Thoughtfulness | Netizens lined up to apologize to Li Meng, and the performance on the field was indeed the best public relations
A victory against the South Korean women's basketball team reversed the reputation of Chinese women's basketball star Li Meng, who had previously suffered a crisis of public opinion. This once again confirms the unchanging truth in the field of sports: performance is the best PR for athletes. And Li Meng's actions in this process are also exemplary and can be emulated by all young Gen Z athletes facing similar problems.
Written by 丨 Horsen
Editor丨 Feng Xiao
Almost overnight, the wind review of women's basketball national player Li Meng made a 180-degree turn on the Internet.
At that time, the Chinese women's basketball team encountered the South Korean team in the group stage of the Asian Cup and unexpectedly fell into a bitter battle, but in the end, relying on the two absolute strong points of Han Xu and Li Meng, it won the game without risk, not only entering the final four of this Asian Cup, but also holding the ticket to the Paris Olympics in advance.
In this game, Li Meng continued to rely on strong breakthrough ability to create damage, and finally cut 26 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists, which once again gave people a taste of the style of "LeBron Dream".
I remember that three months ago, Li Meng encountered online violence because she was suspected of meddling in other people's marriages, and countless netizens ran to her social media account to leave messages, and even some of them were fiercely verbally attacked. Today, countless netizens "revisit the old place", but the content of the message has become "lining up to apologize to Li Meng".
It is worth noting that the public opinion turmoil that happened to Li Meng is not just an isolated case. Similar incidents have occurred in the sports world in recent years. For example, figure skater Zhu Yi was abused online because of a major mistake at the Winter Olympics; Sprinter Su Bingtian announced his suspension because his physical condition after recovering from the new crown was not as expected, and he was raped online. At the same time that Li Meng's reputation was reversed, Chinese women's volleyball player Wang Yunbi was raped online because of her unsatisfactory performance in the World Women's Volleyball League; Men's basketball player Zhou Qi was still raped online because he initiated an online exchange with a reporter...
It seems that in the Internet era, everyone is more accustomed to putting all the right and wrong in front of the public through the Internet, and commenting on it.
As public figures, athletes receive far more social attention and influence on the public than ordinary people, so of course, they should also pay more attention to their own image and words and deeds, and abide by professional ethics and social responsibility, which is understandable.
But we should also be clear – athletes ultimately speak by their performance on the field, because that's what they really do, and that's where they influence spectators and fans the most.
For example, when you think of Kobe, Lindan, Maradona, what is the first thing that comes to mind?
I think it must not be Kobe's alleged rape in Eagle County, it must not be Lin Danna's unclosed curtains, and it must not be Maradona's endless scandals of drug use, alcoholism, beating of journalists, and so on. So what kind of picture will appear in your mind? It was Kobe's accurate shooting, Lin Dan's domineering smash, and Maradona's magical footwork.
At this time, most people tend to automatically ignore that whether it is Kobe, Lin Dan or Maradona, their off-court private lives have been full of various controversies and turmoil, because these do not affect their greatness on the field.
Of course, the success theory and unconditional Mu Qiang are not worthy of admiration, but it has to be admitted that the public's evaluation of public figures in the sports world is obviously far more important than the moral standard.
Looking through this layer of truth, let's look back at the current series of controversial events.
Li Meng, Wang Yunbi, and Zhou Qi also have a common characteristic. They were all born after 1995 and are now typical of successful Generation Z athletes in Chinese sports. In them, they have the typical characteristics of the post-95 "Generation Z" group. They are the native generation of the Internet, and their lives are more closely connected to the Internet, so no matter what problems they encounter, they are more willing to share and solve them through the Internet, which means that they are more likely to face malicious comments and attacks on the Internet. Therefore, compared with the previous generation of star athletes, their behavior of relying on the instinct of "Generation Z" to cope with the pressure of public opinion is also more likely to cause further fermentation of problems.
Especially on social media, athletes' words and deeds are easily amplified and spread, and their every action will be amplified in the spotlight, whether intentional or unintentional, it may eventually become the focus of debate among netizens.
However, someone once said that all Internet hot search events are actually an irrational collective carnival.
Zhou Qi should feel this the most.
From the earliest egg scrub incident was attacked online, to the later Asian Great Devil King made netizens apologize collectively; Next, he was killed by Poland and fell into online violence again, and then dominated the Australian basketball to make netizens apologize collectively again...
Zhou Qi's body always seems to have a mysterious power, so that this session of netizens seems to jump left and right at both ends of online violence and apology. And what is the weather vane that netizens refer to? Naturally, it is Zhou Qi's performance on the field.
Therefore, the most effective way to solve such problems is always to prove oneself through achievements and reverse people's attitudes. In contrast, getting entangled and obsessed with distinguishing right from wrong on the Internet is actually quite laborious and meaningless.
It can be said that what Li Meng is doing now is the most successful example of problem solving. In the face of negative public opinion outside the venue, he chose to close social media comments, put aside the controversy and put his energy into his own work. Except for the necessary statement, no matter how the public opinion storm fermented, Li Meng never made any voice on the Internet. Until she made a stunning appearance in the opening game of the WNBA, and later in the Asian Cup.
No, netizens began to come over and line up to apologize.
In contrast, Wang Yunlu's handling of online violence can be said to be on Li Meng's road. In the past, when a similar situation occurred, she would line up with netizens, but now, she did not rush to distinguish right from wrong with netizens, but directly communicated with the Internet police and banned the account of the Internet abuser, thereby protecting her rights and interests through reasonable and legal means.
This means that she saves a lot of time and energy and can really reflect on the gains and losses of her performance from an athlete's perspective. As for whether she can change people's attitudes like Li Meng, it depends on what kind of changes she can come up with in the future. That's another topic.
Finally, it must be emphasized that no online violence should be supported; And the unethical behavior of any athlete in life should not be encouraged.
But from the standpoint of a professional athlete, no matter what troubles they face in their daily lives, the arena is where they can show their talent and value.
Staying focused on the game, putting in a great performance, showing real strength, and working hard to win the game, set a record or make a great contribution to the team, will naturally earn the respect and support of the audience.
In the world of sports, competition has always been fierce and cruel, and there is a saying that "food is the original sin".
Whether it is Wang Yunlu, Zhou Qi or Li Meng, they should realize that character belongs to character, athletes must ultimately rely on the performance of the field to speak, excellent performance and excellent results are the best public relations for athletes.