Shallow?

Last Saturday the massively popular “AlDub” segment of a noontime show topped the Twitter charts by recording 25.6 million tweets with the hashtag #ALDubEBforLOVE. This social media achievement is impressive by any standard, especially if you compare it to the US' most tweeted events of this year such as the Super Bowl XLIX and the Video Music Awards that got 25.1 million and 21.4 million tweets respectively.

The 25.6 million tweets generated by the AlDub nation that Saturday may have been a product of fun or leisure time but that is a number many political creatures or agents of change would die for. If we assume that each AlDub fan sent an average of 2 tweets, that's 12.8 million Filipinos who responded to a call to action. Considering that 15.2 million votes got Noynoy Aquino the presidency in 2010, that's almost enough to give today's presidential aspirants the win in the coming elections. If we put the value of each tweet at 1 peso, AlDub fans would have spent enough money to build a school or fund a significant chunk of a “Heneral Luna” type movie.

I'm not saying there is anything wrong with enjoying a kalyeserye and tweeting about it every time you feel kilig to the bones. All I'm saying is that those record breaking tweets opened the eyes to the power of the internet and social media for those of us who have agendas other than entertainment. If Filipinos can care enough about a show or a love team to send 25.6 million tweets about it, what other things do they care about?

That was probably the same thing on Lea Salonga's mind when she sent a tweet that said “Okay lang sa akin ang kababawan, pero hanggang doon na lamang ba tayo?” that fateful afternoon. That comment got the attention of AlDub fans who assumed she was talking about them and they slammed her for it. Even Joey de Leon jumped into the fray, stoking the anger of the fans whose fanaticism might have contributed to his buddy Tito Sotto inexplicably leading the recent senatorial preference surveys. Lea, who was abroad preparing for Broadway musical, eventually had to backtrack and say the tweet wasn't about AlDub per se as she wasn't been around the country to be fully aware of the noontime show preferences and priorities of the Filipino people.

I know that she is an immensely talented and hard-working Filipina, as proven by her international awards and her continuing to be chosen for Broadway shows such as the one she was practicing for at the time of her AlDub gaffe, but I don't care much that much for Lea Salonga. That said, I care less for the happy accident currently being exploited by network executives that is AlDub. But when I read of the flak that Lea Salonga got for her “babaw” comment from AlDub fans, I couldn't help but take sides.

Why did the AlDub fans get so riled up about being called shallow that they had to bash her? Are they not aware that the show they are so passionate about is by definition, shallow? I respect their right to spend so much of their time, energy and tweeting money on their beloved AlDub but why did they feel obligated to defend their fandom to the point of bashing Lea Salonga? Why couldn't they be honest with themselves and accept being called shallow for enjoying a shallow form of entertainment but at the same time expend some brain cells contemplating the question, “hanggang doon na lamang ba tayo?”

What makes it worse is how the main proponents of AlDub either fanned the flames of insecurity or did absolutely nothing. They say the theme of the show is love but instead of walking the talk and taking the show beyond the confines of the boob tube, the outspoken Joey de Leon let the 25.6 million tweets get to his head and chose the gutter instead of the high road. With a mentor like that, it must've been too much to expect either Alden Richards or Maine Mendoza to ask their fans to calm down, respect the opinion of a respected Filipino artist and entertainer, and consider using the newfound power of their beloved AlDub nation to aspire for things more important than expressing their kilig, and winning ratings wars or tweeting records.

I hope that the AlDub fans who didn't hesitate to fight for their show can prove that while they may be shallow when it comes to entertainment and noon pastimes, they are also capable of fighting for whatever is left in this country that is right and good. If they can invest even just a fourth of the time, effort, and tweets that they spent on AlDub on the other issues that this country is facing such as vetting each and every candidate for the coming elections and making sure they pick the right one then there should be no reason to mock their shallowness.*

back to top