SEOUL – K-pop fans in Thailand are protesting against South Korean entertainment conglomerate Hybe, following the leak of an internal document. It reportedly contained unverified rumors about K-pop girl group Blackpink and its Thai member, Lisa.

The document, titled Music Industry Weekly Report, was intended for Hybe executives as part of a weekly review of industry trends. It came to light during an audit of the National Assembly on October 24.

It included harsh and derogatory comments about K-pop artists, including those not affiliated with Hybe, and has since sparked widespread backlash.

Blackpink is under YG Entertainment.

The document allegedly criticized Blackpink’s achievements and suggested that Lisa’s success at the MTV Video Music Awards could have been inflated by “suspicious voting activity,” which the report attributed to the intervention of her “internal fandom.” “Internal fandom” is believed to refer to Lisa’s Thai fans.

Lisa, 27, won Best K-pop at the MTV Video Music Awards in September for her song Rockstar, which was released in June. The singer won in the same category in 2022 for her debut solo single Lalisa.

Hybe’s doc has sparked protests among K-pop fans in Thailand, one of the strongest K-pop fan bases globally, where Lisa is widely celebrated as a national icon.

Thai media widely covered the controversy, fueling the anger of fans who then mobilized online, demanding a formal apology from Hybe, with the hashtag #HybeApologizeToLisa trending on social media platform X.

Thai fan Kasidhat Gorman, 35, said social media posts sharing Thai news reports about the leaked document and Hybe’s alleged attempt to discredit Lisa are spreading quickly.

“The Hybe documents issue really exploded when the part mentioning Blackpink and Lisa surfaced,” he said on October 31. “You don’t touch Lisa here. “She is a national hero in Thailand, just like BTS (the K-pop boy band) is in South Korea.”

On October 29, Hybe CEO Lee Jae-sang apologized for the document, admitting that the content was deeply inappropriate and acknowledging the insensitivity in the way personal opinions and views were documented and shared. .

“We sincerely apologize to the innocent artists and industry members who have suffered misinterpretations, including unfounded suspicions of reverse viral marketing,” he said in a press release. “We are also conveying our official apology to all Hybe artists who have faced unfair criticism due to this issue.”

He assured stakeholders that Hybe has taken immediate action by stopping creating such monitoring documents. He promised to strengthen internal controls to prevent similar problems from arising in the future.

According to a South Korean media report, the employee responsible for drafting the document was relieved of his position and reassigned to a human resources team.

However, some industry experts have criticized the move as a mere attempt to find a scapegoat. Questions have been raised about the liability of top executives, with critics arguing that liability likely extends beyond the document’s author.

“Even if the editor-in-chief was the one who wrote it, there must be someone who instructed them to do it and others who revised it afterwards,” said music critic Lim Hee-yun. “The problem lies in the explicit content it contains. Punishing only the individual who wrote it will surely provoke criticism.” ASIA/KOREA HERALD NEWS NETWORK