Uncovering the Truth: The Fallout of a Company's Press Conference Deflection Strategy

In today's fast-paced world, clear and honest communication is critical for any organization. Recently, a prominent company faced a significant crisis due to a public boycott from its fans, and the fallout was swift. After weeks of silence, the company held a press conference that sparked even more controversy and discontent. Instead of addressing the fans' concerns, the company's leadership deflected blame, raising questions about its commitment to transparency. This created a wave of outrage not just among fans but throughout the broader community.

In this post, we will examine the press conference's implications for the company and its followers, uncovering what went wrong and how fans responded.

The Build-Up to a Critical Moment

Tension had been building around the company for weeks. Fans were angered by various decisions, leading to a downturn in social media followers, dipping engagement rates, and cancelled events. Organizations thrive on healthy relationships with their audiences, and the stakes were high for the company.

As executives finally convened a surprise press conference, inviting several media outlets, they faced a now-familiar backdrop of disappointment. Key figures included the CEO, the owner, and actress Yoko Apasra, along with their legal counsel. However, instead of engaging with fans’ concerns, they primarily focused on their perspective, leaving many fans feeling disregarded.

This was a prime opportunity to reassure fans and address the turmoil, but instead, the conference devolved into a muddle of deflecting responsibility.

Misdirection of Blame

Central to the backlash was the claim that former actress Faye Peraya was to blame for the company's issues due to her sudden exit. This claim angered fans, shifting the focus away from the company's accountability and onto an individual who wanted nothing more than to continue her work for the fans.

“In Faye’s case, she personally approached us to discuss ending her contract. We listened, understood her desire to grow, and ended the contract on good terms.” This is what the company claimed happened. However, looking at the timeline of events, it makes absolutely no sense and their role in her departure is completely overlooked. At the end of January, Faye and Yoko participated in an acting class that they themselves paid for, seemingly in preparation for their upcoming work in the 4 Elements project. Why would Faye decide to terminate her contract if she had an upcoming project that she and all of the fans were excited about? Also, it is both disappointing and disheartening to see them claim they parted ways on “good terms" while completely disregarding the emotional toll the situation took on Faye. To paint a picture of mutual harmony while she has openly shared that she was heartbroken, unable to smile for an entire month, and deeply affected by the experience, is not only dismissive — it's dishonest. Her pain deserves to be acknowledged, not erased for the sake of maintaining appearances. Respect means honoring the full truth, even when it’s uncomfortable. To ignore her vulnerability and speak on her behalf with hollow words is a disservice to her humanity and to anyone who has ever had to walk away from something that hurt more than it helped.

They also stated, “Our company's direction and Faye’s had been misaligned for some time.” While this may have some truth, Faye clearly was willing to put this aside for the sake of continuing her work with the company. In an interview for a magazine released in February, Faye discussed her excitement for upcoming projects with Ninestar that fans could look forward to, which she also talked about in several interviews leading up to this. She stated, “Next year, there will be new projects, so stay tuned with Ninestar Studios.”

It is deeply inappropriate and disingenuous for the company to insinuate that Faye chose to terminate her contract out of personal selfishness, rather than acknowledging the truth: that the company made poor decisions that negatively impacted her career and left her with no choice but to take control of her own future. Shifting blame onto her not only disrespects her professionalism and integrity, but also reveals a lack of accountability and transparency on the part of the company. She made a difficult but necessary decision to protect her career and well-being—something any professional has the right to do when their trust has been broken and their trajectory compromised by the very team meant to support them.

Painting Fans as Villains

Fans demand that the company cancel the Macau fan meeting to protect Faye and Yoko.

It is incredibly disingenuous and harmful for a company to highlight threats made against their artist — which are absolutely unacceptable — and then deliberately lump in the wider fanbase with those isolated actions in order to villainize them. The vast majority of fans have shown nothing but love, support, and protection for the artist, even while expressing their pain and frustration toward the company’s actions. These are not “antis.” These are people who care so deeply about her that they are willing to hold the company accountable for the harm they believe has been done — not to sabotage her, but to stand with her.

To conflate legitimate criticism and peaceful boycott with malicious behavior is a transparent attempt to silence valid voices and rewrite the narrative. To twist their disappointment and heartbreak into a narrative that they wish harm upon the artist is not only misleading, it’s manipulative. Fans can both support an artist and reject the company that they feel has wronged her. That is not hate — that is principled support. It’s time to stop using the artist as a shield and start taking responsibility for the choices that created this division in the first place.

