounds to heal than more friends to make

After angers, there are no one

But 

Yourself.

In 2017, only 35 Vietnamese films were screened in national cinemas compared to 91 American ones (Nguyen 2018). To counter the Hollywoodization, Vietnam government has put a lot of political and economic efforts to develop the domestic film industry. The government applied Đổi mới (“Renovation”) economic reform that called for privatization and foreign investment into the industry (Vo Hong 2012), while instituting a fixed quota for domestic products in the national cinemas (Nguyen 2018) and welcomed back overseas Vietnamese (known as Việt Kiều). The industry itself also adapts Hollywood aesthetics and economics to appeal to young people who are familiar with American pop culture products while trying to keep the national identity.

To begin with, Renovation economic reform in 1986 and political normalization of Vietnam-America relations in 1994 brought Hollywood to Vietnam. After 20 years of cold war, Hollywood is the new tool for the American government to conquer Vietnam. As defined by Joseph Nye (2004), one resource for the exercise of soft power is culture since a country can gain the political outcomes if other countries adore its values, imitate its example, aspire to its level of prosperity and openness.

These two policies at the same time offered a solution to counteract Hollywood by introducing more competitors. Following 1994, booming trade happened between Vietnam and America, and many other countries that were allies of America. The cinema industry underwent privatization and witnessed an influx of abroad media, labor, and capital and a surge in multinational co-production financing (Vo Hong 2012). Before 1989, cinemas and film productions were state-owned (Vo Hong 2012); but then, by the end of 2017, there were 630 cinemas, of which 65% are foreign players (the most notable one is CGV from Korea with 40% market share) (Kien Anh 2018).

Continuing the effort of Renovation, while the state still provides budgets for selective art films, the government encourages film funding and investment from the private sector and foreign players.  Vietnam Entertainment Fund (VEF established in consultation with VinaCapital, is the biggest investment fund in Vietnam with the market capitalization of $50 million. It follows entertainment fund models in developed countries, such as CA-Cygames Anime in Japan and Marvel Studios in the U.S. (Minh Nga 2018).

Besides, the government set up goals for the number of domestic films to reach. Up to 49% of the films screened in Vietnam cinemas are from America in 2017(Nguyen 2018). Therefore, the exhibition rate of Vietnamese films in cinemas, the number of cinemas and audience size/diversity should be increased (UNESCO 2016). In 2017, the fixed quotas of domestic productions in national cinemas was 20% of the total to counter the dominance of wildly popular Hong Kong action movies and Hollywood blockbusters (Nguyen 2018). This number is expected to reach 45% by 2030 (UNESCO 2016).

In recent years, the government put intensive effort into draw Việt Kiều talent back to Vietnam. Resolution 36 and the establishment of the Committee on Overseas Vietnamese in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs urge diasporic Vietnamese (those studying and living abroad or having fled Vietnam after the fall of Republic of Vietnam) to contribute to the liberalization of the country’s economy with their skills, financial assets and ties to education abroad institutions. Experienced Hollywood filmmakers and actors are especially welcomed to the cinema industry (Nguyen 2018). Notable Việt Kiều directors are Tran Anh Hung with Mùi đu đủ xanh (Scent of Green Papaya), Tony Bui with Ba Mùa (Three seasons), Charlie Nguyen with Dòng máu anh hùng (The Rebel (2007), Victor Vũ with Tôi thấy hoa vàng trên cỏ xanh (Yellow Flowers on the Green Grass), etc. With this strategy, the cinema industry is no longer confined in Vietnam border but goes beyond all over the world to Vietnamese overseas community.

The fact that young people adore global images of American pop culture urges the state to vary the domestic film categories and filmmakers to adopt American film production model. Once dominated by films about war with nationalistic narratives, the film industry is transforming into a transnational, multi-genre and multi-style cultural realm (Vo Hong 2012).  The goal is by 2020, produce 40-45 feature films per year, 36-48 films per year for each type of documentary, scientific films, animated films (UNESCO 2016). To make Vietnam films appealing, Vietnamese filmmakers invest more in marketing and distribution, and insert relevant Hollywood aesthetics into their films(Vo Hong 2012). Hollywood consumer-based formula focuses on the theme of sex, violence, and alcohol (Rampal 2005), which worked well in current domestic hit films such as Để mai tính (Fool for love), Dòng máu anh hùng (The Rebel), Em chưa 18 (Jailbait), Âm mưu giày gót nhọn (How to Fight Six Inch Heels). In the rest of the essay, I will explore how Charlie Nguyen’s Fool for love (2010) and The Rebel (2007) respond to Hollywood influences.

Charlie Nguyen is a screenwriter and film producer, who hails from Orange County, California, where he used to work with Vân Sơn Entertainment making music variety show CDs and DVDs (Nguyen 2018). Charlie is a co-producer in the famous Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny (2016). Besides bringing his knowledge and talent to Vietnam cinema industry, he recruits other Việt Kiều talents to join his films.

Fool for love (2010) is a romantic comedy about a beautiful German-Vietnamese singer (Mai), who feels torn between a men’s restroom attendant (Dũng) and a wealthy mogul. Star Dustin Nguyen – the lead male character of the film was the most recognizable Vietnamese actor in Hollywood. He played the secondary character in the American hit show 21 Jump Street (2012). The marketing and distribution of the film were conducted by a Vietnamese-American-owned distributor - Wave Releasing in the US (Vo Hong 2012). The film’s tickets were quickly sold-out in both Vietnam box offices and America ones, where the Vietnamese-American population is dense. (Vo Hong 2012). Fool for love (2010) is set in luxurious Western hotels like Movenpick and Sheraton. The film is shot with a red camera, featuring MTV style scenes of mansion pool parties (when Châu - Hội’s ex-boyfriend invited Hội and Dũng to Thúy’s villa) and sports cars (Hội’s red BMW). These factors are popular on the Western silver screen but quite new to general Vietnamese audience. In Vietnam, people rarely have open discussions about sex or express strong sexual interest to others, especially between LGBT community to other people. However, Hội – the gay sidekick – often wears colorful clothes and constantly signifies his lust for Dũng, for example, the first time Hội met Dũng, Hội dabs his purple scarf at Dũng’s left nipple and quips suggestively, “It’s so hard.” This is a Hollywood stereotype about gay males: wearing extravagant colorful clothes, high sexual desire for straight men, and effeminate gestures (such as high-pitch voice, lip curling, and nagging).

