#187 How an 8 Million Influencer Got Canceled by Gen Z 网红惹怒00后

Hello everyone, and welcome to MaoMi Chinese! Today, we’re going to talk about a social media influencer who’s caused quite a stir recently – Yang Maoyue. He’s a influencer who graduated from Peking University, one of the top universities in China, and he has over 8 million followers. Yang Maoyue is usually known for his humorous and entertaining videos, which many people enjoy. However, one of his recent videos has upset a lot of young people.

Here’s what happened. In his video, Yang Maoyue talked about how difficult it is for “Generation Z” – that is, people born after the year 2000 – to find jobs nowadays. He mentioned some highly educated individuals, like those with PhDs or Master’s degrees from Peking University, who shared their struggles online about being unable to secure jobs, sometimes even breaking into tears. Then, he mocked them by saying, “Didn’t Generation Z say they wanted to reform the workplace? How can you reform it if you can’t even get in?”

The phrase “reform the workplace” here refers to making work environments better, such as by reducing excessive overtime or improving salaries. Yang Maoyue’s comment came across as mocking these young people, implying that they’re not in a position to talk about change when they can’t even land a job.

This upset many netizens, and some criticised him by saying he was “talking big from a comfortable position.” This phrase means that someone who hasn’t experienced others’ struggles makes dismissive or insensitive comments. For example, imagine your friend is exhausted after climbing a mountain, and you say, “It’s just climbing, it’s not that hard!” You haven’t experienced the difficulty yourself, so it’s not fair to make such remarks, right?

Some people also compared him to the phrase “Why don’t they eat meat porridge?” This comes from a historical story about a wealthy person who, upon hearing that poor people couldn’t afford food, asked, “Why don’t they just eat meat porridge?” It shows a lack of understanding of how hard life is for ordinary people. Netizens used this to criticise Yang Maoyue, saying he doesn’t understand how tough it is for job-seekers and yet still makes fun of them.

After the backlash, Yang Maoyue released an apology video, saying he didn’t mean to upset people. He explained that he wanted to discuss job market challenges but admitted his wording was inappropriate and hurtful. Despite his apology, many people still felt disappointed and refused to forgive him.

This incident makes me think about how much pressure young people face when looking for jobs today. Influencers like Yang Maoyue, who earn large sums effortlessly, should avoid making light of others’ struggles.

Today, we’ve also learned a few phrases. Let’s review them together:

• 整顿职场 Reform the workplace means to improve work environments, like by reducing overtime or increasing wages.

• 站着说话不腰疼 Talking big from a comfortable position means someone who hasn’t experienced others’ difficulties makes careless remarks.
• 何不食肉糜 Why don’t they eat meat porridge? shows that wealthy people sometimes don’t understand the hardships of ordinary people.

That’s all for today’s MaoMi Chinese. What do you think about someone like Yang Maoyue? Feel free to leave a comment and share your thoughts with us!