They also mentioned that they have always prioritized safety and that they provide bodyguards, a statement that is untrue. During their first few fan meetings abroad, they simply used their staff — makeup artists, assistants, etc — as bodyguards. It was fans who encouraged and eventually demanded that the company take the artists safety seriously after witnessing them being practically mobbed several times in airports.

Another example is the Macau fan meeting that fans demanded be cancelled. The company cancelled their Newbie event due to “threats and concerns for public safety”. The fandom had come to the conclusion that we would simply boycott their event by not attending it, so their reasoning was suspicious. These suspicions were confirmed when fans reached out to the organizers of the event days before the company cancelled it asking where the event would be held. The organizers replied that they didn’t have any events scheduled for that day, leaving everyone to wonder if the event had even been planned at all or if the plan from the beginning was to cancel it in order to blame the fans. The cancellation of that event led fans to demand that the Macau fan meeting scheduled for Faye and Yoko be cancelled as well considering both of them were receiving actual threats.

Blatant Lies and Deflection

“The agency is not suing fans but is taking legal action against those who have violated the law… Criticism is acceptable.” This is what the company had to say about the accusations of them suing fans. It is misleading for a company to claim that they are not suing fans, but only individuals who have “broken the law,” when the facts tell a different story. The truth is that they are suing fans — people who have spoken out, criticized the company, or simply asked for them to do better by their artists — and these individuals have not committed any criminal act. In fact, multiple cases have already been dropped due to a lack of legal grounds, further proving that these lawsuits were not about justice, but about intimidation and silencing dissent.

Trying to disguise these actions under the pretense of legality is a blatant attempt to deflect from the reality: this is a company targeting its own supporters for holding them accountable. Weaponizing the legal system against fans is not only a betrayal of the very community that helped build their platform, it’s a tactic that undermines trust, transparency, and the freedom to speak out. (Read more about these lawsuits here)

In response to a question about the 4 Elements project, the CEO stated that it couldn’t be considered “backing out of the project” if they had never signed a contract. This was a clear attempt to avoid accountability and giving an answer to why the project was not accepted. To not acknowledge that having a contract to sign clearly means that they were offered the chance to be a part of the project and simply backed out for no clear reason, is nothing more than a deflection tactic. The 4 Elements account had this to say about this statement, “Next time don’t go making promises lightly to anyone. It wastes the time of people who actually want to work.”

Rethinking Accountability

The refusal to take responsibility baffled many. Dismissing all claims—even those substantiated by hard evidence—perpetuated a culture of avoiding discomfort rather than fostering a constructive communication channel. By blaming fans for their issues, the company pushed away a core supportive audience and muddled potential solutions. Their narrative distorted the fans’ struggles into a villain story against the company, further exacerbating the divide. They claimed that discontent among the fan base was creating problems for the company, insinuating that fans criticizing their actions were somehow culpable. They even went as far as questioning the love that fans have for Yoko, blaming the fans for her lack of work opportunities.

It is deeply unfair and manipulative for a company to blame the lack of opportunities for an artist on the very fans who continue to love, support, and uplift her. To suggest that a fan-led boycott — aimed at holding the company accountable — is somehow responsible for limiting her career, is a blatant attempt to shift blame and deflect from their own failures in managing and protecting her. The implication that their decision to boycott the company profiting off the actress they love somehow reflects a lack of loyalty or affection for her. On the contrary, this boycott is a direct expression of that love. It’s a stand against a system that continuously exploits her talent, image, and name for gain — without truly supporting her or respecting her voice.

Fans have not turned their backs on Yoko — they have made it clear that their issue is with the company, not her. They continue to celebrate her, advocate for her, and express unwavering admiration. To question that love and condemn fans for speaking out is not only disrespectful, it’s an attempt to guilt and silence people who care deeply and are asking for better — for her and for themselves. True fans want to see her thrive — just not at the cost of her dignity, peace, or voice.

True support includes the courage to demand accountability. It’s not the fans who are holding her back — it’s the very system trying to pit her against the people who’ve stood by her the most. By refusing to support a company that mishandles her career and uses her without prioritizing her well-being or benefit, fans are sending a clear message: real support means accountability. Real love means fighting for someone, even when it’s uncomfortable.