The Rebel (2007) is a martial arts and historical drama. Set in the 1920s, it told a tale about a Vietnamese agent deserting his French colonial boss to fight side-by-side with the beautiful yet resistant daughter of the head of insurgents (Kuipers 2007). The lead male Johnny Tri Nguyen (also Vietnamese-American) was the stuntman in Spiderman 2 (2004) and Jarhead (2005). Cường (Johnny) the main character reminds the audience of a Hollywood legend - Bruce Lee - regarding his appearance and fighting style. Whereas, Cường’s superior Sỹ – the antagonist – played by Dustin Nguyen, resembles Sing – the lead martial arts in Kung Fu Hustle (2004) (a co-production between Hong Kong famous screenwriter and actor Stephen Chow and American Columbia Pictures). Speaking of the camera and editing techniques, Hollywood action films now are quick paced, with fast camera movements and dark luminance (Armstrong & Cutting 2017). The Rebel (2007) has all these points. Though this film is an action thriller set in wartime, extended martial arts scenes and vivid depictions of violent death that are typical elements of the Hollywood action movies. Apart from fast-cut and close-up fighting scenes usually seen in Hollywood, there is a revealing sex scene between Cường and Thúy when they run away from the labor camp to Thúy’s village. Hollywood audience usually expects deep kissing scenes or scenes that are close-up to body parts or the female’s expression to indicate sex. This is unusual for the development of Vietnam film plot as sex is a sensitive subject and not openly discussed in Vietnamese culture, not to mention on the silver screen.

Despite adapting Western and Hollywood elements, Vietnamese films hold to a distinctive style, deeply marked by national histories and cultural characteristics (Hamilton 2009). We can still find the love for Vietnam in a discreet way, instead of strong emotional patriotism that previously exhibited in wartime movies. In Fool for love (2010), it is the quest for national identity mixing with a desire to become a famous singer that drove Mai back to Vietnam. In The Rebel (2007), the male hero’s transformation is not through his own need to demonstrate his masculinity, but through overcoming enemies alongside his woman and his discovery of the evils of colonialism and his authentic national identity (Hamilton 2009).

All in all, Hollywood’s profound influences in Vietnam are inevitable; it is a source of soft power practiced by the American government. In return, Vietnam government issues Renovation economic reform and attracts Việt Kiều talents, who have experiences with international film industries, especially Hollywood, to develop the national cinema. Vietnam filmmakers also integrate Hollywood aesthetic elements (such as the themes, shooting and editing styles) and economics (paying more effort into film marketing and distribution by hiring professional American film studios), while trying to keep a subtle display of the nationalistic narratives seen in a traditional movie.

REFERENCES

Armstrong, K & Cutting, J 2017, ‘Considering the filmmaker: Intensified continuity, narrative structure, and the Distancing-Embracing model’, Behavioral and Brain Sciences, vol. 40.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny 2016, motion picture, China Film Group, China, C Nguyen & H Weinstein, Producers, W Yuen, Director.

Fool for love 2010, motion picture, Wonderboy Entertainment, D Nguyen & I Trinh, Producers, C Nguyen, Director.

Hamilton, A 2009, ‘Renovated: Gender and Cinema in Contemporary Vietnam’, Visual Anthropology, vol. 22, no. 2-3, pp. 141-154.

Jarhead 2005, motion picture, Red Wagon Entertainment & Neal Street Productions, United States, D Wick & L Fisher, Producers, S Mendes, Director.

Kien Anh 2018, ‘CGV - Cụm rạp thống lĩnh 40% thị trường rạp chiếu và những lần khiến dư luận xôn xao’ (CGV dominates cinema industry with 40% market share and times trigger public discussion), Cafebiz, VCorp, viewed 12 December, <http://cafebiz.vn/loi-the-thi-phan-tren-40-cua-cgv-gay-ap-luc-voi-nha-san-xuat-phim-viet-chen-ep-cac-rap-chieu-trong-nuoc-va-thoai-mai-tang-gia-ve-voi-nguoi-dung-20180402153753353.chn>.

Kungfu Hustle 2004, motion picture, Star Overseas & Beijing Film Studio & Taihe Film Investment & China Film Group & Huayi Brothers, S Chow & P Chui & J Lau, Producers, S Chow, Director.

Kuipers, R 2007, ‘Film Reviews: Bangkok: “The Rebel (2007)”’, Penske Business Media, New York, N. Y., 0042-2738.

Minh Nga 2018, ‘Vietnam’s cinema industry gets a $50mln boost’, VNexpress, viewed 12 December 2018, <https://e.vnexpress.net/news/travel-life/culture-arts/vietnam-s-cinema-industry-gets-a-50mln-boost-3787025.html>.

Nguyen, TH 2018, ‘Fooled by Love: Việt Kiều Intimacy in Charlie Nguyen’s Để mai tính (2010)’, Visual Anthropology, vol. 31, no. 1-2, pp. 116-148.

Nguyen, D 2018, ‘Cinema Industry in Vietnam’, B-Company, viewed 12 December, <http://www.b-company.jp/en/2018/07/30/cinema-industry-in-vietnam/>.

Nye, JS 2004, ‘Soft power: The means to success in world politics’, PublicAffairs.

Rampal, K 2005, ‘Cultural Imperialism or Economic Necessity?: The Hollywood Factor in the Reshaping of the Asian Film Industry’, Global Media Journal, vol. 4.

Spider Man 2 2004, motion picture, Marvel Enterprises & Laura Ziskin Productions, L Ziskin & A Arad, Producers, S Raimi, Director.

The Rebel 2007, motion picture, Chanh Phuong Films &  Cinema Pictures, C Nguyen & & J T Nguyen & J N Pham, Producers, C Nguyen, Director.

UNESCO 2016, ‘Strategy to develop Vietnamese film industry to 2020, vision 2030 (Prime Minister’s Decision 2156/QĐ-TTg dated November 11, 2013)’, UNESCO, viewed 12 December 2018, <https://en.unesco.org/creativity/policy-monitoring-platform/strategy-develop-vietnamese-film?>.

“I don’t feel that I am leaving Asia at the moment.” – thought I. After 2 months moving to Melbourne, yet, I haven’t any sense that Asia is thousands of kilometers away from me. I saw Asians everywhere in Melbourne: they speak Chinese, Vietnamese, Koreans, etc. I saw Asian languages on street banners and shop signs. I noticed posters and billboards of Asian movies hanging here and there. It seems the continent is ‘expanding’. This expansion does not take a physical shape, but it comes under the form of culture. To prove that Asia and its popular culture are ‘evading’ the earth, I will examine factors that lead to the success of Stephen Chow’s Kung Fu Hustle film.

Stephen Chow (Chow Sing-chi) is a Hong Kong film director, actor, producer and playwright. He is well-known in Asia region for his comedies such as Kung Fu Hustle (KFH), Shaolin Soccer, and CJ7. The director remarks his sense of humors through over 50 films across Hong Kong, China mainland and regional countries such as Vietnam, Korea, and Singapore. However, only when KFH was released, could Stephen Chow realize his ambition to make his films go global. In KFH, he adopted a different scheme in film production and distribution to ensure the movie can reach beyond Asia to the America market.

