{"id":79699,"date":"2019-10-13T10:32:27","date_gmt":"2019-10-13T09:32:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/newsforher.com\/?p=79699"},"modified":"2019-10-13T10:32:38","modified_gmt":"2019-10-13T09:32:38","slug":"whats-going-on-with-blizzard-esports-blitzchung-and-china","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/?p=79699","title":{"rendered":"What&#039;s going on with Blizzard esports, Blitzchung, and China?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<!-- Quick Adsense WordPress Plugin: http:\/\/quickadsense.com\/ -->\n<div class=\"c5b541d88d911dcbb84397def1a3492d\" data-index=\"1\" style=\"float: none; margin:0px 0 0px 0; text-align:center;\">\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- m -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3943282228430444\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"5751019935\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n<p> [ad_1]\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"id_text\" itemprop=\"articleBody\">\n<p>Blizzard finally spoke up on Friday after nearly a week of upheaval on the professional <em>Hearthstone<\/em> circuit. But before we can get into that, it&#8217;s important to understand what let to Friday&#8217;s statement.<\/p>\n<p>It all started on Monday when pro player Chung &#8220;Blitzchung&#8221; Ng Wai used an appearance on an official stream to make a political statement. Blitzchung, who had been competing in the <em>Hearthstone <\/em>Grandmasters tournament, appeared on the Taiwanese stream wearing a gas mask and said &#8220;Liberate Hong Kong. Revolution of our age!&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"twitter-wrapper sort-rerender\">\n<div>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">[BREAKING] Hong Kong Hearthstone player <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/blitzchungHS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@blitzchungHS<\/a> calls for liberation of his country in post-game interview:<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/3AgQAaPioj\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/t.co\/3AgQAaPioj<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Matthieist?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@Matthieist<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/Hearthstone?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#Hearthstone<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/DnaMSEaM4g\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/DnaMSEaM4g<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 ???? Inven Global ???? (@InvenGlobal) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/InvenGlobal\/status\/1180954142396710912?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">October 6, 2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The mask and the statement both were direct responses to the civil unrest that has unfolded across Hong Kong in recent months. It&#8217;s a complicated situation that merits an explanation of its own.<\/p>\n<p>Hong Kong is a former British colony that exists now as a &#8220;special administrative region&#8221; of China, which basically means it has its own government and economic system. The protests, which started in June as a response to a proposed law that would have allowed the extradition of local criminals to mainland China \u2013 effectively diminishing Hong Kong&#8217;s autonomy \u2013 have since escalated to include a general call for a more democratic form of governance.<\/p>\n<p>Pro-democracy demonstrators have used an assortment of masks to conceal their identity at public gatherings, and it&#8217;s led to a ban on such behavior. So Blitzchung&#8217;s use of a mask and &#8220;Liberate Hong Kong&#8221; statement amounts to a declaration of support for the protests, and a stand against mainland China.<\/p>\n<p>Shortly after Blitzchung&#8217;s appearance on the stream \u2013 the official version of which was quickly removed \u2013 Blizzard took <a href=\"https:\/\/news.blizzard.com\/en-us\/hearthstone\/23179289\/hearthstone-grandmasters-asia-pacific-ruling\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">its first action<\/a>. The company found that the protest action violated a <a href=\"https:\/\/bnetcmsus-a.akamaihd.net\/cms\/page_media\/w4\/W4NWIBHB74T31564507077190.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">competition rule<\/a> against &#8220;engaging in any act that, in Blizzard\u2019s sole discretion, brings you into public disrepute, offends a portion or group of the public, or otherwise damages Blizzard image.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s worth noting here that there&#8217;s a massive market for video games in China, and Activision Blizzard in particular has a big investment in the region. What&#8217;s more, the Chinese company Tencent has a 5 percent ownership stake in the American company. (More broadly, Tencent has invested heavily in U.S.-based gaming interests over the years.) These details are going to be important soon.<\/p>\n<p>As punishment, Blitzchung was removed from the <em>Hearthstone<\/em> Grandmasters competition. He also had to forfeit his prize money for the current season, including anything he&#8217;d won so far. Blizzard also imposed on him a 12-month ban from participating in <em>Hearthstone<\/em> esports. Lastly, the company confirmed that it would no longer work with the two men who were interviewing Blitzchung when he delivered his protest action.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"pull-quotes\">\n<p>Blizzard finally spoke up on Friday after a week of upheaval on the professional <em>Hearthstone<\/em> circuit.