Cancel Culture | Toni Gonzaga Interviews Bongbong Marcos

Toni Gonzaga Interviews Bongbong Marcos

By now, I’m sure you know about the interview of Toni Gonzaga to Mr. Bongbong Marcos. The celebrity talk show host received a backlash from netizens who hate the former Senator. And for the victims of the Marshall Law, they felt disrespected.

And in this article, I’ll share my personal opinion of the issue. But just to be clear, I have not watched the video while I’m writing this article, nor have I watched any video from Toni Gonzaga’s YouTube channel. My reaction will be from one general questions. 

“Was it correct to interview Bongbong Marcos?”

Before we answer the question, let us talk about Toni Gonzaga’s YouTube Channel. If you scan through her uploaded videos, you can see that she has interviewed celebrities and people who have an impact in society. When we say impact, their stories are worth telling.  Toni talks joined YouTube last January 2019, and since then, she has interviewed big names like Grace Poe, Bo Sanchez, and even recently, Vice President Leni Robredo.

Now back to the question, was it correct or say ethical to guest Mr. Bongbong Marcos on Toni Talks?

In the point of view of free speech and the internet, the direct answer would be yes. When we say free speech, we allow people from both ends to speak. And in a high sense of maturity, we accept other people’s opinions or statements as long as we also deserve such privilege. Bongbong Marcos is the son of the late Ferdinand Marcos, the dictator that declared Martial Law. A prosperous history by some, but a dark and corrupt to many. Without even peeking to his autobiography, we can tell that Bongbong's story is worth telling.

From the View Point of the Martial Law Victims

Now, we have mentioned above, it’s a yes from the point of view of free speech and the internet.

But how about in the eyes of the victims of the Martial Law? Or the relatives of missing persons, that even up to this day, are still seeking justice from what the dictatorship has brought them. It’s easier for people like me, or even you, who has no direct connection to the crimes of the Martial law. But for those who suffered, it would be difficult for them to forgive. Even if we slap the quote, “The sins of the father, is not the fault  of the son”. They have not received justice. And looking at this interview, for me, is very hurtful. It's very obvious that Bongbong is after the Philippine Presidency. And after Toni Gonzaga put Bongbong in a pedestal, with more than 5-M views on YouTube, you can’t avoid but relate Toni supporting the dictatorship of Marcos?

But is Toni really supporting the Dictator and his son?

We all have seen this methodology in YouTube. To gain more views and popularity on the internet, a YouTuber will create a video that will trigger an issue. And in this case, it triggered positive responses and anger, and when this two collide, the comment section will be flooded. And if you study basic Google Analytics, a comment on a video plays a big factor for Google to promote the video for organic traffic. Which means, the YouTube algorithm itself will recommend the video to more users.

More views, Toni Gonzaga’s Channel will grow, more subscribers, and more money. 

I do think that the team of Toni knew that this will trigger anger. They did this on purpose to increase the viewership and subscribers to their YouTube Channel. 

And lastly, should we cancel Toni Gonzaga’s YouTube channel? 

For the love of free information, I would say NO. Toni Talks has it’s purpose on Youtube as a provider of information. The channel does not only talk about the achievements of the Marcoses, it also offers other personalities to share their stories. If we cancel her show, we may lost a possible good source of information.

But to share a short Google Analytics here.

If there’s a video that you are not interested at Toni Talks, don’t write a comment, just hit the dislike button and immediately leave. Audience retention and the dislike, plays a role for YouTube to assess if a video should be recommended to other people. When you hit the dislike and immediately leave, it tells the algorithm, that it’s a low quality video. But if you’ll stay and went to war in the comment section, your good as promoting the video.

That’s it. I hope this article about the interview of Toni to the former senator Bongbong Marcos has been helpful. And if it is, please do share my article on your Facebook.