Famous film star Lau Ka Ling participated as a pseudo-model in her new movie, and according to the news, the look is inspired by Angelababy, one of the most well-known ‘liang-mos’ in Hong Kong. This shows how popular the pseudo-models are right now, and some people are not happy with this.
People who oppose to the rise of pseudo-models criticize them for setting bad examples to children, telling them that they can earn a lot even though they may not be well-educated. This is partly true in the sense that many pseudo-models do have bad HKCEE results, but many of them do not earn a lot. The bad examples they set is that they show the children that by wearing little clothes and showing big breast, they can earn money. Also, some of the pseudo-models smoke or take drugs. This will surely affect children’s moral value adversely because they will think that things done by public figures are all correct and they should follow suit. Last but not least, a portion of the ‘liang-mos’ sell photo albums that edge on pornography. For example, the girl in the photo may play with toothpaste or lick an ice-cream cone suggestively, dropping hints that closely relate to sexual actions. This instills the wrong message to children and teenagers alike about sex, and may prompt them to act obscenely.
The critics are right in criticizing the pseudo-models for their inappropriate behavior in public. However, we must understand that they sometimes do this out of ignorance. Moreover, not all things that the pseudo-models do are immoral. Some of them have admirable traits too. We should learn from both the good and the bad and educate the children so as to imprint the correct impression on their minds. For example, we can learn from Chrissie Chau her exceptional self-control and the way she deals with tough questions asked by the media. Her serious attitude towards work and also her diligence are worth learning too. Some of the ‘liang-mo’ does not restrict themselves to purely being a model. They work hard to involve themselves in other fields of the showbiz as well. For example, Angelababy and Janice Man have starred in different movies. The latter has even taken the leading role in one of the movies too. This adaptability and flexibility shows us the virtue that Hongkongers are famed for.
It is true that the emergence of pseudo-models is likely to set bad examples to children. However, we should also admit they have some admirable qualities that we can learn from. We should differentiate the good from the bad and also educate the children to learn only the good.