Stephen Chow’s films always retain a commercial sense. Consistently in his screening career, Chow depicts the demotic character as an artful underdog who gradually cultivates recognition with his ability (for example his sharp tongue) (Klein 2007). In KFH case, Sing – the main character who used to wish to become a villain – finally uncovers his goodness and martial-art potentials. He later earns respect from his community by defeating Beast. This pattern in Chow’s film matches Frankfurt School perspective on culture: culture is determined by the production and organization of material existence (Donnar 2017). Hence, in this point of view, popular culture refers to mass culture, massively produced, commodified and standardized. How did Stephen Chow produce his film to satisfy the taste of the broad global market? Did the economic and political environment contribute to KFH’s success worldwide?

The foremost reason for the KFH success undeniably comes from Stephen Chow himself. First, it is his pastiche technique in script writing and acting. Pastiche technique is the imitation of style and or character of the work of one or more other artists to celebrate rather than mock (Hoesterey 2001; Preminger, Warnke & Hardison Jr 2015). He recycled his comic bits from previous films such as God of Gamblers III, Chinese Odyssey I, Forbidden City Cop. Chow built Sing – his main martial-art character – with characteristics and actions that evoke audience mind images of the two famous martial arts figures from both the East and West, Bruce Lee and Keanu Reeves’ Neo (Klein 2007). Sing’s final fight with the Axe Gang imitates the fight between Neo and hundreds of Agent Smiths in The Matrix; during the fight, Sing wears the costume same as Bruce Lee in Enter The Dragon (Szeto 2007).

Second, Chow incorporated Western cultural references within his movie to target American box office. For example, when Donut (a supporting character) dies, he says, ‘In great power lies great responsibility’, a reference to Spider Man, said by Uncle Ben before his death. Explaining his pastique technique and Western culture inclusion, he said “I wanted to capture the mass audience from the start.” (Walsh 2003) Thanks to that combination, Stephen Chow successfully made KFH relatable to both domestic market and Hollywood market.

Next, external factors also contributed to Chow’s KFH success. Among those, globalization trend in film industry is one of the most significant. According to Steger (2003), globalization enables the creation of new and multiplication of existing social networks and activities that overcome traditional, political, economic, cultural and geographic boundaries. It also involves the intensification and acceleration of social exchanges and activities. Audiences from around the world have been familiar with Hollywood blockbusters about Western society, but rarely seen those of the Eastern one. They, especially U.S audiences, are getting bored with Hollywood plots. Thus, we are seeing more and more co-production of Chinese-American movies in order to quench the audience’s thirst for something new and erotic (Masters 2013). Understanding this, Stephen adopted this social exchanges of globalization in his film production by partnering with Columbia Pictures (an American film studio that is a member of Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group) from the beginning of idea formation. This studio then funded Chow 95% of his cost to produce the movie. 5% left came from sponsorship of 2 mainland partner studios: China Film Group and Huayi Brothers & Taihe Film Investment (Klein 2007).

With Columbia Pictures’ co-production, Chow refined his script to a very detailed and up-to-Hollywood standard: narratively consistent with logical events and without irrelevant scenes. This was very peculiar to Hong Kong usually rough and loosely edited script (Klein 2007). This co-production opportunity offered Chow the best human resources. For instance, his sound engineering team comprises famous sound designers like Steve Burgess who designed sound for Moulin Rouge and Bruce Emery – sound designers of King Kong, Lords of the Ring, The Hobbit. Finally, Columbia Pictures had the responsibilities for film marketing and distribution worldwide, targeting at the world largest box office – U.S.A. Chow’s mainland partners did not only provide shooting locations, but they also helped the film pass the strict censorship in China and penetrate into the domestic market. With all those supports, in total, the film made the worldwide box office of over 102 million dollars (The numbers n.d.). The movie became the highest-grossing Chinese-language film in the history of Hong Kong until 2011 and the all-time tenth highest-grossing foreign language film in the United States as well as the highest-grossing foreign language film in the country in 2005.

Another crucial external factors that led to KFH’s success is the soft power practice in China. The idea of soft power was developed by American political scientist Joseph Nye who argues “country may obtain the outcomes it wants in world politics because other countries—admiring its values, emulating its example, aspiring to its level of prosperity and openness—want to follow it.” He further suggests that one of the resources for the exercise of soft power is culture (Nye 2004). The Chinese soft power allows foreign co-production, ejecting more financial resources to a weakening film industry  (Chua 2012). “I think they have a real ambition to build up a film industry, a real studio business,” Sony Entertainment CEO Michael Lynton expressed his opinion of the Chinese agenda in dealing with American studios to create their own version of Hollywood (Masters 2013). As demonstrated above, KFH benefited a lot from this condition as it received up to 95% foreign investment and 100% global marketing and distribution effort. Furthermore, the 2003 Closer Economic Partnership Agreement has significantly reduced the barriers to Hong Kong pop culture crossing into China. The partnership allows Hong Kong films, even co-productions, to be identified as domestic Chinese release, excluding from the foreign films segment. Hence, KFH was recognized as a Chinese movie before it circulated over the world. Soft power, in this case, solved the problem of investment shortage and paved a clear pathway for Chinese culture to expand over the world.

In conclusion, Stephen Chow’s Kung Fu Hustle is an exemplar of Asia Popular Culture Product that successfully went global. Thanks to his talents, pastique technique and Western culture allusion, the film appeals to both domestic market and the targeted Hollywood market. In terms of external conditions, globalization brought about co-production between Columbia Pictures and Chow, giving him all favorable prerequisites to make his name and his film world-known. Moreover, without Chinese soft power practice, Kung Fu Hustle would not have been a phenomenon of the Chinese-American movie, which sat as the highest-grossing Chinese-language film in the history of Hong Kong.

REFERENCES

Chua, BH 2012, Structure, Audience and Soft Power in East Asian Pop Culture, Desiring Hong Kong, Consuming South China, Hong Kong University Press, HKU, Hong Kong.

Department of Chinese Literature - Sun-Yat-Sen University 2005, ‘從金剛腿到如來神掌—論《功夫》(From the Steel Leg to Ru Lai Shen Zhang, Kung Fu Hustle)’, Department of Chinese Literature NSYSY, viewed 22 Aug 2017, <http://www.chinese.nsysu.edu.tw/932chp/article/f04.htm?lang=en&Trad2Simp=n>.

Donnar, G 2017, ‘Lecture 2_Asian Pop Culture_2017’, course notes for COMM2345 Exploring Asian popular culture, RMIT University, Melbourne, viewed 20 August 2017, Blackboard@RMIT.  

Hoesterey, I 2001, Pastiche: cultural memory in art, film, literature, Indiana University Press.

Klein, C 2007, 'Kung Fu Hustle: Transnational production and the global Chinese-language film', Journal of Chinese Cinemas, vol. 1, no. 3, pp. 189-208.

Nye, JS 2004, Soft power: The means to success in world politics, PublicAffairs.

Preminger, A, Warnke, FJ & Hardison Jr, OB 2015, Princeton encyclopedia of poetry and poetics, Princeton University Press.

Steger, M 2003, Globalization : A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press (Oxford, UK).

