IShowSpeed's HK tour cops flak for missing the city's highlights in itinerary

American YouTuber IShowSpeed (Speed)'s tour in Hong Kong over the weekend has copped flak for not having the right itinerary for the influencer to promote the city.

Speed arrived in Hong Kong last Friday (4 April), as part of his streaming tour in China. Prior to Hong Kong, he toured various cities in China, such as Shanghai, Beijing, Henan, Sichuan, and Chongqing. 

During his tour in Hong Kong, Speed engaged in various local customs, such as villain hitting (打小人) at Goose Neck Bridge in Causeway Bay, visiting pandas and feeding penguins at Ocean Park, and trying Hong Kong street food. The livestream garnered over 10,000,000 views, according to a check by MARKETING-INTERACTIVE saw on YouTube.

While Speed was guided by local YouTubers Torres Pit and Bertram Lau, they received backlash from netizens for their dull and inappropriate itinerary. According to a check by MARKETING-INTERACTIVE saw on Threads, several netizens criticised the lack of genuine desire to interact with Speed. Pit was specifically criticised for allegedly teaching Speed to use profanity, which was detrimental to Hong Kong's image. Some netizens said his dialogue was embarrassing and dull, also deeming it inappropriate for him to promote his own YouTube channel during the tour.

Meanwhile, Lau faced criticism for planning the itinerary inappropriately, disregarding Speed's preferences for visiting places, and instead taking him to try out his family member's restaurant. Some netizens said they prefer watching Speed's interactions with citizens in the livestream rather than his interaction with Pit and Lau.

Meanwhile, lawmaker Dominic Lee said on his Facebook page that the arrangement of the streaming tour did not include the true signature elements of Hong Kong. He compared Speed's experiences in Hong Kong and Shenzhen, highlighting the influencer's engagement with drone food delivery, interaction with robotics and buying foldable phones in mainland China. On the other hand, Speed only bought street food in Hong Kong and participated in villain hitting.

The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) said in a statement to MARKETING-INTERACTIVE that it had communicated with Speed's team and proposed assisting during the visit. However, it did not receive any requests for assistance, and Speed's itinerary in Hong Kong was self-arranged. HKTB added that it welcomes anyone to visit Hong Kong and promote the city.

During the livestream, certain viewers expressed their desire for Speed to give Hong Kong another chance. In response, Speed said that if he were to offer Hong Kong another opportunity, he definitely wouldn't choose a holiday and that it has to be another part of Hong Kong.

Back in March, his conducted a streaming tour in Shanghai, where he sang the song "陽光彩虹小白馬" with the public in a park, met with artist Jackson Wang, played table tennis together, performed a traditional Chinese lion dance, and experienced classic Shanghai dishes in a hotpot restaurant. In Beijing, he wore traditional "大花襖" suit to visit the Forbidden City, climbed the Great Wall, tried Beijing's authentic delicacies.

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