Actress Quynh Luong has drawn public attention after posting on her personal Facebook accusing her ex-husband of being irresponsible in taking care of their child. After that, she continued to post two more posts in response to her ex-husband with a video of the text messages between the two.

The incident has attracted thousands of netizens to comment and share.

In the series of messages between Luong and her ex-husband, netizens noticed the confusion and awkwardness of the 12-year-old son when he apologized to his father and comforted his mother. At first, he did not agree with Luong’s idea of making the messages public, but in the end, he complied with his mother's wishes.

With large followings, often thousands or millions, celebrities tend to post personal disputes on social media for various purposes. Many cases pollute the shared online space.

At the end of March and the beginning of April, the scandal between streamer ViruSs and some girls, including rapper Phao, Emma Nhat Khanh, and “hot girl” Ngoc Kem, attracted the attention of millions of people.

While ViruSs opened a livestream room with up to 1.5 million online followers, Ngoc Kem and Emma Nhat Khanh also livestreamed together, attracting many other girls, attracting more than 1.1 million followers. Posts on social networks reached several thousand to tens of thousands of interactions.

The dispute, centered on personal relationship conflicts, dominated public attention for days.

A similar case involved actress Phuong Lan and her ex-husband, producer Phan Dat, who publicly criticized each other on Facebook. 

Stemming from marital disputes, Phan Dat targeted colleagues of his ex-wife at TheGioiTre Theater. Sensational, unverified stories drew tens of thousands of views, thrusting two lesser-known figures into the media spotlight for days.

Most notorious for polluting cyberspace is Nam Em. She frequently livestreams, commenting on showbiz gossip, even involving Que Van to spread rumors. 

Stories about a Vbiz beauty using drugs and an A-list star being ungrateful are told vaguely to raise netizens’ curiosity about celebrities’ private lives, fueling online pollution and troubling other artists.

After a VND37.5 million fine for spreading misleading information and insulting national heroes, Nam Em continued livestreaming with somewhat more moderate statements..

The fine line between self-defense and ‘littering’ cyberspace

Personal channels are an effective tool that helps celebrities defend themselves in disputes outside direct legal oversight, especially when their image, honor, and reputation, crucial to their careers, are at risk.

It is necessary to distinguish between artists and celebrities using their personal channels to defend themselves and abusing them to attack other individuals, legal entities, and organizations; even "littering" cyberspace for their own purposes such as becoming more famous, and inciting public opinion. 

Media expert Nguyen Ngoc Long said that celebrities, who are observed and exist among the crowd, clearly understand the effectiveness of speaking out on social networks. Online posts can have quicker, more direct and stronger impact than traditional media channels or legal procedures which are often slow and complicated.

In an environment where personal image is tied to commercial value, being accused or misunderstood without immediate response can cause irreparable damage. That is why social media becomes a shield to protect their reputation, even if it means exposing private matters.

However, Long emphasized that choosing social media over traditional media means entering a space without filters to shield them from communication consequences, both positive or negative.

“If celebrities share information through the press, the information is processed by a professional filter. Journalists omit overly personal details, emotional outbursts, or unverified information that could cause legal harm. This soft censorship protects speakers from impulsiveness,” Long said.

But on social media, things will depend on the individual’s restraint. There’s no gatekeeper for their information. 

“Beyond controlling emotions, avoiding mob incitement, or refraining from provocative language, celebrities need an ‘internal editorial filter’ to process content before posting,” Long explained.

He believes that only when celebrities consider speaking on social media as a responsible communication behavior, can they avoid turning the public space into a place full of "wars of words", and gossip, causing fatigue and eroding public trust.

"Finally, remember that the greater the influence is, the greater the responsibility they have to bear. Social media can be a tool for self-defense, but if you don't know how to use it, it will turn against you. And the damage to your image at that time does not come from 'others saying wrong things about you' but from yourself - the person who speaks the wrong way", the expert concluded.

Mi Le