Fudan's Baidu farce goes viral

A song about Baidu CEO Li Yanhong, also known as Robin Li, has gone suddenly viral four years after it was made and aroused controversy.

The video was made during a Baidu promotional event at Fudan in 2015.

In the video, a young woman, perhaps a student, sang in front of Li:

"Robin, I heard about you.

You are like a god to us.

Hi, Robin, where are you?

In Xierqi outside the Fifth Ring Road?

Hi, Robin, I wanted to meet you.

I would love to get into your Baidu world.

I never stop thinking about you.

It is a magic moment today.

In the wind from New York, listen to the rain from Silicon Valley.

Thank god and you, the entrepreneur.

…

I want to see you again, Mr Robin Li.

Where are you?

…"

Clearly unsettled, Li responded: "I’m so touched by your song … it’s a creative idea."

But the song has triggered an avalanche of criticism decrying it as embarrassing that a prestigious university like Fudan should be so obsequious to a businessman.

On Weibo, a user called "Bameishiyanshi" wrote: “Who is able to watch this video to the end? I can’t watch for more than five seconds!”

“Robin can only show a sheepish grin,” said "Benbengaoji."

“I don’t know whether Li feels embarrassed, but halfway through it, I decided it was disgusting …” a user called "Kejifengbao" wrote on Weibo.

Fudan responded on Weibo on Saturday: “A video about a Baidu campus promotion four years ago has gone viral. The university was lax in management throughout the whole process. Fudan cultivates high-quality talent and will enhance guidance and management of all campus activities, in order to live up to the expectations of alumni at home and abroad.”