Szeto, K-Y 2007, 'The Politics of Historiography in Stephen Chow’s Kung Fu Hustle', Jump Cut, vol. 49.

I recently find an interesting article “Vietnam plans to shorten university curricula”, which shows harmony and supportiveness of Asian values in Journalism. However, I believe that these values challenge the objectiveness of the article, because there is a single perspective from the government’s representative about the plan. Thus, this blog will discuss how Asian values are demonstrated in the article and how they bring drawbacks to the article’s objectiveness.

First, let’s get to know what Asian values are and how they are reflected in Journalism. Asian values – strongly demonstrated in East & Southeast countries – promote collectivism and communitarianism. They also cherish social harmony and collective prosperity of the community. Asian values embrace one-party authoritarian government, thus, fostering respect and loyalty towards authority (Nguyen 2016). Through journalism, Asian values are illustrated by two key characteristics: harmony and supportiveness (Massey & Chang 2002).

Accordingly, the article from Tuoi Tre News about the transformation in the university curricula illustrates the Asian values in Vietnamese Journalism. In terms of harmony, the article is free of provocative words or information. It does not arouse any counter arguments towards government’s plan, but embraces it instead. The author also foresees questions that readers may raise about the policy. Therefore, he shortly induces concerns about workforce, education quality, and legal framework, but then solves them by asserting the policy’s advantages. Regarding supportiveness, the news emphasizes that this change in education system will not disturb but reinforce the social and economic stability. For example, the author addresses the current law obstacle by stating solutions from Bui Van Ga - Vietnam’s Deputy Minister of Education and Training - “Parts of the new framework that do not violate Vietnam’s current laws on education would be effective immediately, while those that do would be implemented later, after the said laws have been revised” (Tuoi Tre News 2016). From those points, I conclude that the author show respects for the authority – the Communist party – through respecting its representative – Mr. Ga by stating his opinion to introduce advantages and address disadvantages of the education reform.

The article mainly inserts statements of Bui Van Ga – Vietnam Deputy Minister of Education and Training – as explanation for the education change

However, the Asian values in Vietnamese Journalism create a bias view on social issues. Illustrated through this article, there is only one perspective from the Policy Implementer – the government representative. Plus, the concerns addressed in the news are not inclusive. There must be more challenges that this plan faces other than those listed by the writer; therefore, the economic stability would be inevitably influenced however well-prepared the government is. What is more, the government recently altered the university entrance assessment and it aroused heated debates over the plan’s efficiency. Definitely, this new change would provoke another wave of public opinions. Hence, I believe if the article inserted a second view, maybe from the students or teachers – who are directly impacted by this change, the article would be considered as provocative, going against the one-party authority’s plan, thus, against Asian values.

In conclusion, the news about government’s change in tertiary education duration demonstrates harmony and supportiveness – key characteristics in Asian values in Journalism. Yet, the objectiveness of the article is challenged since the author is unable to extend the topic to different viewpoints other than the government’s perspective.

REFERENCES

Massey, BL & Chang, LjA 2002, 'Locating Asian values in Asian journalism: A content analysis of web newspapers', Journal of Communication, vol. 52, no. 4, pp. 987-1003.

Nguyen, P 2016, ‘week 9_Asian values & Postcononialism’, course slides for COMM2377 Modern Asia, RMIT University, Hanoi, viewed 12 November 2016, Blackboard@RMIT.

- A strange meeting with a peddler -

This feature is a contribution of Ta Huong Linh, Nguyen Xuan Hung, Duong Bao Ngoc and Luu Ngoc Tuan

'I don’t eat', said the woman in front of us.

'But you can’t work without eating, right? Why don’t you eat?' we replied. Truth be told, we were taken aback. No. Perhaps we did expect such an answer. What really shocked us, that took us a good 2 seconds to comprehend, was her calm and assertive attitude when she said it, as if it was normal for her.

Ms. Xuan (Spring) was a peddler selling gums that we came across during a trip around Hoan Kiem lake to gather materials for a feature article.

Different from our imagination, the lakeside was almost empty around 2pm. It was quiet, and peaceful, to the extent that no other sound could win over the sound of dry leaves rustling under our feet. It was as if, the pavement that we were strolling on belonged to a different dimension from the road filled with rushing cars and vehicles, roaring under the harsh sunlight.

But the moment did not last long. We quickly found ourselves in the fear of not getting to interview anyone. We passed by an old vendor who was far too cautious, avoided us despite our efforts to attract his attention, a woman who sold lemonade to high school students passing by and a disabled woman. None seemed willing to approach us. The soles of our feet started to hurt and became hot as we walked, and muscles felt rubbing against concrete. Our backpacks turned to rocks as time flied, hair sticked on our cheeks when sweat streamed down. That was when we spotted Ms. Xuan, who was selling gums to the passers-by.

‘Please buy me some gums.’ She mumbled twice, inviting Linh and Tuan, who at first pretended to refuse, ‘No, thanks.’ Out of desperation, Hung jumped at her, followed by Ngoc, panickingly asking her to let us interview about her life.

‘Are you thirsty? Please drink some water.’ Tuan handed her the water bottle. She received it discreetly and only took small sip when we invited the second time. We then offered to buy 4 packs of gums for her. She nodded and sat down on a flower bathtub.

The tiny figure was carrying a pink basket with gums and cotton buds, attached to a black strap hanging on her neck. She wore a floral bucket hat which seemed to have accompanied her for years, threadbare in the battle with the sun. Her skin was dark and rough, as though it was carved of wood, her arms are firm and strong, which is rare for a woman in Hanoi to have. When she smiled, her front teeth stood out and wrinkles shrivelled at the tips of her eyes. Her feature made us feel familiar and cozy like an old relative.

After a minute of our introduction, her timidity faded away. She gulped down one third of the bottle in one go. How thirsty must she be? Thence, Ms. Xuan retailed her life to us in detail.

Ms. Xuan’s typical day began at 6AM. In the morning, she helped her daughter with housework: washing clothes, cleaning house and taking her grandchildren to school and returning them to their parents at noon. From 1pm, she started walking from Bach Mai street to Hoan Kiem lake. ‘Some people advised me to be careful or the policemen will catch, but the policemen pity me, so they don’t.  

A thought suddenly crossed our mind: 'She must walk around Hoan Kiem lake 20 times a day'. And to our surprise, Linh asked: 'Everyday you must walk 10 lake rounds, right?'. It was an ice-breaking joke, but Ms. Xuan made haste to answer us: 'NO, no, I only walk about 2 rounds and if I can’t sell, I sit to rest and go again. At about 6pm, I will trail back on my noon track to Bach Mai and try to sell at some restaurants along the way'. We roughly calculated her daily walk of 13 kilometers. We recalled our experiences walking around the lake for 2 rounds under the scorching sun and could not help admiring her tenacity.

‘So how much do you make a day?’ we continued.

