Lessons for HK from Edison Chen scandal

By Vince Chong
Publisher:The Straits Times - Publication Date: 24-02-2008

Hong Kong, in the past few weeks, seemed gripped by a fever worse than the Sars crisis in 2003, if one were just to look at the breathless Page 1 stories of the city's numerous newspapers and magazines each day.
Apple Daily, just to name one paper, kept up the fever on its front page for more than 15 consecutive days.
But there were no fatalities in this case, just a clutch of A-list women celebrities caught in various compromising sexual positions with singer-actor Edison Chen. Everywhere one turned, one saw those pictures on the covers of the papers and magazines displayed prominently at the newstands.
Cecilia Cheung, Gillian Chung, Joey Yung, Bobo Chan and Rachel Ngan - these are no starlets, but some of Hong Kong's hottest stars. Chen's girlfriend Vincy Yeung seems to be present in some pictures, too. None of them has admitted or denied involvement.
The media feeding frenzy began late last month when their nude pictures were first leaked on the Internet. They were reportedly copied from Chen's laptop when he sent it for repairs.
Hong Kong has one of the world's largest entertainment industries, with stars galore, and one would think a scandal like this would not cause too much of a stir. But obviously, the public's interest in it was overwhelming, fanned as it were by the media.
That the police went into action right away, nabbing more than 20 people in the territory, the mainland and Taiwan for spreading the photos online or selling them on the streets, gave more excuse for the media to run stories - and splash the pictures again.
Netizens and members of the public joined in the fray by protesting against the arrests, saying the police had invaded online privacy and had favoured the celebrities.
Still, despite the arrests, someone who called himself 'Kira' had pledged to release more photographs, and they could feature other male stars as well. The public waited with bated breath.
To add juice to the heady scandal, the triads - widely believed to be the power behind the entertainment business - appeared to have muscled in as well.
As the papers reported copiously, all without substantiation, threats had been made against Chen by relatives and friends linked to the female stars, ranging from chopping off his hands to decapitation.
Incidentally, his girlfriend is the niece of tycoon Albert Yeung, one of the biggest players in Hong Kong's entertainment sector, and reportedly well linked to both the city's triad and political sectors.
He controls the giant Emperor Entertainment Group, whose stable of stars includes singing duo Twins and Joey Yung.
When Gillian Chung, one of the Twins, held a press conference after the pictures were leaked, there were, as one hack put it, more journalists present than when former Hong Kong chief executive Tung Chee Hwa announced his sudden resignation in 2005.
"Sex sells, and what's more, there's now sex involving well-known celebrities. It's a no-brainer," said the same journalist, shrugging off the idea of overkill.
He was right. Newspaper circulation rates in Hong Kong's notoriously competitive media industry rose by as much as 30 per cent in the past weeks.It bucked the traditional trend of a slowdown in the newspaper business over the Chinese New Year holidays.
The media frenzy reflected both the depth of the entertainment industry in Hong Kong, and the voyeuristic hunger for star gossip among the public, said sociologist Matthew Chiu.
"These stars are huge in Hong Kong, period," the Hong Kong Baptist University professor said.
"Plus, given the sensationalistic nature of the media scene here, I'm not surprised that the issue has been blown up."
Sam Tai, a researcher with a government-backed think-tank, added that unlike other regions such as the mainland, where the Internet is censored, anyone here has full access to the pictures, which lends appeal to the scandal.
"You're talking about stars who are pop idols for many people in Hong Kong, both old and young," he said.
"People want to look cool like them, dress like them and act like them, so naturally they are very interested to know what happens next."
Parents and social groups joined a growing chorus of protests against the scandal, fearing any negative influence that pop stars may have on the young.
Chung, for one, had been regarded as a role model for girls, based on her wholesome image.
Now, for example, Sylvie Lai, a housewife in her early 40s, is not sure anymore. "My 12-year-old daughter knows how to sing all the Twins songs and I'm now trying to tell her that what Chung has done is not at all cool," she said.
"My daughter says she knows it, but as a parent, I'm not sure how much she does. She might continue to grow up thinking that it's cool to have pre-marital sex."
The Hong Kong Women's Commission had, meanwhile, come forward to say that the photos "not only intruded on the privacy of those concerned and caused them grievous harm, but also had negative impact on social values and the younger generation".
"The commission appeals to the public to stop uploading and transmitting the photos, and urges the media to avoid exaggerating the matter when further reporting the incident."
Leftist newspaper Takungpao, reflecting the views of Hong Kong's political masters in Beijing, fumed over the issue, saying that it was "by no means accidental, but a concentrated manifestation of evil trends and unhealthy practices in the local entertainment circle".
It added, in a commentary: "Quite many young people often see pop stars as their idols, mistakenly thinking that indiscreet sex relationships are 'trendy' and open-minded, and that money is everything.
"So much so that they are not in the mood for learning, and even venture into drug trafficking or prostitution to make 'quick cash'."
Still, there might be a silver lining to the scandal if other young stars, young people and parents could learn a lesson from it, the paper said.
HKBU's Prof Chiu agreed, pointing out that several secondary schools have already held healthy discussions on sex as a result of the scandal.
"In a society like Hong Kong, where such discussions in schools, and at home between children and parents, are not forthcoming, the issue has actually become an appropriate starting base," he said.
"We just have to turn it into something positive."
Late last week, it looked like the fever might finally cool.
The Canadian-born Chen, who had fled the territory to escape the heat, returned to Hong Kong from the United States.
At a packed press conference, he admitted the photographs were indeed his, but that they were private and had been stolen from him. He apologised to all concerned, and announced that he would quit the Hong Kong entertainment scene altogether.