Addressing Personal Relationships

Another key point that caused backlash was the discussion of Faye and Yoko’s personal relationship. Fans raised the concern that this was a tactic to distract and cause unnecessary speculation, something that they may have coerced Yoko into speaking about considering her previous position on the matter.

It is both disappointing and transparent that a company would choose to shift focus away from the real issues at hand by bringing up the personal romantic relationship between the two — a topic they had previously stated they would not discuss. This choice is especially troubling given that Faye was not even present to speak for herself and is reportedly bound by an NDA, leaving her unable to respond or defend herself.

The company itself acknowledged that this relationship had no bearing on the way things played out, which only makes their decision to bring it up more inappropriate and revealing. It served no purpose other than to distract, deflect, and muddy the waters around the valid concerns being voiced by fans — concerns about mistreatment, mismanagement, and a lack of accountability.

Using someone’s personal life as a smokescreen, especially when they cannot speak freely, is a blatant act of misdirection and disrespect. Fans see through this. Their frustration doesn’t come from a place of curiosity or speculation — it comes from a desire for honesty, integrity, and the fair treatment of the people they care about.

The Emotional Toll

One of the most striking aspects of the conference was the emotional dissonance on stage. Yoko Apasra displayed visible distress, while the CEO and owner appeared detached. This disconnect was troubling for many fans, as Yoko's vulnerability seemed to highlight the indifference of the corporate leaders, one of which who was heard telling Yoko, “That’s enough, no more tears.”

Understanding Yoko’s emotional state was crucial for evaluating the entire incident. Widely known for her kindness, Yoko Apasra had developed a deep connection with her fans over the years. Witnessing her struggle showcased the mental toll of corporate decisions, amplifying dissatisfaction within the fanbase.

Fans began to reflect on the implications of their beloved figure being treated as a mere representative in a corporate strategy. Many felt that she deserved more respect and acknowledgment from the company. Several fans took to social media to share their feelings, expressing sadness for Yoko and frustration at the lack of empathy shown by the company's executives. This situation raised ethical questions about how organizations prioritize their team's mental well-being, especially those in the public eye.

The Backlash

The fallout on social media following the press conference was swift and severe. Fans expressed their dismay over Yoko's emotional struggles and outrage at being marginalized as "anti-fans." This surge of emotional connection transformed into a protective stance, igniting a community rallying against perceived injustices. Many took steps to organize more extensive boycotts beyond the initial scenario, showing how quickly loyalty can turn into defiance.

After the press conference, a quote was posted by P’Pin, the music producer who previously worked with Ninestar on all of their music releases, which stated “If you have problems with almost everyone, then I am pretty sure that the problem is you!” That quote perfectly sums up how they were determined to blame everyone but themselves for the boycott they’re facing.

Instead of taking responsibility for their actions and addressing the real concerns voiced, they chose to deflect, point fingers, and paint themselves as the victim. But when the list of people you claim are “against you” includes your own audience, your own talent, and your own community — it’s no longer a coincidence. It’s a pattern.

Accountability isn’t about finding someone else to blame. It’s about listening, owning mistakes, and doing the hard work to make things right. Until this company stops avoiding the mirror, the consequences they’re facing won’t be about a “misunderstanding” — they’ll be about the refusal to grow.

A Path to Destruction

The fallout from the recent press conference highlights the significant impact of neglecting accountability and understanding in corporate communications. Instead of fostering connection, the company chose to deflect blame, leaving emotional scars not just on Yoko Apasra but also on her devoted fans.

It is deeply concerning when a company, instead of acknowledging its mistakes or taking responsibility for its shortcomings, chooses to ignore the concerns of its loyal fans. By refusing to own up to its actions and instead shifting the blame onto the very people who have supported it, the company not only undermines the trust and loyalty of its audience but also fails to grow and learn from its past errors. The fans, who have played an integral role in the company's success, deserve transparency, respect, and accountability, not deflection and accusations.

The company created an opportunity for themselves to embrace transparency and accountability, as well as foster a space to rectify the relationship with fans. Instead, they avoided the actual concerns and issues caused by them and made themselves out to be victims, with everyone else being villains. They proved to not only fans, but the industry as a whole that they have no intentions of rebuilding trust, establishing relationships, or making improvements. Their arrogance and bad mentality will ultimately lead them along a path of destruction.