'Outcast' and 'Kim Kwang Soo' the Keywords of T-ARA's Controversy

It has been exactly one week. On July 28, the members of T-ARA all except Hwayoung updated their personal Twitter pages regarding the power of will. In response, Hwayoung posted, "Some things cannot be done just by the power of will." People in the online communities who saw T-ARA's abusive postings assumed that there was a case of bullying within the idol girl group. T-ARA's controversy has become such an aggravating but hot topic that even a web-tune writer Lee Mal Nyun updated his personal Twitter page stating, "T-ARA you crazy girls.. Your stupid controversy is becoming a bigger issue than the Olympics. It is so aggravating and angering."

This is where people are becoming suspicious. Is this controversy really as serious as people are making it seem to be? Other idol groups have had a member leave the group and there were many changes in the members of various idol groups; but why is it that T-ARA is getting such a huge media coverage for this? The answer to those questions can be answered with two keywords: "Outcast" and "Kim Kwang Soo" of Core Contents Media.

"Outcast"

The public was outraged by the fact that bullying occurred within an idol group that children look up to as role models. Not taking Hwayoung's attitude or senseless rumors into consideration, the keyword "outcast" still plays a big role in T-ARA's controversy.

Although the representative Kim Kwang Soo of Core Contents Media claims that there is absolutely no bullying within the girl group T-ARA, he agreed to the fact that the bullying "atmosphere" did indeed exist among the girls. During an interview with a news source, Kim Kwang Soo stated, "The word outcast itself is like this. It means that a group of people are intentionally outcasting somebody. However, we have to look at the cause and the outcome. If there were no reasons behind why the person was treated differently, that person was bullied. However, for Hwayoung's case, she did do something wrong and she should take responsibility for her actions."

Kim Kwang Soo was basically claiming that there was a logical reason why the other members of T-ARA were bullying Hwayoung. Even though Kim Kwang Soo and the public have a different understanding of what bullying is, the basic ideas behind the events are clearly the same.

Also, the Twitter posts of T-ARA members were the biggest factor in the heightened level of seriousness of this controversy since the postings became solid evidence. Core Contents Media tried to cover up the issue by deleting the postings and stating that their accounts have been hacked but the statement became a contradiction when Kim Kwang Soo spoke about the power of will.

Various photos from TV appearances were also brought to attention as evidence of bullying. Usually when celebrities become involved in an issue or a misunderstanding, they express their perspective and provide an explanation to their fans through their personal Twitter pages or other social networking sites. However, none of the members of T-ARA have explained the situation, let alone comment on Hwayoung leaving T-ARA. The issue seems to be getting more and more serious as T-ARA members take more and more time to release any comments.

When Kim Kwang Soo and T-ARA members' attitudes are taken into consideration, Hwayoung was indeed an outcast and in a way bullied within the group. However, unlike the public's point of view, Kim Kwang Soo and T-ARA members are claiming that Hwayoung was getting what she deserved.

"Kim Kwang Soo"

If T-ARA members were the ones who started the fire in this controversy, Kim Kwang Soo was the one who poured oil in the fire. As this week progressed, the controversy started to become "Kim Kwang Soo vs. the Public" among many angered citizens. It is clear that a significant number of people are pointing the finger at Kim Kwang Soo when the posts from the people in the online communities are read.

In reality, it is not only the public who is hesitant in excusing Kim Kwang Soo of taking responsibility for this controversy. Various representatives in the music industry are thinking the same thing. Kim Kwang Soo has been a manager for a very long time and he is very talented in analyzing the responses of the news media and the public. Therefore people are questioning this whole controversy as a way of promoting T-ARA and Core Contents Media.

If Kim Kwang Soo is using this as a chance of promotion, he was met with success right after he stated that there will be a formal announcement at the end of the month in July. For two days, Kim Kwang Soo was surrounded by countless reporters from various news media sources and the public took a great interest in his statement as well. From then on, T-ARA's controversy became an even greater issue than the London Olympics. People already assumed that Hwayoung would be leaving T-ARA but were very curious as to how she will leave.

However, from the time Kim Kwang Soo began to release supporting videos and photos of Hwayoung's unpredictable behavior to point the finger in her direction, his senses began to fail. Kim Kwang Soo released various videos and photos of Hwanyoung numerous times throughout each day and tried to change the perspective of the news sources. Finally, during a couple of interviews with different news sources, Kim Kwang Soo began to dig his own grave.

During the interviews, Kim Kwang Soo put on an act to try to convince the public that he was trying to protect Hwayoung when he was doing the exact opposite.

Other representatives are explaining this controversy as a way of how Core Contents Media and Kim Kwang Soo deals with things in their agency. One representative stated, "T-ARA members all have busy schedules and have nowhere to relieve their stress. For idol groups like T-ARA, they need to have some time to enjoy their own things aside form promotional appearances. I think everything was just piling up and they subconsciously projected their anger and stress at one member. I think there was no communication whatsoever between Kim Kwang Soo and the members of T-ARA."

It is only mystery as to how Kim Kwang Soo will bring up his reputation once again.

Tags
T-ARA
Core Contents Media
Kim Kwang Soo
Hwayoung
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