What does it mean for something to be “Global”? Is it to have worldwide appeal? Would a product that is “global” be something which takes into consideration the needs and realities of all - or at least most - people who would potentially consume said product? Or, is it simply a label we can slap on to anything available globally - which, let’s face it, is everything these days.
“Global” is a term that ARMY and Big Hit seem to be at odds about.
Big Hit, of course, knows that ARMY is a global entity. It’s been often said how borders and barriers mean nothing when it comes to our fandom family. Yet, it’s undeniable that some ARMYs feel left behind. Big Hit is now a huge corporation with a multitude of staff and funds, yet they seem to fail in understanding some of the implications of having such a huge and global fandom.
The lovely K-Diamonds are blessed to have been born speaking the same language as BTS and enjoy their content as soon as it comes out. The wonderful Jems in Japan often enjoy gifts of songs, music videos and more in their own language. Even English-speaking ARMYs are frequently showered with RM’s beautiful words, Jungkook’s progress in learning the English language, Taehyung’s all English song Winter Bear, and so much more.
But...what about Bangtan Bombs? What about Season’s Greeting packages, or the extra little odds and ends that come with CDs and merch? Let’s also not forget about our French, Spanish, and Chinese speaking ARMYs. These are three of the most used languages in the world, and yet it’s rare that we ever see consideration given to these languages. There is also the recent upset over the revelation that the BTS Concert DVD set in Brazil has no Portuguese subtitles.
The specific instance which sparked this post is the fact that the 5th term ARMY Membership Kit for the 2019-2020 registration is only available in Korean even though it was advertised on Twitter and Weverse in Korean, English, and Japanese. Take note, it is even called “BTS Official Global Fanclub Membership,” yet it doesn’t include other languages aside from Korean. How ironic, right?
On July 15th (KST) of this year, Big Hit opened the registration process to ARMYs - you can still register if you feel so inclined - though the packages only just started arriving on ARMYs’ doorsteps within the last few weeks. It isn’t all negative. There are many benefits to being a registered member: receiving an ARMY membership card, the opportunity to buy exclusive merch, early access to tickets and lottery opportunities for domestic BTS performances, membership-only online weverse content, and more.
However, I don’t think it’s too much of a stretch to say that most ARMYs who purchased a membership was really looking forward to the contents of the kit: a movie film-themed luggage tag, a BTS Cinema badge, beautiful “tickets” to imaginary films featuring a member of BTS on each one, and exclusive pictures and written interviews.
Interviews that, disappointingly, have no translation.
The concept is undeniably cool, but many ARMYs find themselves unable to fully enjoy their kits due to this overwhelming feeling of Big Hit not considering whether or not international ARMYs can actually consume the product we’re buying. After all, why would they? We’re ARMYs, and we’ll buy whatever they put in front of us, anyway. Some people have argued that Big Hit shouldn’t have to put English (or other languages) on content, because BTS themselves are Korean, and if non-Korean speakers wish to understand, they should make the effort to learn the language rather than forcing Big Hit to change.
But here’s the thing - I have a life. Sure, I could dedicate a few minutes here and a half an hour there to study Korean on various online services (and I do) but learning a language isn’t as simple as downloading the information. I wish it was. However, at the pace I’m currently at and with all the time I could possibly spare to learn Korean, it will take months or, more likely, years to become proficient enough in Korean that I can understand the content BTS puts out without help from ARMY translators. On the other side, there’s Big Hit, who has the capacity to hire more people who are experts in the languages we need. It’s not going to be simple, and, of course, it would be silly for them to go back through all of the hundreds of hours worth of content just to add subtitles to all of them. But is it so much to ask for translations on content that we paid for? Is it too much to ask that ARMYs understand what BTS are saying when we buy a DVD of a concert they performed in our hometown?
BTS taught us to love ourselves and speak ourselves because each and every one of us are equally unique and beautiful, and we deserve acknowledgment. So, this is me speaking myself. If Big Hit wants to market something as “Global,” and if they want to continue catering to an audience that breaks borders and crosses oceans, they need to take our many languages into consideration.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own any audio & visual content in this video except for the editing. ALL RIGHTS BELONG TO THE RIGHTFUL OWNERS. No copyright infringement intended.
Written By: Aury
Edit By: Euni
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