Targets of Cancel Culture

[1] There are a lot of definitions for cancel culture which is why it has no real accepted definition but it can be defined as a group of people applying pressure on someone or a group because they did not like the statement they have said. [2] According to Grace Walsh cancel culture is taking away support for an individual for making unacceptable actions. [3] Being canceled is always related to cancel culture, being canceled means receiving backlash for doing something inappropriate or intolerable. [4] Another definition of cancel culture is that it is the behavior of a group in response to something, especially on social media. Cancel culture can be used positively and negatively. Cancel culture can be used to call out groups or certain individuals for the harmful things that they have done. In this sense, cancel culture can be used as a tool to call out those who are harmful to society.

[5] An example where cancel culture has been positively used is during the #MeToo Movement in 2017. In this movement Actress, Alysa Milano urged the victims of sexual harassment and assault to share what happened to them on social media. This movement garnered millions of views and hundreds of men were forced to be jobless and possibly punished severely.

[6] Another situation where cancel culture was positively used was in 2019 when singer and songwriter R. Kelly was canceled because of serious sex crimes. He was then charged with possessing child pornography and sex trafficking.

[8] As there is a positive side to cancel culture there is also a negative side to it. It becomes negative when it brings harm to the person who is being “canceled”. There are times when people go too far and bully and harass their victims on social media. This bullying and harassment can be very direct and straight-out attack a person or a group. They can do this by using several methods such as recalling something from an old post and making a big deal out of it, another is by spreading out one’s insecurities throughout social media, and another method is that they make fun of a person’s photos and spread it through social media. The targets of cancel culture are mostly the youth and public figures or celebrities. The youth is one of the main targets of cancel culture because they are the ones who are most active and engaged in different social media platforms. [9] On the other hand, public figures or celebrities are one of the main targets of cancel culture because they hold great influence over a lot of people.

[10] Cancel culture happens everywhere in social media from Facebook to Twitter you will encounter it. Since cancel culture happens all over different social media platforms it happens in the Philippines too. According to research conducted by Milieu Insight, four out of five Filipinos have heard of the term cancel culture and one out of five Filipinos have participated in a cancel movement. According to their study, public figures are prone to get canceled because of cultural issues. [11] There are times when public figures or celebrities are not the only ones who are being canceled. An example of this would be is a female participant from a study made at De La Salle University (DLSU) who was attacked in the comments section of a post because she stated her opinions about the government’s policies during the height of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

[13] Recently there have been several celebrities or public figures in the Philippines who are getting canceled because of the actions that they have done. These local celebrities that recently have been canceled are Vhong Navarro, Marcus Adoro, Donnalyn Bartolome, Ella Cruz, Toni Gonzaga, and Kit Thompson.

Recently actor and tv host Vhong Navarro was transferred to the Taguig City Jail because of complaints for rape and acts of lasciviousness filed by model Deniece Cornejo in 2014. [15] Because of this Vhong Navarro was canceled is several social media platforms most especially on Twitter.

As Eraserhead's comeback concert comes to a close, fans are worried because of the guitarist of the group Marcus Adoro. Fans are worried because of what happened back in 2019 when actress Barbara Ruaro, and daughter, singer Syd Hartha accused Marcus Adoro of domestic abuse. Because of this Adoro received a ton of backlash on various social media platforms. [17] The Eraserhead team also said their sentiments about the situation, they said that the involved parties find peace of heart and mind and that Marcus Adoro hold accountable for the situation, or else he will not be able to perform during the comeback concert.

[19] Singer-vlogger Donnalyn Bartolome received massive backlash or was attacked because of her theme during her birthday. Donnalyn Bartolome was heavily criticized on different social media platforms for her “kanto” themed birthday party. She was criticized for how she acted that poverty is such a simple thing when a lot of people are suffering from poverty. Donnalyn Bartolome was also recently criticized for the sexy baby-themed photoshoot.

[21] Ella Cruz was criticized heavily for saying that history is chismis (gossip). Because of this statement, she not only received backlash from the netizens but also from local personalities and historians. [22] Historian's response to what Ella Cruz has said is that history may have biases but it is based on facts and not on opinions. History is based on verifiable facts and is peer-reviewed. There were also comments about how Ella Cruz’s statement is a mockery or an insult to the people who dedicated their life in order to carefully write about what happened in the past.

A lot of people were dissatisfied when Toni Gonzaga declared that she will be supporting the UniTeam or the camp of the now President. Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr. Her most controversial issue during the election period was when she was in Cebu for a rally with the UniTeam, she said that it is a matter of time before the Marcoses will be back home again which is in the Malacañang Palace. The netizens and historians criticized Toni Gonzaga for this statement, they reminded her of the horrors that happened during the Martial Era when the father of the President. Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr. was still the president of the country.

Kit Thompson was all over the news on March 18, this is when he was arrested at a hotel in Tagaytay for abusing and mauling Actress Ana Jalandoni. With the help of her friends, the authorities were alerted and arrested Kit Thompson. [25] Because of this incident Kit Thompson was quickly called out by the netizens, the actions that he has done are unforgivable and that true love does not hurt.

