Author | Shenshui Finance and Economics Nalan
In the live broadcast industry, "Simba" is probably one of the most noisy internet celebrity anchors.
Just shortly after the fifth announcement of "retirement from the Internet" in August, rumors of Simba being investigated were exposed online.
On September 5, entertainment blogger "Energy Entertainment" revealed that Simba was taken away by relevant departments in Hangzhou for investigation a few days ago and was stranded for more than ten hours before returning home. Immediately afterwards, news came out that Simba accidentally left Hong Kong and is still stranded in Hong Kong, and the situation is unknown.
Simba is facing a number of allegations of reporting and reporting, and the nature of this is very serious, according to people familiar with the matter. However, when Xinxuan accepted the media's verification, he only said "not true" and did not disclose further content. Simba's wife did not mention this incident in the live broadcast, except Chu Ruixue.
So where did Simba go? Is there anything wrong?
Why withdraw from the network?
Simba, as a leading internet celebrity in the field of live streaming, has been talking about the topic. He has created many amazing sales results and has a huge fan base and strong influence in the live e-commerce industry.
However, along with its continuous expansion of its business territory, there are still a series of controversial events. As early as 2020, the bird's nest sold by Simba was confirmed to be almost sugar water. At that time, the incident caused a lot of turmoil, and the regulatory authorities quickly intervened, Simba was fined, and the licenses of the relevant companies were also revoked.
This incident made the public deeply realize the serious consequences of the crash of top internet celebrities.
But surprisingly, after kneeling down to apologize to netizens, Simba quickly opened his "food-carrying myth" and continued to be prosperous in the live streaming and selling goods industry.
After that, incidents such as closure of roads, angrily criticizing celebrities, promoting pre-made dishes, and tearing each other with apprentices and friendly merchants have left him at the center of the topic for a long time.
The fuse of this storm was that Simba's own brand "Cotton Password" sanitary napkins were exposed to contain a large number of suspected carcinogens. This summer, this sanitary napkin product, which was mainly produced by Simba's team, showed that the test results of multiple batches showed that the thiourea exceeded the standard.
Some consumers claim to have physical problems, and even have miscarriages and cancer caused by pregnant women. Once the incident was exposed, it immediately caused an uproar.
Faced with this crisis, Simba's side then came up with a new testing statement, saying that the product was qualified. However, this statement issued by the company itself has not been widely recognized by netizens.
Netizens believe that companies' self-talk cannot replace the official conclusions and strongly demand that Simba respond positively. However, in the face of doubts, Simba did not explain in detail, but instead staged a move to withdraw from the Internet again.
On August 18, Simba announced his permanent withdrawal from the live broadcast industry during the live broadcast and handed over the company to his wife Chu Ruixue for care. The reason he gave was a lung disease. The doctor said his lungs were 95 years old and needed rest and recuperation.
On August 22, the core account of the former head anchor Simba on Kuaishou "Xin Youzhi, Simba, 818" has been renamed "Chu Ruixue (Simba 818)", and the account avatar has also been changed to Chu Ruixue's photo.
But netizens did not buy it, thinking that he was evading responsibility.
"The 10086th withdrawal from the Internet"
Simba's withdrawal from the Internet was simply a farce. He said that he was sick and could no longer broadcast live, but he repeatedly went to the live broadcast room to browse his presence.
On August 29, on the 10th day after the top anchor Simba announced his withdrawal from the Internet, his wife Chu Ruixue took over his nearly 100 million fan accounts and started the first live broadcast. Simba, who announced that he would withdraw from the Internet forever, "appeared" in the live broadcast room again - three consecutive videos, and responded to the controversy on the Internet about his "five withdrawals to the Internet and 4 comebacks".
Simba said that Chu Ruixue's first live broadcast today, I will hand over the work. After connecting this microphone today, this account has nothing to do with me. Next, I will transfer the account to the company with real-name registration.
I don't know how many times Simba's "retreat the Internet".
As early as April 2020, after Simba and anchor Sanda Ge broke out in fierce conflict, the two of them issued a statement at the same time "withdrawing the Internet indefinitely." But not long after, as if they were discussing, they both resurrected with full health and were revived in the live broadcast room. In April 2021, Simba sighed in the live broadcast that "was defeated by capital and traffic", and had no choice but to announce that "the minister has retreated."
What is the result? Everyone saw it, and not long after, he returned to the live broadcast stage in a hurry and continued his career in selling goods.
Around November 2023, Simba once again revealed that she "will gradually retreat behind the scenes", but in the end she was unable to resist the temptation of live broadcast and continued to give advice in the live broadcast room. In April 2024, due to his repeated bans, Simba announced that he would "retire" to the public. However, this time he still "breaks his promise" and the popularity of the live broadcast room has not diminished.
Simba's capricious behavior, like the story of "The Wolf is Coming", greatly reduced the public's trust in him.
So, when he announced his withdrawal from the Internet again this time, netizens joked in the comment section that this was his "10086th withdrawal from the Internet". Everyone was wondering whether he wanted to use the withdrawal from the Internet to escape the serious crisis brought about by the "cotton password" sanitary napkin incident?
Cicada escapes from its shell?
After Simba announced his withdrawal from the Internet, the incident did not subside, but continued to ferment. The first anti-counterfeiting blogger who exposed this matter publicly questioned whether Simba was sick was fake, and that it was true that he had a witch in his heart. The blogger is also the whistleblower of Simba's sanitary napkin cancer. He first received feedback from consumers that something happened after using Simba's sanitary napkin, but no one cared about it, so they spoke for the victim.
After that, the blogger collected more than 20 samples from consumers and sent for inspection, and all of them were problematic.
Now, the news of "taken away for investigation" and "stranded in Hong Kong" has made the incident even more confusing.
In response to these rumors, on September 6, a person from Xinxuan's public relations department simply responded: It is not true. However, this response did not dispel public doubts, Xinxuan did not specify which part was not true, nor did he provide any evidence to support this statement.
As of now, relevant departments in Hangzhou have not issued a notice of filing or joint investigation, and the Hong Kong Immigration Department has not disclosed information on "restricted entry".
At present, there is still no conclusion on where Simba is and what problems he faces. I have also moved the small stool and waited for the official news!
