Your Voice: Reality competition shows are not all bad; advocating for cleaner air in Hong Kong (long letters)

MasterChef Junior, Universe Ticket, Produce 101 – what comes to mind when you think of these popular reality shows targeting teens? The craze for organising reality competition shows for children and teenagers has never faded from the past to the present. It has even gone viral with the rise of short videos. Highlights of these shows flood Instagram and Facebook, with teens worldwide eager to participate.

While some consider this culture “toxic,” claiming it corrupts youngsters with incorrect values, is this really true? I strongly support and encourage Hong Kong teens to join these reality competition shows.

I believe these shows help build their confidence. According to a South China Morning Post news article, one in four Hong Kong secondary school pupils feels like a failure. This illustrates that many students severely lack confidence due to overwhelming schoolwork stress.

Encouraging them to accomplish goals can boost their confidence. Most participants want to win in reality competition shows, driving them to put in more effort and set goals. When their efforts pay off, such as passing a task or ranking high in the show, they gain a strong sense of self-pride and self-acceptance.

Teens will feel valued, creating a sturdy foundation for their confidence. They will not see themselves as failures easily if they have the experience of surviving in competitive shows.

Taking part in reality-competition shows also allows Hong Kong teens to improve their social skills. Local students today are often criticised for not being good at communicating. Some factors contributing to this could be a heavy schoolwork load, long study hours and the pandemic.

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However, social skills are crucial in both the workplace and school. Participating in reality-competition shows is a suitable method to tackle this issue. Shows like Good Night Show or MasterChef Junior always include team competitions. Adolescents must collaborate with their teammates by discussing strategies to secure a team victory. Teamwork is critical to winning, and this desire for victory drives them to communicate frequently with other participants. Their social skills will be nurtured, benefiting them in many aspects of life.

Participating in reality competition shows also offers opportunities for Hong Kong teens who dream of being artists. They give participants greater exposure to entertainment enterprises, which significantly increases their chances of debuting and achieving their dreams of becoming artists.

Many such successful examples exist in the music industry, including the legendary Anita Mui. At 19, she joined the TVB International Chinese New Talent Singing Championship and won the competition. Local record company Capital Artists soon released her first album as a reward for winning the contest. Her performing skills significantly contributed to her tremendous success, as did her exposure to the talent contest.

In summary, joining reality competition shows clearly brings Hong Kong adolescents more benefits than drawbacks and I hope that the negative perception of these shows can be eliminated. I appreciate all the participants of the reality competition shows and believe local youngsters should be supported and encouraged to join them.

Megan Chan, Island School

The Clean Air Student Council (CASC) hosted the first Hong Kong Clean Air Public Speaking Contest earlier this year.

CASC, the student-led branch of the Clean Air Network (CAN), is a testament to the dedication of Hong Kong students to learn about and advocate for clean air. Established in 2019, students from over 10 schools united with a shared passion for sustaining good air quality in Hong Kong. Their past initiatives and events, including an annual conference, a writing competition, and a webinar, reflect their unwavering commitment. The CASC team – led by students in three departments: events, innovative producers, and publicity – is a beacon of hope, fostering a passion for cleaner air.

Hong Kong’s air quality is a pressing issue, with the city lagging behind other international cities. The health implications of air pollution are severe, causing heart diseases, strokes, diabetes, respiratory diseases, and cancer. Ensuring clean air for all is a crucial step towards a more equitable and just society. The potential to prevent 7 million deaths worldwide annually with cleaner air underscores the urgency of this issue.

As a student representative of the CASC, I was driven to join by my passion for maintaining clean air in Hong Kong. I was also intrigued by how breathing polluted air could cause so much harm. Each young person in Hong Kong is responsible for protecting the environment we were given and helping the next generation survive.

With participants from over 28 schools, this competition separated students into junior and senior categories. The theme of this year’s competition was “breath of change”. This concept suggests that we hope to empower students to advocate for clean air, becoming catalysts for change. Through our prompts, the contestants could think outside the box and learn more about clean air.

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Among the judges were Melody Kwok, an English teacher from St Paul’s Co-educational College and Melville Pradhan, project manager of CAN.

Planning the event was no small feat. The publicity team’s Instagram posts and fliers, along with the innovative producers’ question prompts, were instrumental in promoting the event. Each department played a pivotal role in organising the competition. Yvonne Chan, a Form Three student from St Paul’s Co-educational College, said: “As inexperienced teenagers, we had no idea what to prepare for or expect from the event. It had taken us three months, from event planning and advertising to purchasing trophies, to ensure the smooth running of the contest.”

Working backstage wasn’t easy either. With around 40 to 50 attendees, a lot of energy and effort was put into the administration work and the technical aspects. Although one of the helpers was sick, the group could complete the competition successfully. Indeed, having a chance to advocate for what you are passionate about is rare. CASC encourages all passionate students to voice out their ideas for making the world a better place.