Cancel culture can be a tool that helps people but it can also be a tool that makes people's life miserable that is why think before posting anything. There are some instances where cancel culture was used for the betterment of others an example would be the #MeToo movement this movement paved the way for the positive use of the cancel culture. But cancel culture has been abused by a lot of people, they use this chance to cancel people that they do not like. Celebrities or public figures often experience this event. They are getting canceled for almost everything they do, which is why they have to think carefully about the things that they will do. There are times when the cancellation are ridiculous because public figures sometimes get canceled for things that do not make sense, there are also times when these cancelations are really helpful as it exposes the wrongdoings of an individual or group may they be famous or not. At the end of the day cancel culture is like a double-edged sword it can be used for good and it can also be used to harm other people; this serves as a lesson to always think before posting anything.

1. Gerstmann, Evan. n.d. “Cancel Culture Is Only Getting Worse.” Forbes. Accessed December 11, 2022. https://www.forbes.com/sites/evangerstmann/2020/09/13/cancel-culture-is-only-getting-worse/?sh=359af47963f4.
2. Walsh, Grace. 2021. “What Is Cancel Culture - and Who Has Been Cancelled in 2021?” GoodtoKnow. August 19, 2021. https://www.goodto.com/entertainment/what-is-cancel-culture-607262.
3. “What Is Cancel Culture? How to Not Get Canceled and Have Everyone Hate You | Process Street | Checklist, Workflow and SOP Software.” 2021. January 13, 2021. https://www.process.st/what-is-cancel-culture/.
4. Celentano, Donna. 2021. “Cancel Culture: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.” The Science Survey. April 20, 2021. https://thesciencesurvey.com/editorial/2021/04/20/cancel-culture-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/.
5. ‌Brown, Anna. 2022. “More than Twice as Many Americans Support than Oppose the #MeToo Movement.” Pew Research Center’s Social & Demographic Trends Project. September 29, 2022. https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2022/09/29/more-than-twice-as-many-americans-support-than-oppose-the-metoo-movement/#:~:text=The%20movement%20was%20founded%20by.
6. Haskell, Samantha. 2021. “CANCEL CULTURE: A QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS of the SOCIAL MEDIA PRACTICE of CANCELING.” https://scholarworks.boisestate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2984&context=td.
7. Allyn, Bobby., Tsioulcas, Anastasia. “R. Kelly Arrested On Federal Charges, Including Child Pornography And Kidnapping” 2019. Npr.org. 2019. https://www.npr.org/2019/07/12/741008967/federal-prosecutors-arrest-and-charge-r-kelly-in-new-child-pornography-case.
8. dela Cruz, Aytch. “‘Cancel Culture’ Has Become More Pronounced on Social Media – DLSU Study.” ‘Cancel Culture’ Has Become More Pronounced on Social Media – DLSU Study Aytch dela Cruz, July 5, 2022. https://www.onenews.ph/articles/cancel-culture-has-become-more-pronounced-on-social-media-dlsu-study.
9. Adobo Magazine. 2022. “Understanding Cancel Culture in the Philippines – the Good, the Bad, and What the Numbers Say.” Adobo Magazine Online. September 13, 2022. https://www.adobomagazine.com/insight/insight-understanding-cancel-culture-in-the-philippines-the-good-the-bad-and-what-the-numbers-say/.
10. Lé Baltar. “6 Filipino Celebrities That Were ‘Canceled’ Recently.” n.d. Ph.news.yahoo.com. https://ph.news.yahoo.com/6-filipino-celebrities-canceled-072204424.html.
11. Villanueva, Ralph Edwin. n.d. “Vhong Navarro Moved to Taguig Jail.” Philstar.com. Accessed December 11, 2022. https://www.philstar.com/nation/2022/11/22/2225592/vhong-navarro-moved-taguig-jail.
12. Godinez, Bong. “Eraserheads Guitarist Marcus Adoro Issues Apology to Daughter on Social Media.” n.d. PEP.ph. Accessed December 11, 2022. https://www.pep.ph/news/local/168698/marcus-adoro-daughter-apology-a755-20220927.
13. Cruz, Dana. 2022. “Donnalyn Bartolome amid Criticism on ‘Kanto Birthday Party’: ‘Not Just a Concept, This Was My Life.’” INQUIRER.net. August 16, 2022. https://entertainment.inquirer.net/460800/donnalyn-bartolome-amid-criticism-on-kanto-birthday-party-not-just-a-concept-this-was-my-life.
14. “History Is NOT Just like Gossip: Historians Take Actress Ella Cruz to School over Controversial Comment | Coconuts.” n.d. Https://Coconuts.co/. Accessed December 11, 2022. https://coconuts.co/manila/news/history-is-not-just-like-gossip-historians-take-actress-ella-cruz-to-school-over-controversial-comment/.
15. Plaza, Marane A. 2022. “Kit Thompson Held by Police for Allegedly Abusing Girlfriend Ana Jalandoni.” Philstar.com. https://www.philstar.com/entertainment/2022/03/18/2168191/kit-thompson-held-police-allegedly-abusing-girlfriend-ana-jalandoni.