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Few disputed the text of the competition rules, but many criticized Blizzard for the heavy-handedness of its punishment. One <em>Hearthstone<\/em> &#8220;caster&#8221; (an esports commentatory), Brian Kibler, summed up the broad response to the ruling very well in <a href=\"https:\/\/medium.com\/@bmkibler_5280\/statement-on-blizzard-and-blitzchung-9e4b4aec39ab\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">a Medium post<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The punishment meted out to Blitzchung is incredibly harsh,&#8221; Kibler wrote. &#8220;I could understand a fine, or even a short suspension from competitive play, but removal from Grandmasters, clawing back the prizes he already earned, and banning him for a full year seems completely overboard to an extent that feels completely unwarranted and unfair.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>He went on to acknowledge Blizzard&#8217;s ties to China, writing: &#8220;I won\u2019t pretend to understand either the intricacies of the geopolitical situation in China and Hong Kong or the full extent of Blizzard\u2019s business interests there, but to me this penalty feels like it is deeply rooted in both.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Kibler ended the post with the revelation that he&#8217;s severing his relationship as a caster with Blizzard, at least for the time being.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;When I learned about the ruling, I reached out to Blizzard and informed them that I no longer feel comfortable casting the Grandmasters finals at BlizzCon. I will not be a smiling face on camera that tacitly endorses this decision. Unless something changes, I will have no involvement in Grandmasters moving forward.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Kibler wasn&#8217;t alone in criticizing Blizzard&#8217;s actions following the Blitzchung ruling. And on Friday, finally, the company <a href=\"https:\/\/news.blizzard.com\/en-us\/blizzard\/23185888\/regarding-last-weekend-s-hearthstone-grandmasters-tournament\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">released a longer statement<\/a> attributed to Blizzard president J. Allen Brack.<\/p>\n<!-- Quick Adsense WordPress Plugin: http:\/\/quickadsense.com\/ -->\n<div class=\"c5b541d88d911dcbb84397def1a3492d\" data-index=\"2\" style=\"float: none; margin:0px 0 0px 0; text-align:center;\">\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- 2 -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3943282228430444\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"5511153269\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>The statement amounts to a lengthy defense of the company&#8217;s actions on Tuesday, as well as an admission that mistakes were made. Blitzchung&#8217;s suspension from competitive <em>Hearthstone<\/em> was shortened to six months, and the two casters who spoke with him also received similar six-month bans.<\/p>\n<p>It didn&#8217;t go over well. Brack was quickly criticized for referencing Blizzard&#8217;s core values of &#8220;think globally; lead responsibly&#8221; and &#8220;every voice matters&#8221; in a statement where he was also essentially upholding actions taken against a player who voiced a political stance. The thinking goes that while every voice does matter to Blizzard, an official tournament broadcast ought to focus on the tournament and nothing else.<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s a fair point. Putting aside the extreme punishment handed down initially, Blitzchung&#8217;s actions did fall afoul of tournament rules, though that rule notably leaves the determination to &#8220;Blizzard&#8217;s sole discretion.&#8221; But Brack was criticized for taking the matter even further to directly comment on the China of it all.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The specific views expressed by blitzchung were NOT a factor in the decision we made,&#8221; he wrote. &#8220;I want to be clear: our relationships in China had no influence on our decision.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Lots of people aren&#8217;t buying it. Brack doesn&#8217;t offer any further details to support that claim, and all evidence to the contrary suggests that Blitzchung&#8217;s initial punishment, widely viewed as overly harsh, was in fact directly informed by Blizzard&#8217;s interests in China. Perhaps there&#8217;s a literal interpretation that the Tencent relationship didn&#8217;t influence the decision, but as many have pointed out, it stretches believability to suggest that financial concerns weren&#8217;t at the heart of the decision.<\/p>\n<div class=\"twitter-wrapper sort-rerender\">\n<div>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">It\u2019s too long to read this mess from <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Blizzard_Ent?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@Blizzard_Ent<\/a> but here\u2019s the short version: <\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur stated  corporate values \u201cThink Globally; Lead Responsibly; and importantly, Every Voice Matters\u201d are complete and utter bullsh*t.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There, I saved you all some time. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/8z46CsS48k\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/t.co\/8z46CsS48k<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Soledad O&#8217;Brien (@soledadobrien) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/soledadobrien\/status\/1182866770513797120?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">October 12, 2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"twitter-wrapper sort-rerender\">\n<div>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Blizzard: &#8220;Our relationships in China had no influence on our decision [to ban a Hong Kong gamer who defended the protests]&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Blizzard China: &#8220;We object to the expression of political beliefs in our events. As always, we will defend the pride and dignity of China at all cost.&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/onuqmfbnmF\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/onuqmfbnmF<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Aditya Mukerjee, the Otterrific ????\ufe0f\u200d???? (@chimeracoder) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/chimeracoder\/status\/1182997907240378368?