'If there are many people, I earn a hundred thousand dong a day, but if not, I earn twenties, fifties something. Bypassers like you sometimes give me pity money. And security guards also buy for me. Occasionally, policeman give me ... a hundred or so'. Her candor did not stop at that point. She tugged her hand into her shirt pocket and pulled out a bundle of money, some twenties, fifties - all the money she had. We were surprised, and panic at the same time. What if someone saw and aim for the money? What if someone assault her and steal it? We urged her to hide it but she held it tightly in her palms. We knew that money was important to her. That‘s why she came to the city, and worked hard everyday.

A year ago, Ms. Xuan moved from Thanh Hoa (her hometown) to Hanoi to live with her daughter and started this job to help her husband back home. She used to live with her husband and do farming. ‘In my hometown, I also made “banh diu” (girdled-cake) to earn livelihood. I would hold the cake on top of my head and go to villages and exchange them for rice and seed. Three cans of rice for forty cakes'. But life was not kind enough to let her keep that way of living. She could no longer sell her cakes due to industrialized cake production chain; besides, neither she nor her husband had pension.

'My husband was a soldier. But there was this one time, his parents were sick. And he wanted to… He used to be in the army, uhm… “binh nhac cung” (Corps of Army Music). And so that year the army came to our home, my husband asked for a sum of money, about 3-5 millions or so, and got a certificate to help his parents. Because they gave us money under the policy once, we do not have pension now. But the Government still gives him 100% hospital and funeral fees. Now we just work to eat.'

Ms. Xuan had 5 children. One was her daughter who lived in Hanoi with her husband’s family, the others moved to Tay Nguyen, a new economy area. But their lives were hard too, they could not help their mother and sister. During past summer holidays, she sold gums at Sam Son beach. But in 2012, the local government shut down peddler’s activities near Sam Son beach to improve tourism, making her unable to work there. After settling farm works in her hometown, she came to Hanoi and worked as a peddler. All of the money she made went back town to her husband. 'His life was so difficult', she said in a low voice, 'So I do housework to help my child, and sell gums to send home money'.

Her daughter and son-in-law were the two people she mentioned the most. She told us, as if she was reminding herself, over and over again, how difficult her daughter’s life was. We heard things like how her daughter and son-in-law were both blue-collar workers, and how tough it was to get her three grandchildren to go to school. 'How fortunate, the school understand our situation, and allow us to pay for the tuition for my grandchildren separately. If we have had to pay for all of them at once, we would not have enough money'. We cherished that though they were poor, they attempted to invest in the kids’ future.

All of us, at this point, could somewhat understand her situation. But when we asked her: So what do you have for lunch?”, we realized  how shallow we knew about her.

'I don’t eat'. She answered nonchalantly. We doubted, of course. Somewhere along her answers, we expected to find a piece of information that would tell us she actually had something to eat, perhaps a bowl of noodle for lunch, or a decent meal when she got home in the evening. How could she survive without eating? After all, she was a human being!

'How can you have not eaten anything yet? And you go to work for an entire afternoon, just like this?'

'No, I can not ask for food from my daughter, or spend my money on it. She is poor but still offers me food. She asks me what I am shy about, that I should eat with the family, but I couldn’t’, she answered. Yet, she assured us that she was not shy to eat (but not with her daughter’s family), in a hearty tone. We were right: She had something to eat, occasionally, but not decent. Whenever she walked around, shopkeepers would invite her to sit down and eat with them; or they would give her small moon cakes and policemen would give her water. But she would only get those things on a blessing day. She did not want to bother the shop owners too much. If she was too hungry, she waited until the people at the food stalls finished their meals and asked for leftovers. Sometimes food on the plate, sometimes noodle soup.

In the evening when she came home, she drank some water and rested. She massaged her legs and shoulder at night as the basket she wears around her neck gave her muscle pains. The basket was light when we tried for ourselves, but walking around with it for a whole 13 kilometers everyday would send anyone to the clinic for a neck treatment. We asked her why she did not hold it in her hands, but then we realized that her left arm was somehow distorted. A few months ago, on a rainy day, she fell and broke her left arm. But she did not go to the hospital. 'Did not have money for that' she said. 'I wrapped it with herb and let it heal itself. It aches whenever the weather changes.'

We continued our conversation with few random questions. It did not matter what question we asked, her answers would always contain an element of misfortune. We asked her where she went for toilet, to which she answered that if she had money, she would pay for the public one, but if she did not, the nice keeper would let her go for free. We asked her what she would do if it rained, and she told us she would either sell her stuffs like usual, or starve for the whole day. We asked her what she did for entertainment in her free time, to which she replied shortly: 'No, I do nothing'.

Born in a poor family, she never knew about TV, or singing or anything. But village festivals at communal houses? Did she attend those? We tried to find out more, the answer was still a big NO. Her entertainment was a myth to us, and probably to herself as well.

Finally, we decided on a question that we knew would lighten up her mood: 'Are your grandchildren nice?'

Joy sparkled in her eyes as she blinked. She heartily bragged about her grandchildren: 'Their skin are so white, and clean; maybe, we can raise them into beautiful models. They look so pretty, so handsome. Fortunate how, the god allows them to be healthy'.

'So they are in kindergarten now?' we asked

'Yes, now they are “sinh vien mau giao” (kindergarten students).’

What a strange afternoon, we all thought. It was the first time we comprehended the life of a peddler. The soles of our feet still ached, our throats still burned even after a whole day. They reminded us of that muggy afternoon and our trip around Hoan Kiem lake. They reminded us of Ms. Xuan and made us realized how miniscule our pain was compared to hers. Our thoughts changed after the meeting. Tuan told the team that he had a meeting like this once, with a young girl selling her last pack of popcorn at Hoan Kiem lake. She wore her school uniform, asking him to buy so that she could go home. He refused and felt nothing at the time. Suddenly, she bowed her head ‘Thank you. Good bye’. Her respectful image tugged in his heart. ‘Why didn’t I buy this popcorn for her so she can go back home and study?’ In the end, he tried to find her by running half of Hoan Kiem lake and offered her last pack of popcorn with double price. That little girl and Ms. Xuan made us realize that despite some people’s negative perspective on peddlers, many of them are good-hearted and nice people.

The bronze sunlight gradually faded behind the willow trunks. We thanked and bade her goodbye, but Ngoc and Linh still secretly followed her half the lake while Tuan and Hung hasted to buy her 2 packs of bread. We wondered what she would do with the bread. We thought she would sell for money.

We followed her secretly

‘The whole world is jealous of me. So, I just ignore them!’ – picturing myself as Scarlett O’Hara, my favorite literature character, I repeated to myself whenever doing teamwork. Then, my Ashley Wilkes was the work result and Rhett Butler was the relationship with my teammates. I was a lone worker who hardly put trust in colleagues, until I took Client Management course. Together with the course’s emphasis on relationship management, the textbook The Art of Client Service’s chapter “Great work wins business; a great relationship keeps it” drastically transformed my view on the role of relationship in teamwork.

