In the competitive Taiwanese variety show circuit, having interesting anecdotes to share definitely helps one stand out.
But some anecdotes, if not conveyed well, can end up getting you cancelled.
Especially if it wasn’t your own story to share in the first place.
In a recent episode of Taiwanese variety show Dee Girls Talk, host Dee Hsu and a few other influencers discussed the topic: “How can he be prettier than a girl? When a guy is pretty, girls can just step aside”.
One of the guests, Taiwanese hairstylist Miyake, then talked about an acquaintance named Xiao Tao, who used to be her friend’s boyfriend.
“One day [Xiao Tao] approached me at a bar, and said: ‘Do you know who I am? I am so-and-so’s [ex] boyfriend’,” recalled Miyake.
“She’s now a girl. She eventually realised that she prefers to look like that. Even though she’s transgender, she looks better than many girls,” added Miyake, who also shared photos of Xiao Tao.
After the episode aired, Xiao Tao went online to say that Miyake did not ask for her permission to share her story or photos on Dee Girls Talk.
Accusing Miyake of making her feel uncomfortable, Xiao Tao said: “Exposing someone else’s photos on a variety show is an infringement of portrait rights. Doesn’t she need to ask the concerned party [for permission]?”
Xiao Tao added that it’s not right for Miyake to announce that she’s transgender to the world for her.
“Isn’t this considered forcing someone to come out of the closet?” she said.
The producers of Dee Girls Talk and Miyake have both apologised for the matter.
“After being informed that the contents on Dee Girls Talk has caused discomfort to the concerned party, the network has immediately removed the segment from the show,” assured the producers of Dee Girls Talk in their official statement.
The network, Eastern Broadcasting Company, also released a statement saying that they will not be inviting Miyake on anymore shows.
Meanwhile, Miyake left an apology on Xiao Tao’s socials, saying that it was her negligence that caused the incident.
She said she was “just trying to compliment” Xiao Tao because she finds her very pretty but failed to think about the consequences.
“I wasn’t careful enough and didn’t think it through, neither did I get permission from [Xiao Tao] before exposing her identity, I am indeed in the wrong,” she said.