Here is Why You Should Be Concerned about John Cena’s Apology to China
John Cena apologized swiftly to China after calling Taiwan a country. Here is why that matters to United States citizens and for people across the world.
China Has The Upper Hand?
Something is not right here with this profuse apology by John Cena. Cena is a representative of the United States, not in an official capacity but in a more indirect manner. He does not represent the government of the United States but he does bring about some representation of the people of the United States.
He does so because of his popularity.
The people continue to “vote” with their views and dollars on John Cena related content. Whether it was when Cena was the “people’s champ” in wrestling or now with his various films, Cena does have the interest of people. That means that United States citizens relate to him in different ways and that Cena is relevant.
So imagine people’s surprise when Cena apologizes to China for calling Taiwan a country. What added to the issue was that Cena had to state the apology in Mandarin. That added insult to injury. It wasn’t enough to provide the apology in English, a language adopted and spoken by many different nations across the world. They requested that Cena provide the apology in Manadarin.
That was a step too far.
Why Cena Apologized to China
We know why Cena apologized to China. He is promoting the latest Fast and Furious film to the Chinese audience. As an actor under contact with the studios, he must ensure to do everything he can within reason to promote the film. China represents a key market for Hollywood. But Hollywood’s foray into China has not been going well as of late due to the pandemic and general political struggles.
It boils down to money for Hollywood and Cena but it means much more to the keen United States citizen.
Cena’s profuse apology spree notes that even celebrities have bosses and must stay in line with someone else’s agenda or get the boot. But who’s agenda? It looks like China’s agenda. The reason why this is an issue is because it shows China’s strength and conversely the weakness of the United States. The fact that Cena had to apologize in that way makes you wonder just how powerful China is from a soft power and cultural standpoint as well as a financial and commerce hub.
Second, the event matters because Taiwan, also known as the Republic of China, has always sought full independence. China continues to note that it wholly possesses Taiwan and that it is a territory of China. As such, China is taking more steps to control and ensure that compliance is present within Taiwan. It has conducted further operations around Taiwans’ body of water.
It stated earlier that it would quell and crush any separatist activity but that it seeks peace.
Now, this is quite critical because it does matter in the cold war between China and the United States. From the trade war to other ways that China and the United States have come to competition over the past few years, each event matters.
Remember that Cena posted the apology on Weibo, a Chinese social media application, he stated:
“I made a mistake,” he says in Mandarin, “I’m so, so sorry for my mistake. I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m very sorry. You have to understand I love and respect China and Chinese people. I’m sorry.”
Per popular request, here’s Mr. John Cena’s apology video with English subtitles. I kept all the incoherence in the video, as well as the curious absence of what he’s actually apologizing for pic.twitter.com/WmJlRcyOID
— Tony Lin 林東尼 (@tony_zy) May 25, 2021
In summary, the apology on Weibo indicates that Cena is bowing down to the CCP. It is important in an era where larger struggles between the United States and China is present. It matters when the world is facing a worldwide pandemic due to a virus that increasing evidence shows came out of a Chinese lab in Wuhan.