Taking Scarlett O’Hara from Gone with the wind as my role model – stubborn, strong, and determined however harsh people rumored about her, I took for granted that if I independently achieved great result, people would automatically love me. Like Scarlett pursuing her wrong love Ashley and neglecting Rhett, I madly chased after the work and overlooked relationship with team members. No matter what kind of group tasks, either university or extra-curricular activities, I never cared about what people thought about me, or at least I ignored them.

I was proven wrong. Teamwork does not stand by great performance but great relationship. According to Robert Solomon, author of The Art of Client Service, great work involves risks (Solomon 2008). Likewise, members naturally do not want to put their best effort unless their leaders are trustworthy enough.

Take my first-semester group for example. I was a strictly result-oriented person, who only paid attention to accomplishment and course grade. I contempted other group members, because their individual performances were low and they did not aim high. But I never wondered why they got such attitude. Then, I skipped the most important steps in teamwork: understanding people, building trust, and establishing a harmonious relationship with them (Solomon 2008). Our result consequently suffered since we were never on the same page. That is not the worst thing, though. The worst thing is that they see me as bossy and we never work together again.

In Client Management course, I recognize my loyal alliance in teamwork is good relationship with my colleagues, just like Scarlett realizing Rhett Butler as her true love in the end. The link between relationship and great work suddenly reversed in my perception. It is not great achievements lead to relationship. I then learn that a trust-based relationship paves way for brilliant works (Solomon 2008)!

Thanks to this enlightenment, my team management skills improve. My promotion team for AIESEC Hanoi Fall Member Recruitment encountered a severe HR problem, because the designer could not continue with the team. She had to go away to the military camp for a month. I was angry at first. I could have scolded, rejected, and blamed her for the campaign’s possible failure, but I did not. I put priority in the longer-run goal of maintaining relationship with her in my Marketing Manager term. She is a talented senior member who would accompany me throughout difficulties in the following months. To achieve this goal, I knew I must set up solid trust in her. I tried to have more personal conversations with her and cared more about her private life by daily asking. We even had a coffee chit-chat after she returned from the military camp. What amused me the most during the chat was not her honest telling me that she suffered from constipation during the camp, but that she wanted to work with me in the next term.

I shift from a result-oriented to a people-oriented person, because I keep in mind the most precious lesson from Client Management course: a trust-based relationship will inspire terrific results (Solomon 2008).

For those who suffered from teamwork like I did, take my advice: don’t be a Scarlett O’Hara. Don’t be self-centered and doubtful. Be caring and build trust. Have a harmonious relationship with people and the work will flourish!

REFERENCE

Solomon, R 2008, ‘Why Client Service Matters’, The Art of Client Service, 58 things every Advertising & Marketing professional should know, pp. xxvi-xxviii, Kaplan Publishing: New York.

‘Spare me the road!!!’ - I did not remember how many times I yelled so whenever my bike ran down a slope in Duong Lam ancient village. ‘The brake doesn’t work!’ The old bike we hired from the locals needed a decent retirement. How long has it been in service? Some of my University Scholars Leadership Symposium colleagues encountered the same problem. Few even had their pedals fell off. Everything in Duong Lam was antique, even our bikes.

Duong Lam is situated 60km away from the busy urban life of Hanoi the capital. It has the history of 1200 years old and is a set of 9 smaller villages, including 956 traditional houses and 21 relic sites. For that reason, Duong Lam was nationally recognized as historic site in 2006. Since that time, Duong Lam has witnessed significant transformation: it became suburban tourist hotspot. The antique appearance stays the same, but its people and their business has changed. Modernization set footprint on Duong Lam in the form of sustainable tourism.

‘How long have you been doing this job?’ I asked our local tour guide - a man of middle age, dark skin, whose shirt soaked with frowsty sweat.

‘Hmm. Since the tourism began in this place.’ He squinted his eyes under the noon sun. ‘After the national recognition, people started visiting, but not so many. Only when government expanded Hanoi city to the whole Ha Tay province did the tourism really bloom.’

Ha Tay province became an official part of Hanoi from August 1st 2008; Duong Lam belonged to Ha Tay. So, the tour guide must have begun his career sometime between 2006 and 2008.

Modernization, by definition, is the transforming process from the old to the new. Accordingly, Duong Lam local business switched. Like other Vietnamese rural villages, Duong Lam people lived on agriculture and other traditional jobs. The area was known for its traditional soybean sauce making. But now, people are doing sustainable tourism.

However, modernization triggers a problem within itself. The transforming process is a clear cut from the past to the present. Therefore, theoretically, there should not be any sign of agriculture or traditional jobs in Duong Lam.

Sustainable tourism would not let that cut happen, nevertheless. Sustainable or responsible tourism is a concept of visiting a place and trying to make positive impacts on the society, environment, and society. Regarding Duong Lam tourism, every tourist is instructed to visit as “relatives and friends”. They should smile at the locals and pay respect to the locals  even if they may not know the language.

‘Xin chao!’ - my foreign friends greeted in their lisp tone whenever they passed by a villager. Sometimes, people greeted back, ‘Hello!’

We were not the only group of tourists in this area. Many Vietnamese and foreigners visited Duong Lam on sustainable tours. They pulled out their phone, took selfies with the architecture, the statues, and the residents. They bought “non la” (traditional Vietnamese leaf hat) from local souvenir shops. Some, like us, rented a bike to explore the whole area.

When the sun was above head, we were guided to a ‘host-family’, where we would enjoy traditional lunch. It was a family-run restaurant within their own ancient house.

‘What is this?’ - my new foreign friend directed his inquiring eyes to me. It is never an easy job explaining Vietnamese food to foreigners. I laughed quietly at the idea but enjoyed the challenge. ‘It’s called “cha xuong song” - the pork wrapped by a kind of leaf.’

The service surpassed my expectation. Beside traditional cuisine, we could order soft drinks like Coke. They even prepared an English menu for us. However, the English menu caused me more challenges explaining which was which. I joked my friends when they took picture of the menu: ‘You can take as many pictures as you want, take them to other restaurant and people won’t understand!’

‘People who want to experience farming, please follow this girl. Those want to make peanut candies, stay with me!’ - shouted out loud the tour guide. This announcement tickled us all. I chose candies.

We visited another hundred-year-old house. Several big jars stood in the yard, smelling like dead fish. ‘These jars contain raw soybean mounded under the sun heat; they will soon turn into the village’s famous sauce.’ The tour guide attempted to eliminate our disgust as we covered our noses.

We entered the inner parts of the house, where a young lady was busy preparing gas, pot and cooker, sugar, peanut and rice flour.

‘Watch her closely, she is going to make soft peanut candies (keo che lam). After that, 2-3 people can try.’ - his announcement terminated the fear that we would be instructed to make funky soybean sauce.

Thence, the lady scolded the tour guide in a funny high-pitch Vietnamese voice: ‘Next time when you come, remember to inform in advance. The performance shouldn’t be in such a rush.’  

