Asian Junkie Asian pop. Without discretion.
Many K-pop fans seem shell-shocked by the sheer volume of bullying allegations emerging of late. It’s understandable, because even when I last remember this becoming a major public issue in the industry, there weren’t nearly this many allegations. However, the reason for it is a combination of things, with the most relevant being Naver removing their popular search option, and also four pro volleyball players being accused and admitting to bullying (now five). The issue has snowballed from there into the celebrity world.
For the sake of my sanity, I had resolved to not covering every story, but the process of trying to pick and choose which were significant and which were not became a chore in itself. Thus, I’ve decided to do a roundup instead, and since there’s quite frankly not a lot resolved with perhaps not a lot that will ever be completely resolved, letting everybody draw their own conclusions would probably be the repetitive default for individual articles anyway.
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Jo Byeong Gyu: Accused of bullying, which HB Entertainment said is false. The company later updated and stated that the accuser admitted their accusation was false and apologized for lying. He then faced another accusation of bullying and had a schoolmate defend his character, with the company stating this accusation was also false. Later, another accusation was made, this time in English, accusing him of school violence and being a bully. The company responded with another statement, reiterating that all allegations against Jo Byeong Gyu are false and that they had requested a police investigation. The actor then personally addressed the allegations, stating again that the allegations were false. It also came up that he was accused of bullying and school violence back in 2018, which he personally responded to at the time.
TOO’s Woongi: He got praised for calling classmates out for not social distancing, then was accused of bullying, and Stone Music Entertainment said the allegation is false.
(G)I-DLE’s Soojin: Accused of school violence and bullying, with Cube Entertainment issuing a denial. Two others then accused her of bullying, with one mentioning actress Seo Shin Ae as a victim, and Seo Shin Ae left a vague message on her Instagram Stories. In response, Soojin released a personal statement that admits to things like smoking and dressing inappropriately, but denies the school violence and bullying allegations. She also explained that she never spoke with Seo Shin Ae. The actress appeared to respond to Soojin’s statement in another Instagram Story.
(G)I-DLE’s Soyeon: Hit by a vague allegation of bullying.
Kim Dong Hee: Accused of school violence and bullying, with NPIO Entertainment responding that the same allegation was posted back in 2018 and continues to be false.
Kim So Hye: Accused by a witness of school violence, with S&P Entertainment characterizing the claim as false and requesting a police investigation after not punishing perpetrators of school violence allegations that arose back in 2016.
SEVENTEEN’s Mingyu: Accused of bullying, after which a schoolmate defended him, then Pledis Entertainment stated that the allegation is false.
Park Hye Su: Accused of school violence and bullying, then hit with another bullying allegation, and an alleged victim gave further detail in an interview. Studio Santa Claus Entertainment responded in a statement saying the allegations are false. Then a person initially believed to be making an allegation against Park Hye Su later clarified that it was not about the actress. The alleged victims then formed a group and together released a statement to the press expressing anger that their allegations were called false by the company.
Stray Kids’ Hyunjin: Accused of bullying, but a classmate defended him against the allegations. JYP Entertainment says they are working to confirm the truth but that there are false things already circulating.
The Boyz’s Sunwoo: Accused of domestic violence and bullying, Cre.ker Entertainment states the allegation is false.
LOONA’s Chuu: Accused of bullying, with BlockBerry Creative denying the claims are true.
MONSTA X’s Kihyun: Accused of school violence and bullying, with Starship Entertainment saying they are investigating the claim. They also mention a separate claim from a person who made an allegation back in 2015 and posted it again recently, explaining that it was already found to be false at the time.
EVERGLOW’s Aisha: Accused of school violence and being a bully, with Yuehua Entertainment responding by saying the claim is false.
HyunA: Accused of school violence, which was denied by HyunA and then by P NATION.
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Browsing around, I know there are others that haven’t yet migrated their way overseas, but I’ll wait for official reports. If there are any details missed, feel free to send one to the site’s e-mail.
