5/4 Vietnam Idol

The article explores how Vietnam adopted some of America’s westernized popular culture through the creation of their show, Vietnam Idol. I find it interesting how the franchise didn’t fully display Vietnamese authenticity in their version of the game show, despite the efforts of bringing it into their country. For example, the producers criticized its contestants for not being “as wild” as the American contestants, and they over-sexualize the female contestants for the sake of “global appeal.” Because of this, I feel like the show hasn’t entirely captured or incorporated their Vietnamese culture. I also recognized a connection to the notion of neoliberalism. In class, we discussed that neoliberalism centers around free market capitalism providing liberty and freedom, meaning that citizens should be able to take care of themselves and have that free choice. This affects our everyday culture through meritocracy, which insinuates that only the people who work the hardest will be most successful. Vietnam Idol places a focus on portraying their contestants as people who mobilized through the social ladder and overcame the hardest circumstances to reach the point where they currently are. When in reality, the show only held auditions at urban centers even though their targeted youth population are in the poor rural areas. On another note, I think it’s very intriguing to see how other countries find our Western culture worthy enough to adopt into their own culture.