Thanh HiếuFrom "closing deals" to "closing trust" with the audience - A wake-up call about the boundary between dedication and exploitation
In an interview with Dan Tri reporter about the case of Miss Thuy Tien, Associate Professor Nguyen Thi Minh Thai said that the fact that Miss Thuy Tien was prosecuted for the crime of "Deceiving customers" is a negative phenomenon that deserves reflection.
From a cultural perspective, she noted, "Thuy Tien has committed a very serious cultural offense in her behavior towards the community, once she is a beauty queen.
And this cultural offense is becoming a common mistake of some famous artists who want to make money by any means possible.
If this cultural offense tends to become common among famous artists, it will indeed be a disaster for the development of cultural behavior in modern Vietnamese society."
According to Associate Professor Nguyen Thi Minh Thai, this is not just an isolated incident but shows that it is time to take a more serious look at the responsibility of artists in using their personal image in front of the public.
"When a beauty queen is crowned, their image is often associated with good values such as knowledge, charity, and community responsibility. Therefore, participating in the production, sale of counterfeit products, deceiving customers will make the public question the role and moral limits of the artist," she emphasized.
She believes that advertising activities of artists nowadays are very common, but the boundary between personal sharing and commercial advertising is sometimes blurred.
Some people have taken advantage of their influence to trade or promote counterfeit products, products that have not been verified or exaggerate the function, unintentionally causing misunderstandings for consumers.
She expressed: "Modern society is facing many phenomena, such as unverified, fake products, from food to consumer goods. In that context, when public figures come out to introduce, trade, a product, they need to consider it carefully. Reputation should not become a tool to serve commercial purposes at all costs."
Media expert Nguyen Ngoc Long said that the case of Miss Thuy Tien is a "strong wake-up call" not only for her personally but for the entire artist community. They are the ones who have a great influence in society but sometimes forget that "reputation always comes with responsibility."
"No one is above the law. Being famous does not mean you are exempt from legal responsibility or public opinion. There is no escape when you are a public figure because you are the ones who choose to step into the light, and that light shines brightly on every action, every statement you make," Long said.
The expert also pointed out that, for many years, a part of artists has developed an "unsuccessful formula": Being famous then claiming privilege for themselves, and when there is a crisis - using charity activities as a "moral shield" - to redeem themselves.
Long emphasized: "But society has changed. The public has matured, become more aware, and demands more. There is no longer scapegoating, especially when those mistakes directly damage the trust, property, or health of the community. This is not an era of avoidance. This is an era of transparency and responsibility.
If artists want to maintain a lasting glow, they must learn to live righteously both on stage and in the midst of the quietly brewing social media storm."
Media expert Hong Quang Minh called the case of Miss Thuy Tien being prosecuted for the crime of "Deceiving customers" a "harsh wake-up call that is not easy to hear but very necessary" for the artist community, KOLs, and the entire media industry.
According to him, in an era where anyone can become a "social media influencer," maintaining the boundary between sharing and trading trust becomes fragile.
"In essence, artists are not salespeople, they are emotional connectors. But when social media opens up the opportunity to make money through personal advertising, the role of artists is not just limited to "closing deals" for products, but also "closing trust" of millions of people following them," Minh analyzed.
And once that trust is damaged, the price to pay is not just money. "It is the career, reputation, and even the presence in public life," Minh warned.
Minh also mentioned that many artists do not intentionally deceive the audience, but due to a lack of legal knowledge, poor image management, or too much trust in the communication team, they become unwitting tools in campaigns that promote products that are not transparent, distort the nature of the product.
Media expert Hong Quang Minh expressed his opinion: "Currently, the administrative penalties of 60-80 million VND for false advertising actions are too light compared to the actual profits that can be earned from an advertising post.
When marketing costs for a product account for 25% to 60% of total revenue, investing in celebrities for non-transparent messaging is very likely to be abused by brands, even by unscrupulous businesses.
And if artists are not alert enough to know the true value, the moral boundaries, then they will become "re-evaluated media assets" due to their own mistakes."
Hong Quang Minh also shared that the case of Miss Thuy Tien is also a warning for a generation of artists who are diving into the livestream frenzy and the "influencer-led economy."
Where every share, every click, every item sold seems more attractive than a well-produced recording or a performance that sweats for months.
According to Minh, today's generation of artists, especially the youth who have grown up with social media, not only need to sing well, act well but also have to be good at capturing trends, reading the desires of the audience, and... learning how to sell.
The expert affirmed: "It is not wrong for artists to leverage their influence to make money. The mistake is when they lose consciousness that they are trading with trust, not just views."
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Thuy Tien's case raises a critical requirement: the need to build an ethical advertising and marketing industry. And consumers do not become victims of trust manipulation.
Associate Professor Nguyen Thi Minh Thai believes that the important thing lies in the awareness and personal responsibility of the artist.
"If there are sellers, there must be buyers. If the sellers lack conscience and the buyers believe everything, then fraud will continue.
The media needs to widely publicize to help people recognize the tricks, avoid becoming victims. As for artists, if they have chosen the path of influencing the public, they must take responsibility to society for their words and actions.
Responsibility is not just the responsibility of the advertiser, but also the responsibility of consumers and authorities. If all parties are conscious, similar incidents will decrease, and the cultural and artistic environment will become healthier," Associate Professor Nguyen Thi Minh Thai said.
According to media expert Hong Quang Minh, artists, or any influencer, need to establish a very clear personal principle about the type of product they will never advertise, about the level of information verification before sharing.
Artists should know how to refuse when there are signs of non-transparency, not turn a blind eye just because of attractive contracts.
Minh shared: "More importantly, after they serve their sentence or pay the price with the law, there needs to be a stricter legal foundation, a more ethical media ecosystem. And most importantly, after that, those artists dare to live true to their role: an inspiration source, not a walking 'advertising billboard'."
The media must be brave to ask questions, delve into the essence instead of chasing views or crowd effects.
Kindness, transparency, and standards are the guiding lights for a refined showbiz environment - where reputation is not synonymous with privilege, and influence comes with responsibility.
