When it comes to creating funny videos, there’s a very thin line between being playful and offensive.
Hong Kong content creators Mosawseesee (Cantonese for ‘idling about’) often post tongue-in-cheek skits that are generally well received by their 67K Instagram followers.
A week ago, Mosawseesee put up a video titled “I hope everyone can find a seat soon!”.
The short clip saw the channel’s frontman Tom and a female friend searching out tourists squatting around Victoria Dockside, a popular attraction in Tsim Sha Tsui. They would then offer them a seat… on a wheelchair.
In a deadpan manner, Tom said he often sees tourists hunched over on walkways and was worried “they were hurting their hips”. So he decided to “care for them as a helpful Hong Kong citizen”.
Tom and his companion took turns to ask the squatting tourists in Mandarin if they were okay. They then pointed at a wheelchair and asked if they wanted to sit on it.
All the tourists rejected their offer, with one explaining that he “was tired after a day of walking”.
At the end of the video, Tom said there was “nothing wrong with everyone’s hips” and urged tourists to “find places to sit instead of squatting on pavements”.
It isn’t difficult to figure out where the majority of the tourists are from and why many Mainland Chinese netizens were offended by the video, which has since been taken down.
However, the clip was later shared on Douyin with the caption: “It’s because our people are more capable. These Hong Kong people cannot take hardship, so they can’t squat.”
Tom posted a video yesterday (Oct 24) addressing the controversy.
He said the members of his team have been on the receiving end of hate messages and threats and are being “severely cyberbullied”.
Tom also added that the video was “greatly taken out of context”, and the entire team would have to take some time to rest before returning with more content.
He also promised that they will continue to create entertaining videos, while reflecting on the ways they can express themselves. He then called for the general public to “provide constructive criticism on how they can improve”.
Since posting the explanation, Mosawseesee saw many supportive comments from netizens, with many saying that those upset were “too easily offended”, and “can’t take a joke”.
Like we said: there’s a fine line between being playful and offensive and you cannot expect everyone to get your humour.