A state-run media has criticized an Internet celebrity for preventing Japanese tourists from taking photos at the Old Summer Palace in Beijing, condemning the celebrity’s use of exclusionary sentiments to attract online attention.
The Internet celebrity, known as “Yaren,” posted a video on September 7 claiming that he was asked to make way for Japanese visitors at the Old Summer Palace, also known as the Yuanmingyuan.
In the video, a Japanese interpreter requested that he move aside to allow two tourists to take a photograph. The celebrity flatly refused, stating that he would never give way to Japanese people. This led to a dispute between the two parties.
During the altercation, a security guard from the park arrived. After hearing the details, the guard expressed his opinion that Japanese people should not be allowed into the park and voiced support for the celebrity’s actions.
A screenshot of the video posted by the Internet celebrity known as “Yaren.”
On September 8, the state-affiliated magazine Global People, a publication under the People’s Daily, released an article criticizing the celebrity’s behavior.
The article denounced the use of “nationalistic sentiment as a password to drive traffic” and emphasized that “blind xenophobia has no place in China.”