She skilfully poured melted sugar and peanut into the pot, using a wooden stick to stir the mixture. The mixture got condensed and condensed. She stirred and stirred. I could detect no reluctance in her gesture. Then I understood why she announced this was a performance! She savored the curious watch of strangers.

Sustainable tourism - a sign of modernization - provides Duong Lam people with space to retain tradition, but as a way to attract tourists. People open bike-leasing service, souvenir shops, and family-run restaurants. They do their traditional works as commercial performances. They enjoy being watched by strangers who came to their house taking good pictures, and leaving them good money.

‘We treat our house as a tourist spot and our job as a performance. We earn much more money than the old way of farming and traditional jobs.’ The candy-making lady beamed a wide smile when I asked her whether her performances earned her much money. Her high-pitch voice went on with enthusiasm, ‘Our kids can become local tour guides in the future. They could get money without going away from home.’

Reading my foreword in last year university scholarship application, came my sudden realization: my dreamy mind has been hiding since my college life began.

----

Since when the air of the small lane where Linh lived had been replete with a rasp from the nearby construction site instead of melodic sound of the early morning?

Sitting at her desk, Linh looked out over the window for some signs of serenity. She was not seeing the outside world with the dreamy eyes of a young maiden but with the aggressive eyes of an alcoholic whose wine had been robbed. The raucous sound did not cease to soar, annihilating every of her concentration. She could not study any more. Linh mumbled something angrily. It took her a while to calm down; then, she sang:

“What is a youth? Impetuous fire? What is a maid? Ice and desire? The world walks on…”

Linh’s melodious and enchanting voice resounded through her sizeable house. She was gloomy again...

Linh had been sick for a few days but she still tried to study as the graduation exam was close... Her heart sank into deep anguish whenever she recalled that her overbearing mother would not let her study abroad, even though she did achieve some scholarships in the United States. Her life was then a deadlock. She did not want to linger on these cyclic thoughts any more...

While her contemplation guided Linh to a far away land, her feet took her to the downstairs yard’s aquarium. The golden fish with its long silky tail was immersing itself in graceful sways of slow dance. Beautiful, talented, and detained. Linh saw herself in the performance of the fish.  As if accompanying the fish on its dance, she voiced another song:

“You’re not alpha, not omega You’re not New York, you’re not Vegas Simply you.”

Could the fish ever transform into a dragon* in this confined aquarium? The question did not lie in its surroundings but in itself. Linh released a deep sigh. An early summer breeze ruffled the water surface… RMIT was the best option for Linh to continue her unfulfilled Communications dream.

*The author borrowed a Vietnamese legend about a golden fish that won a holy competition. The fish outdid other competitors in making rain for the earth, and then was turned into a dragon. Hence, this metaphor stands for courage, luck, and success.

If I were asked ‘What do you remember most in Crisis management course?’, I would answer ‘The press conference simulation’.  This first time I ever faced a real reporter left me with unforgettable memories and lessons.

During press conference’s preparation, I predicted none pop-up incidents that day. As the team leader, delegating press conference duties in the press conference is a brain-racking task. Understanding our case and the duties in RMIT’s usual press conference was never enough. The crux of the matter was to understand my members. My biggest fault was assigning Commercial Services Coordinator position to Khanh Linh, who was supposed to answer questions related to monetary issues. She absented without informing us! I should have been wary of her continuous lateness and oversleeping to fortify her communication with other members.

Regardless of the incident we had before the conference, my team still handled it smoothly. We decided Ha – chairperson – would take up Khanh Linh’s questions if any came. Applying Chinsu’s method of solving 3-MCPD crisis presented by Nguyen (2016), I advised Ha to avoid mentioning the rumor. Thus, when addressing the situation, she only stated that there were misunderstandings about RMIT. The result was expected: the reporter mentioned little about bad reviews; instead, he focused on RMIT education services.

Tried as I might to predict questions that would be asked by reporters, 80% of the reporter’s questions fell into naïve-question category, showing he was unprepared and did not know what to ask (Fearn-Banks 2011). Despite conclusive evidence I gave in the statement and the media kits, he asked for the evidence again. In real conference, we would have to be more cautious about dealing with this type of reporters since naïve the questions denote the reporters desperately need a story! Overall, our reporter was not aggressive but rather supportive.

How about my personal performance? The chair introduced me as Student Coordinator – the spokesperson – to clarify misunderstandings about RMIT. ‘It’s time, I’ll make it persuasive.’ – I told myself. Another incident occurred. My phone rang. In the middle of the statement, I paused. One voice told me to leave the statement, shut off the phone, and flee from shame. The other encouraged me to ignore the sound and keep the conference running. I breathed deep: ‘I must make it to the end’. In real life, another crisis would be triggered if I fled. Therefore, adding to FBI’s ‘Ten tips to perfect your communication’ is my eleventh tip: silence mobile devices whenever dealing with the media.

The Q&A time came with my tremble from the last stroke. I attempted to seat myself as comfortable as possible. Unfortunately, my legs fidgeted though I tried to stop them. Series of foot movements  indicate a nervous mind or a lie (Pease & Pease 2012). In the case of the real press conference, these fidgeting movements will catch eagle-eyed journalists: the spokesperson is hiding some facts, or even lying. A good suggestion is that I practice comfortable seating posture with two parallel feet; otherwise, the press conference should be equipped with solid tables so the spokespersons will feel safer when their legs are hidden (Pease & Pease 2012).

Despite my dissatisfaction with personal performance, I am pleased with our comprehensive media kits. Apart from giving out RMIT’s global rankings and ratings in the fact sheet, we mimicked the official accreditation from the Ministry of Education and Training. It was particularly helpful when I proved RMIT to be the best Vietnam International University.

Next steps after the press conference to resolve remaining rumors must be taken seriously. Our university should set up a rumor hotline for students, staffs, and parents to report any hearsay. Plus, the showcase of students’ university experience ought to be continued to imply RMIT hardly fails to meet students’ demand.

Ultimately, my simulated press conference ended up with lifelong lessons to be learned. It was a chance for me to practice the theories I learned and prepare myself mentally for the future reality in the Communication Industry.  

REFERENCES

Fearn-Banks, K 2011, Crisis Communications A Casebook Approach, 4th ed. edn, Routledge Communication Series, Taylor and Francis, Hoboken.

Pease, Aa & Pease, B 2012, The definitive book of body language, Pease International.

Nguyen, H 2016, VietGate guestspeaker’s presentation in COMM2699 Issue, Risk, and Crisis Management, 6 April.

Soft as a feather Pure as crystal Delicate as a dandelion…

Sunshine. Where am I? Wind howling. Autumn?

Born in such a populous city as Hanoi, I have always dreamt of a life in green flowery plateau like the one I am standing at. The smell of the early autumn light combined with the chanting sounds of howling winds.  

Ding. Ding. Dong? No horse bell music KNELL. KNELL. KNELL. Morn.

