Tsai Kang-yung Faces Brand Fallout After Rally Appearance
AM730 · 2 SOURCES1 day ago5 MIN
Summary
Taiwan television host Tsai Kang-yung (蔡康永) drew attention after appearing at the campaign headquarters launch of Democratic Progressive Party Taipei mayoral candidate Shen Po-yang (沈伯洋) on Sunday, where he was photographed in the front row holding a cheering stick. The appearance triggered online backlash on the mainland, and “Tsai Kang-yung appears at a Taiwan independence figure’s campaign event” became a trending topic on Weibo, according to am730. Chinese electric-vehicle brand Leapmotor said the same night that it opposed any form of “Taiwan independence” activity, removed all content related to Tsai, and stressed that he was not its spokesperson. Taiwan opposition figures later criticized any boycott over political leanings and urged respect for Taiwan’s democratic way of life
Key Points
- Shen Po-yang, described by on.cc as being on a mainland list of “diehard Taiwan independence” figures, held his campaign headquarters launch on Sunday, and Tsai attended the event
- am730 said Tsai was seen seated in the front row holding a cheering stick, and he told reporters he came “to have a look” and hear different views
- Tsai’s manager said he was considering interviews with both Taipei mayoral candidates and wanted to better understand each side’s background and thinking
- Leapmotor, which had invited Tsai in September to promote its D99 model as a “brand friend,” said it had removed all related content and reserved legal rights
- on.cc added that fashion magazine Harper’s Bazaar had previously released dialogue content with Leapmotor and Tsai, and had also deleted the related material
Why It Matters
For Hong Kong readers, the episode shows how quickly entertainment, branding and electoral politics can collide across the Taiwan Strait when public figures appear at politically sensitive events. It also underlines the commercial risk for celebrities and companies operating in Chinese-language markets where audience reaction, platform pressure and political positioning can rapidly affect partnerships.