The Worst Pageant Cybervullying

The brouhaha created by the interview between Vice Ganda and Ahtisa Manalo has deteriorated into some kind of a "dog-eats-dog scenario (I don't mean canine cannibalism by the way) where combatants are willing to harm and discredit each other just to prove that they are right ... or gain advantage and win the argument.

I was reading the news item from the mainstream media, and was reinforced by news tidbits from pageant blogs. At first, I didn't understand why the top Miss Cosmo exec was acting so defensive, overprotective, and self-justifying. He became onion-skinned and oversensitive; he was ranting to the high heavens as if the situation were a matter of life and death.

I gave him the benefit of the doubt, though, and I did not judge him or form any negative or critical opinion hastily, without knowing all the relevant facts and the full story.

So I went back to the root of the word war, where it all started - the full video of the interview. And I also reviewed Jay Luu's (Miss Cosmo's head of marketing and communications) verbal response regarding Ahtisa's answer to the question on what her worst pageant experience was. 

Ahtisa was just telling her side of the story ... the way she saw it. Little did she know that her own version and perspective would be blown out of proportion (when all they wanted for Ahtisa to do was to sweep the whole thing (the stage collapsing) under the rug and keep mum about it and not do or say anything because it leaves a sour taste in everyone's mouth).  

In the process, they make her look like an ingrate or a snake, and the accompanying memes and caricatures will prove that.

(Please watch the video below to understand the context, the circumstances, conditions, surroundings, and the factors contributing to the story.)

The interview was done in Tagalog and English.  The host was a gay icon and also a comedian, so from time to time, their conversation was peppered with high-fives and low-fives, and there was a lot of giggling and silly laughs, which can easily be misconstrued as rude or impolite by our Vietnamese friends, who were dropping by unannounced and who really didn't understand that Ahtisa was just going with the flow ... as the mood of the interview (relaxed, engaged, tense) is dictated by the host.

No one expected the Vietnamese to be also interested in the interview, and even though Ahtisa's participation in Miss Cosmo was a long time ago ... that did not stop them from eavesdropping and being intrigued as to what she was going to say.

There was no subtitle in the said interview ... so the exec must have hired the aid of a translator to figure out what is being talked about (not unless he knows Tagalog). 

The 64-dollar question was: Did the translator really interpret accurately the original message being communicated, its meaning and tone from the source language (Tagalog) into the target language (Vietnamese)? 

Or did he add more spices to make the exec run amok? He was not the head honcho as we expected him to be ... but acted like a little child having a meltdown and throwing a fit.

The interpreter's responsibility requires more than just knowing two languages; it demands cultural sensitivity, attention to detail, and professional integrity.

In my view, Ahtisa did not do or say anything bad against Miss Cosmo. She was too careful not to mention the name of the pageant ... it was the host who opened Pandora's box. If they were doing high fives or giggling, it doesn't mean disrespect or mockery(that's the exec's own words), that they were badmouthing them ... if that's what they mean. 

It was the exec's onion-skinned attitude, his eagerness to defend the name of the pageant come hell or high water, and his being extravagant with more explosive verbal and written ammunition, without even thinking, if that was really what Ahtisa and the host were talking about.

The official photographer's comment was even worse. He said he has a genuine admiration for Ahtisa in Miss Cosmo 2024. He even regrets that his team has captured many of her beautiful moments throughout the competition. Her interview with Vice ... he considered a lack of civility in her conduct.

He also said Ahtisa was dishonest ... and this irresponsibility diminishes the image she wants to project, and he considered her unfit for the title she holds.

The exec, the photographer in chief, and the rest of the pageants' supporters ganged up on Ahtisa and painted her as a villain when Ahtisa did nothing. Lahat ay nagagalit dahil lang sa "maling akala." Maling akala dahil yong hinala nila ay hindi naman yon ang tunay na nangyari. And Ahtisa doesn't have control over where the interview will lead them.

Meaning they have read something in the situation that wasn't there in the first place. ... a mistaken belief about something that isn't true. That reminds me of the Lenten scene in Calvary where people chant, "Crucify him ... crucify him. 

Yes,  indeed, they have crucified Ahtisa because of some "false assumption" when they could have remedied the situation by talking to Ahtisa herself in person ... not with some unreliable third-party means like the translator.

The accident when the stage collapsed was the worst pageant experience in her memory.  That isn't the case now.  With Viet's rabid fans belittling, mocking, and using derogatory and denigrating caricatures and memes ... that to me should be her worst pageant nightmare.

Whether Viet will accept it or not, they should be accountable and responsible for all the pain and mud-slinging that is going on. They have used and abused Ahtisa - the worst and the most licentious and painful form of cyber-bullying.

Miss Cosmo has not apologized to Ahtisa when the stage collapsed, and this time around, they need to when Ahtisa became the recipient of an orchestrated, vile, and below-the-belt tirade and accusations ever launched. I wonder what some lawyers' perspective is ... regarding the memes.

Look at the images ... Mr. Exec and Mr. Photographer, don't you think your people have gone too far ... going even beyond civility, decency, good manners, and right conduct?

Did Ahtisa deserve this ... when in all honesty, these commotions were just an offshoot of the exec's overzealousness, hasty conclusions, oversensitiveness, and wrong and premature assumptions?

Lastly, what are the ironies and lessons we can learn from all this?

1. It is ironic how everyone wants the collapse of the stage to DIE a NATURAL DEATH and be forgotten once and for all. But the juvenile and irresponsible reactions from Cosmo's top brass once more OPEN THE CAN OF WORMS they want to keep closed.

The fact of the matter was, they already succeeded in hammering the FINAL NAIL TO THE COFFIN of the much dreaded controversy. Without lifting a finger, they manage to RESURRECT the DYING altercations and have their SKELETONS RISEN again FROM THE GRAVE.

2. It is also ironic how the photographer hurled accusations of Ahtisa's lack of civility and being unfit to be queen, and then had his mouth zipped when the accompanying memes sprouted like mushrooms. Was it selective outrage on his part? He becomes aggrieved with Ahtisa's interview and becomes tolerant of Viets' calling Ahtisa a snake.

If this is not harassment, what else could it be - unjust vexation, unwarranted annoyance? Or Cyberbullying? Wasn't it the highest form of lack of civility?

You be the judge!