Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Araneta Center Ain’t a Giant Comedy Bar, Vice.

I would try to be as objective as I can on this issue that has swept the country by storm – from social media to mainstream media – while we await for the official start of the rainy season. For those who do not know Vice Ganda or not an avid fan of his, you can also learn a thing or two from his experience. 

Vice Ganda’s pronouncement - that everything that would be cracked inside his much-hyped concert should be taken lightly and in the spirit of having fun – is a weak defensive introduction. Even with this reminder or shall we say “disclaimer”, a person cannot simply be exonerated for seemingly malicious or below-the-belt remarks however camouflaged they are, as if he could do everything his way with impunity. It’s like him giving his captured audience a waiver sheet to sign on the grounds that whatever he does are all in jest and that everybody should just ride the tide without reservation. Any concert performer is not a god to impose his will on anybody. He performs at the pleasure of his audience - his extended audience included (more on this later). 


Likewise, Vice Ganda (VG) cannot compare his Araneta concert to just any comedy bar along Tomas Morato or Timog in Quezon City where dining guests can be ridiculed and mocked yet expected to be a sport. Those concert goers were definitely not those comedy bar-type with pre-teens watching alongside adults. There was a chunk in the audience who might just conclude it is alright to mimic VG’s comedy tricks and appear just as funny – without even aware of sensitivity issues. The dangerous but unnoticeable part is for a joke to appeal to the subconscious of the brain, bypassing normal thoughts and reasoning until the person already does what he has seen or observed. 

As a popular showbiz icon and TV host, VG should understand better the demographics of his audience. He could never assume his fans who trooped to the concert are his “only audience”. With social media and smart-phones almost a normal fabric of urban living, his audience goes beyond concert goers, it goes straight to the homes of private individuals regardless of age, background and orientation. That is VG's extended audience. What is reached by social media can never be of the same quality as the ones who are fond of going into comedy bars. 

And of all people, why choose Jessica Soho, a well-respected and award-winning broadcast journalist to be his subject? Is he clueless about Jessica’s personality and reputation in the industry? What if the subject was an ABS-CBN top executive or one of the Lopezes? Would he do the same and expect to go away with nothing? Or would he be more discreet? Vice perfectly knew that inclusion of Jessica Soho in his script would ultimately reach the media personality, her immediate family members, friends and colleagues. He and the architects of his concert have miscalculated the risks and thought Jessica would just ignore the incident and react like his diehard fan. 

He also said: "Tungkol sa isyu ng rape, na ginawa ko daw katatawanan ang rape. Lahat po nang nakapanood ng gabing 'yon ay umuwi ng bahay nila na walang naalalang rape.” – This was a sweeping statement. He assumed that everyone went home without remembering this part of his joke. This brings us to a question: How was he able to determine that no single spectator was offended inside the concert hall? Even survey firms SWS or Pulse Asia or the popular accounting firm like SGV may not dare to guarantee that absolute conclusion. 

With his public apology, we can expect the TV host to tone down a bit for a few days or weeks. As with any celebrity, the show must go on. But for VG who thrives on making fun of people – from ordinary to the prominent ones - to drastically change his style in delivering punch lines, it may just be a tall order. We don’t know if he will still be himself if he refrains from executing his usual antics. Perhaps he has to unlearn some of his habits that have attracted mounting criticisms and be ready to learn new styles while retaining his wit and straight-forwardness to some degree. For all we know, what transpired could be a blessing in disguise for VG, a wake-up call to save him from more catastrophic events in the future.


If there is one lesson to learn from this experience, it is this: No matter how famous or influential a person is, it does not give him/her the license to malign any person’s name or dignity – whether under the guise of a joke or not – most especially in front of a discriminating public. 


05-29-2013

6 comments:

  1. One thing i would like to know from the general public or ask if i may. Would they consider Vice Ganda a "Role Model" in our society?

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    1. As a showbiz personality whose movies made it big in the box office, and as a lingering fixture in Showtime, one cannot ignore his degree of influence. With people imitating his favorite punchlines and expressions, (e.g. karakaraka, kabayo), he can be considered as one. But to ask if he is such a good role model, that would be subject to almost an endless debate.

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  2. He is like Willie, feeling their popularity is protection enough for their what I would like to call "basura" tactics. They know even if they need to make public apologies as often as they eat it does not really bother them. They know they got bad press but press nonetheless which for some reason they seem to bask in. I think the approach to this type of issues should be news black-out and suspend them from public appearances even talk shows that further increases their popularity.

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  3. I refrain from going to comedy bars for that reason of being ridiculed in public when all that's really wanted was to enjoy the night with friends and laugh on jokes without mentioning any names or without personalities you can relate to. If ever I go to such a place, I'd choose a place who knows me personally and respects me outside the skirts of the bar. I prefer comedy bars where performers makes fun of each other or the rest of the management and staff of the bar. But to include the audience in a joke may or may not achieve the punch line you want. Some may laugh. Deep inside, people get hurt.

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    1. Hi Henry, thanks for the comment and following my blog site. I like what you've said: "deep inside, people get hurt". Nobody wants to be a subject of ridicule in private or in public. It is but natural for an innocent person to be sensitive when one is telling nasty things about him.

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  4. This brings us to a question: How was he able to determine that no single spectator was offended inside the concert hall

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