At this point in their career, BTS is no stranger to making headlines. As a group that has been shattering records for nearly a decade, it is natural that media outlets would want to cover their achievements. Sadly, over the past few weeks, headlines about BTS have been dubious and misleading -- turning what should have been an intimate moment between the band and fans into a worldwide spectacle. To provide a better understanding of the situation, we’ve compiled what the members have stated and compared those statements to the reports made by the media to reveal the inaccuracies in coverage. It is important during times like these to always put the most trust in what the members of BTS say themselves.
The Original Confession
Over the past nine years, it has become tradition for the Festa activities to include an event where all of the members sit down and share a meal while discussing their memories from their careers. This year was no exception. However, while happy and funny memories were shared, the members also revealed many of their recent struggles with making music and being in the K-pop industry. They talked about how relentless activities had made them tired, and how they wanted to grow and mature as individuals and not just as a group. It was during this conversation when Suga was originally translated as saying, “We’re going into a hiatus now,” and the members revealed that they would be releasing more solo projects now as part of the second chapter in BTS’ story.
Naturally, ARMY, especially those that did not speak Korean, were both excited for the members to experience more freedom in their projects and slightly worried about what this meant for the future of the group as a whole. Several Korean speaking ARMY were quick to speak out online, though, saying that the translation particularly of the word hiatus was maybe not entirely accurate in conveying the meaning of the conversation. However, for the media, the damage was already done.
Reactions from the Media
Just hours after the video had been released, media outlets around the world began covering the news, and unfortunately many resorted to clickbait titles to scare potential readers. For their article, Deadline used the title “Korean K-Pop Superstars BTS Announce BTS Split But Pledge ‘To Return Someday.’” This title grossly misrepresented what BTS had talked about in the Festa video, but Deadline wasn’t alone in this trend. Also adding fuel to the fire was Esquire whose headline read, “Is BTS Going on a Hiatus, Breaking Up, or Taking a Break?” While not as explicitly incorrect as Deadline, Esquire’s use of the terms ‘BTS’ and ‘breaking up’ in the same headline did not help stop the rumors. Surprisingly, it wasn’t just the international outlets that were exaggerating the situation, Korean news agency Yonhap entitled their article, “Why did BTS decide to pause group activities at peak of career?” As a Korean media outlet, Yonhap should have been immune to any translation errors that could have occurred, and also should have known that in the video BTS said they were not pausing all group activities.
Korean media’s inaccurate coverage may have been more directly malicious. However, it can be argued that the use of the word hiatus in the Festa video misled them as to what the group’s future plans were. Several times throughout their career, BTS have been compared to the British/Irish boyband One Direction, who famously announced an eighteen month hiatus in 2015, and then never became active again. The BBC even wrote an article titled, “BTS hiatus ‘not as severe’ as One Direction.”
For many in the Western media, hiatus means a stop to all group activities which can often lead to disbandment as it did in the case of One Direction. This may account for some of the more negative coverage the group received after releasing the Festa video.
The Response from BTS and HYBE
Just hours after the video went live, HYBE clarified that the band was not taking a hiatus nor were they even suspending all of their group activities; they were simply entering a new era in which they participated equally in solo and group activities. Since all of the confusion broke out, HYBE has also updated the translations on the video, which now translates Suga as saying, “We’re taking a temporary break now.” And HYBE has continued to assert that the band is not taking any sort of hiatus. Even in the Weverse announcement for j-hope’s first solo album, the company ensured to include a statement saying, ‘BTS has turned the page on their new chapter, throughout which the members will harmoniously carry out their group and individual activities.”
It wasn’t just official company reps though that were assuring ARMY and the public that BTS wasn’t going away. The day following the release of the video, Jung Kook took to VLive to clear up the misconceptions. He stated, “We are not going to disband. We still have a lot of work to do as a group. And we’re going to keep doing more in the future.” And this sentiment coincides with what had originally been described in the Festa video in which they even discuss bringing back "Run BTS!" RM also took to Weverse to make a statement. He explained, “People who have watched the video will already know that, just like the title of the song ‘Yet to Come’ suggests, it is true that what we really wanted to convey is that this is not the end at all.” He also expressed his displeasure with the way the media had covered the situation saying, “I have seen the screenshots and the headlines of articles that were sent to me and there were many provocative keywords that do not represent the full picture such as ‘disbandment,’ ‘hiatus,’ ‘announcement’...” Unfortunately, even the words of BTS could not fully compensate for how the media had twisted the event.
The Continuing Consequences
Even after the clarifications by the company and the members, some media sites are still discussing the topic inaccurately with NPR writing on June 22, a full eight days after the original misunderstanding, “For BTS fans in South Korea, there’s resignation as the band takes a break.” Not only have several sources stated it’s not a break in group activities, the vast majority of ARMY have not been ‘resigned’ by the news but instead have been understanding that the members need a break from a hectic schedule and have even been excited to see what solo projects come next.
Immediately following the release of the Festa video, HYBE’s stocks experienced a tremendous loss with Bloomberg reporting that the company lost $2.6 billion. Prices saw a mild increase following Jung Kook’s VLive, but continue to trade around 148,000 won a share compared to 193,000 won the day before the Festa video. It seems as though these losses have scared more than just those working at HYBE. The president of the Korea Singers Association, Lee Ja Yeon, released a statement asking BTS to reconsider their ‘hiatus’ as she feels that the Hallyu Wave may collapse without them. ARMY were notably upset with this request as they felt it reduced BTS to nothing more than a money-making machine further justifying their need to take a break.
Image Credit: BIGHIT MUSIC
With the release of Proof, an anthology album, it is certain that BTS and ARMY are finishing chapter 1 and moving on to chapter 2. And chapter 2 will likely look different from the first chapter with members having more solo promotion and opportunities than ever before. But of course there has to be change in order for there to be growth and progression. Even just a few weeks into chapter 2, it seems as though any sort of ‘break’ taken by the group will not result in any lack of content for ARMY to consume as members begin releasing their solo projects. While also promising to return as a group in the future. Regardless of what chapter 2 looks like, in the Festa video released by BTS they were honest and expressed their true feelings and struggles in an industry that often discourages expressing negative emotions. Unfortunately, the media exploited their vulnerability for clicks and views. But despite their attempts to create drama, BTS has remained steadfast in their love for ARMY and each other and will continue to create new and impressive content in the future.
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Written By: Rachel K
Edited By: Aury
Checked By: Shelley
Much needed article💯