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">October 12, 2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"twitter-wrapper sort-rerender\">\n<div>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">It&#8217;s worth noting that Activision is currently waiting on China to approve the release of Call of Duty Mobile. I don&#8217;t know what impact Acti had on Blizzard this week, but as I&#8217;ve been reporting for a while now, they have more influence than ever before: <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/H8lDRqzCIl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/t.co\/H8lDRqzCIl<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ly52s3uBSM\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/ly52s3uBSM<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Jason Schreier (@jasonschreier) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/jasonschreier\/status\/1182846992239734784?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">October 12, 2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"twitter-wrapper sort-rerender\">\n<div>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">But I want us to be mindful of how people even try to police how BW react to a game\/company that has omitted us purposefully, and then behave differently with other issues. (Cont&#8230;)<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Black Girl Gamers \u27a1\ufe0f EGX (@blackgirlgamers) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/blackgirlgamers\/status\/1182939216285704192?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">October 12, 2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"twitter-wrapper sort-rerender\">\n<div>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-conversation=\"none\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Granted, they are not on the same scale at all.  AT ALL. But I want to highlight that a group of people *rightfully* taking issue with a game\/company is not the same as lack of support for other groups.<\/p>\n<p>Blizzard continues to be&#8230;.a piece of work.<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Black Girl Gamers \u27a1\ufe0f EGX (@blackgirlgamers) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/blackgirlgamers\/status\/1182939217778921472?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">October 12, 2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"twitter-wrapper sort-rerender\">\n<div>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/BoycottBlizzard?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#BoycottBlizzard<\/a> wtf blizzard lmao<br \/>&#8220;prohibited cosplays&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ZiduxNWdOU\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/ZiduxNWdOU<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 EricZeth (@ErykYTGaming) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ErykYTGaming\/status\/1183035485998010368?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">October 12, 2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"twitter-wrapper sort-rerender\">\n<div>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">[\u4e2d\/ENG] Personal statement, view on Blizzard&#8217;s decision and future planning<\/p>\n<p>Read: <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/2YgO8XhTFq\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/t.co\/2YgO8XhTFq<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Ng Wai Chung (@blitzchungHS) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/blitzchungHS\/status\/1183023851917271040?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">October 12, 2019<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<!-- Quick Adsense WordPress Plugin: http:\/\/quickadsense.com\/ -->\n<div class=\"c5b541d88d911dcbb84397def1a3492d\" data-index=\"5\" style=\"float: none; margin:0px 0 0px 0; text-align:center;\">\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- 5 -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3943282228430444\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"9258826580\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n[ad_2]\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/me.mashable.com\/entertainment\/7434\/whats-going-on-with-blizzard-esports-blitzchung-and-china\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n\n<!-- Quick Adsense WordPress Plugin: http:\/\/quickadsense.com\/ -->\n<div class=\"c5b541d88d911dcbb84397def1a3492d\" data-index=\"3\" style=\"float: none; margin:0px 0 0px 0; text-align:center;\">\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- 3 -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3943282228430444\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"2884989920\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n\n<div style=\"font-size: 0px; height: 0px; line-height: 0px; margin: 0; padding: 0; clear: both;\"><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[ad_1] Blizzard finally spoke up on Friday after nearly a week of upheaval on the professional Hearthstone circuit. But before we can get into that, it&#8217;s important to understand what let to Friday&#8217;s statement. It all started on Monday when pro player Chung &#8220;Blitzchung&#8221; Ng Wai used an appearance on an official stream to make &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":79700,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[9],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79699"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=79699"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79699\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":79701,"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79699\/revisions\/79701"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/79700"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=79699"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=79699"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsforher.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=79699"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}