Country unites to watch Tono-Tangmo drama unfold
Media watchers are still scratching their heads over sheer scale of news coverage devoted to the break-up of singer Phakin "Tono" Kumvilaisak and actress Pattaratida "Tangmo" Patcharaveerapong, even given the awful turn the story took when she attempt
You’d have to have been studiously avoiding your TV, phone, social media, co-workers and any random passer-by to have missed the news as it was developing. After Tangmo overdosed on sleeping pills, so many cameras and microphones descended on her hospital that Tono had to quickly arrange a press conference. Four digital TV channels carried the Q&A live and another 30 digital and satellite channels were represented.
The young couple is much loved, to be sure, and that was a horrific twist to the bust-up, but the coverage still seemed way out of proportion for a celebrity drama. It seemed to be forcing its way onto the national agenda. Is the military-led government allowing too little freedom for coverage of topics more pressing to the average citizen? Has competition among TV channels become this fierce? Or are Thais now simply as obsessed with celeb news as, say, the Americans are with television’s Kardashian clan?
Whatever the reason, the social networks were full of photos of people with their eyes glued to TV screens watching Tono’s late-afternoon press conference. Thousands more “worked late” at the office so they wouldn’t miss any of the telecast. Screen shots and clips of Tono’s words filled Twitter and Facebook feeds.
Tono did the best he could under the circumstances and garnered praise for stating outright that, as much as he still loved Tangmo, they’d broken up more than two months ago and there was no chance of reconciling. “We did our best, but it’s over now – we can’t turn back,” he said.
Asked whether he agreed with the widespread view that he’d pushed Tangmo toward suicide by declaring, while onstage at a concert at Impact Arena on Saturday, that he was happily single again, Tono claimed he only said that to entertain his female fans. There was no intention to hurt Tangmo.
Quizzed further about their split, he said going into the details would benefit no one.
Back to the social media, then, where there was sympathy for Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha, who’d been ignored all day long. A rigged picture of Tono appeared with the line “The whole country is watching my news conference”, then another one showing US President Barack Obama watching Tono’s press session on TV, then another of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un doing the same, and still another one of Russia’s Vladimir Putin giggling with Obama in front of “the Tono show”.
Ultimately the same screen capture from the press conference was posted on the front page of the Daily Prophet – the newspaper seen in the Harry Potter movies.
Our former editor @tulsathit came up with a notion he shared on Twitter: “Conspiracy theory: Actor Tono is a Prayuth government agent hired to draw fire from real issues.” It’s worth mulling over.