Feel warm. Feel sunshine. Pass through me. Transparent figures….

Black crowd. Sobbing… Who are they? Who’s in that coffin?

As if my feet were lifted above the ground. I see faces. My brother’s, my neighbors’, my partners’.

“She is such an adorable character.” “I wish my daughter will be like her, determined but sweet.” “I think I won’t find any as good a colleague as her.”

People are admiring HER. Who is that HER?

The crowd keeps going till they come to a pit. The cries grow more intense till the coffin is buried underground.

Headstone is set. People leave.

R.I.P Our Beloved Ta Huong Linh

As if an electric shock ran through my body. What? Am I dead? So. This is the feeling of death? So light? So translucent!

I try to catch up with the crowd. “I am here, beside you. See me? Don’t ya?” – I yell desperately.

“Did she leave her will? I wonder who will inherit such a property!” “My daughter will be prettier and richer than she was.” “Ah. At last, I have this promotion chance. She is finally gone.” One lets out a sigh of relief.

Hot as tears stream down my face. Ahh! I still have tears! Dead but still have tears!!! Sarcastic me. Sarcastic me. Sarcastic me! O. Salty tears. Benevolent people!

Illusion or reality?

Blue hydrangea My favorite

Colorful! Also come to dance on grave? Yah, how delightful they seem

Kiddies Untidy Red, blue, orange Pinwheels on the ground

“Hope you have fun with these wheels” “We have special gifts for you” “Remember to drop by and play with us regularly”

Those faces I recognize after a while, faces of whom I usually come to visit at welfare centers.

“Sis, I have my dream now. That’s becoming like you, a social activist.” “No, girl. Be yourself! My life is not as glorious as you’ve seen,” whisper I tearfully. “I’m almost done with my novel. Ya’ll be the first to read.”

O. Innocent children. Please don’t grow up. Keep your childhood forever. Cruel life outside is not for you. Be my little angels. Forever.

Howling winds

“You’re not alpha, not omega You’re not LA, you’re not Vegas Simply you…”

That familiar harmony Sung in a sour interrupted tone

“I hate you. You said we’ll die at the same time so you won’t feel lonely anymore.”-  a dear murmur from my soulmate.

Sun sets.

“See ya…” “See ya…”

‘VIETNAM – Tan Hiep Phat is on the brink of bankruptcy.’ - This title on many major newspapers may vex Tan Hiep Phat’s Executive Board but will ease the publics’ anger.

Normally, I’m not the kind of person that jumps into every controversial topic on the Internet, just observing and contemplating. However, since Tan Hiep Phat’s case is an exemplar of inadequate crisis management in New Media age, I will pinpoint their 5 biggest mistakes that other corporation should not follow the footsteps.

Tan Hiep Phat (THP), also called Number 1 Beverage Group, is facing customer’s boycott all over the country after the fly-in-bottle crisis.

‘In late January the Tan Hiep Phat Beverage Group, one of Vietnam’s biggest drinks manufacturers, received a complaint from Minh - a customer who said he found a dead fly in a bottle of its Number One drink. He sought a payment of VND1 billion ($46,511), or he would print and distribute 5,000 leaflets making the claim. After three negotiation sessions, the company agreed to pay VND500 million ($23,255) to buy his silence. The man, however, was then arrested by police for extortion’ – VN Economics Times

A typical page on Facebook calling customers to boycott THP’s product (The admin of the page claimed THP reported them on Facebook so that their avatar could not be shown on the page)

It is nearly 2 months after the climax of the crisis. Now everything is cooled down, but sure, THP will never regain their reputation or their business. The crisis had been worsened since the news that Minh – the complaining customer – received up to 7 years in jail for blackmailing THP.

THP’ response to crisis showed inadequacy of crisis management:

1.    The hygienic issue to THP is not new; the beverage group previously faced similar crises since 2009. (In 2009, for instance, THP was found 3 containers with expired ingredients for tea making; however, THP wasn’t fined for that and even managed to be back on shelves) This fly-in-bottle case is the straw that broke the camel's back: consumers simply cannot endure their irresponsibility to consumers’ health anymore. Regardless of the past risk profile, THP followed the same misguided style of crisis management.

 2.    What is THP’s style of crisis management, actually? Send any customer complaining about their products to jail? Surprisingly, the fly-in-bottle case is not the first time THP’s ever asked police and court to address crisis! THP sent some complaining customers to jail in the same manner years ago (pretend to negotiate for a suitable compensation but secretly call police to arrest customers when they are to receive money). Yet, THP got away with those cases, because they used to have good media relations (they had many advertising contracts with major newspapers and online news websites) and Social Media wasn’t as popular as nowadays. Letting the legal process stand between their customers and the corporation killed THP’s reputation. In the court, people are innocent until proven guilty; in the publics’ eyes, however, people are guilty until they are proven innocent. In this case, it is a lose-lose situation! Minh lost his freedom and went to jail but he received empathy from publics. THP won the judicial battle but would never recover their trust in the publics.

 3.    The GOLDEN RULE in crisis management is

Tell the truth Tell it fast Tell it first

First, THP never admits their faults in production line. Second, when an issue appears, THP assumes they have good media relations, and the issue will never turn into a major crisis. Hence, THP’s strategic response is SILENCE – SILENCE IS GOLD!? In contrast, silence, in crisis communication, is the kiss of death. Third, the corporation was neglectful of publics’ opinion on Social Media – if THP was not the first to tell the truth, Social Media users would. A single fly couldn’t knock down a whole business but publicity could.

 4.    The User-Generated Contents on Social Media gives chances for people to use their anonymous identity to make either positive or negative (but mostly negative) comment on THP. Facebook – as most used Social Networking Site in Vietnam – has over 30 million active users, which equals to 1/3 of the population.

Top Social Platforms for mentioning the key word “Tan Hiep Phat”

As can be seen, Facebook is the main platform for people to show their negative opinions towards THP, but the beverage group kept silence on the most popular communication channel.

Good as THP’s media relations could be, publicity on Facebook pulled journalists into the game. After all, journalists love bad stories. Bad stories help sell newspapers. Plus, journalists cannot stand aside a major publicity or else their ethnics will be questioned!

Mentions rate of THP on Social Media from December 2015 to April 2016

5.    Lastly, THP’s messages demonstrated inconsistency in communicating to the publics. After Minh was announced seven-year sentence, THP, however, publicly said sorry for what happened and was willing to help him mitigate the verdict! THP’s previous silence and late apology caught them into their own trap. People now recognize THP as hypocritical. They question THP’s sincerity. They won’t easily forgive THP for THP’s long-term irresponsibility. They want THP to suffer as if the corporation were the antagonist in fairy tales.

THP claimed the boycott caused the corporation’s worst damage of at least VND 2 trillion ($89.29 million). That’s to say the dead fly in THP’s beverage is the most expensive in human history. Had THP paid more attention to crisis prevention and employed more strategic crisis response, the notorious fly wouldn’t have chance to destroy their brand.