Cancel culture, it exists everywhere. Anyone can be cancelled, whether it's your favorite childhood cartoon or a recently discovered singer. I'm sure most of us have seen some beauty guru apology videos, they were pretty interesting. Do you ever wonder what happened to cause them to apologize? They were CANCELLED. Cancel, it's a strong word, isn't it? What it means exactly is to stop showing support or care for someone, and people who have never shown support or care for individual will also cancel them. Don't you think that's strange? Trust me, we all do...
ANYWAYS! Enough chit chatting
Let's start with our interviews! 
TOPIC: Cancel Culture
QUESTION #1
What's the ultimate crime you'd cancel your fave for?
Murder or Rape. It's a no brainer.
kingkook
honestly, murder or sexual assault! 
I mean, it would require something criminally wrong! Cancelling my faves for the sake of a musical blunder would be totally ludicrous!
Nyaz
for stealing my heart????lmao, ok jokes aside
I think it's if they did anything illegal and bullying i would suppose, im usually pretty cool about other stuff like dating etc but i think i draw the line at doing anything illegal and although bullying does matter from case to case, in most cases, if they're proven to be guilty then i don't see how i can continue supporting them
caratnotcarrot
QUESTION #2
Should idols be held accountable for something they did when they were kids?
It depends on how young they were when the incident happened, what they are being accused of, and most importantly if they're still apologetic for their wrong doings.
Especially when you consider bullying cases, yes you might be a changed person now and have grown out of the phase you were in during your school years. But if that's gonna be your reason for not acknowledging your previous wrong doings, don't get offended or upset when people are still gonna consider you a bully. After all, even in court, the guilty who regrets their actions get a chance to receive a less harsh punishment than the ones who refuse to acknowledge them.
kingkook
Every story has two sides to it. One must be careful not to jump the gun when allegations are made and really take the time to hear both parties. In the case of bullying for instance, which is probably what you're inferring to here, its not so much just the obvious need to be held accountable that's mandatory but equally the utmost requirement to immediately recognize it and pledge to do what is right as an older teen or adult. Which basically consists in publicly admitting to it and taking steps to formally retract your behavior with an honest amend to the victim(s). In other words, laying low for a while is merely not sufficient! Stand up and do what's right now that you're older!
Nyaz
Yes i think idols should be responsible for something they did as kids. Of course i don't mean like when they were 3 and pushed another kid off a swing or something, but probably when they start elementary school, that's when i feel people's self awareness starts to form, and from then, yes idols should be held accountable, especially in cases where the victim hasn't found closure or forgave the idol even after many years. I don't see immaturity as a valid excuse for that
caratnotcarrot
QUESTION #3
Is kicking out the canceled idol the best solution?
Not really. Unless they've committed a crime or done something very disturbing, I don't think they should be kicked out of the company.
That being said, if a particular member's controversy is affecting the whole group, it's not fair for the other members who do not correlate with the controversy to be affected as well. In such cases, it's better if the member leaves the group and pursues a solo career or something similar under the same company. In that way, fans who are disturbed by the controversy can only follow the group activities, and the rest who aren't can follow them both.
kingkook
Not always. As I said in my previous statement, every story has two sides. But when the evidences are compelling, you should honourably and publicly recognize your mistake(s) and quite possibly carry on yourself without the need for someone or something to invite you to move on. Once again, silence is not acceptable! whether you admit to it or not. If the artist fails to do what is right, then by all means, an Agency should take appropriate steps to either support them (in the case of unfounded allegations) or, effectively terminate their contract, in the case where victims are indeed accurately reporting the matter.
Nyaz
Nope i don't think so. What the victim would probably want is closure, usually through a personal apology, and not to ruin a person's entire life. If the victim was bullied to a point which a personal apology won't suffice, then maybe leaving the group is an option, but i feel that it should be the last resort when the harm inflicted to the victim is unforgivable
I feel that as long as the victim forgives the idol, and the idol keep lowkey for a while, they should be able to continue promoting in the group
caratnotcarrot
QUESTION #4
Should they be given a chance to redeem themselves?
Yes. Anybody who feels ashamed of their actions and wants to redeem themselves should be given a chance unless they've committed the unthinkable. Like in some cases where things have gone way too far, there's not much they can do to redeem themselves as enough damage has already been done.
But from what I've observed kpop fans and the public tend to be very harsh about canceling idols, so realistically speaking, the chances of redemption are low (even if I believe in most cases they deserve one).
kingkook
I'm a firm believer in rehabilitation, in many aspects our society. But, once again, assuming you are referring to a bullying incident, my take on it would be: Only if the victims are fully satisfied with the healing/redemption process and more less agreeing to it. In other words, if they deem that the wrong party has had the fortitude to do what's right from the very beginning! This sort of scenario is extremely rare, yet, possible. So to answer your question, it's a toss up really, but yes, i would be tempted to allow someone to redeem themselves should they display the strong will to effectively become an advocate against such bullying in the future!
Nyaz
Yep, as long as they take responsibility for it, and maybe take a hiatus until its sorted out and talk it out with the victim and give a genuine apology that the victim accepts and the victim is able to forgive the idol, i don't see why not
caratnotcarrot
QUESTION #5
Do you think that Kpop cancel culture is more intense than Western cancel culture?
Yes. Kpop cancel culture is harsher than Western cancel culture.
As much as kpop fans and the public are to be blamed for putting idols on the pedestal, I think the kpop industry is also slightly at fault for this as well.
Kpop companies almost always push their idols to have this ideal boyfriend/girlfriend persona. And when it comes to controversies, this image creates
2 major disadvantages: 1. Because of this image, some fans might create a parasocial relationship with their idol. So fans will criticize their fave for anything that ruins the perfect image they have about them and sometimes will abandon their fave altogether if the fantasy is destroyed.
2. The perfect image and the controlling nature of companies sometimes makes the idol's personality look rather fake than appealing. Whenever there's a controversy, kpop companies take all sorts of measures to make sure the idol doesn't have their image ruined by posting a well-written apology letter (that sounds like a business agreement letter) and making them go on hiatus so that they can "reflect on themselves". But how genuine does this always feel? In most cases, we don't even get to know the truth or the conclusion of the controversy. The idol is kept shut from speaking about the controversy until the company allows them to, and the accuser is sooner or later shut down by either a lawsuit or compensation. Because of all of the uncertainty around the truth and the idol's sincerity, some fans would rather cancel or unstan that idol than give them a chance.
But even though cancel culture is harsh in kpop, it's not as serious as people make it out to be. As time flies by, most kpop fans either forget about the controversy or move on, so it's not that big of a deal anyways.
kingkook
Before remotely answering that question, one has to understand that the South Korean and Western cultures are essentially different in so many ways! While the South Korean values have indeed been slightly influenced by the west for the past decades, it's important to note that they remain very unique on the bases of respectfulness and protocols! The level of so-called "cancel culture" can only be gauged by the foundation it lies on. So basically, in my humble opinion, they are the same levels, only differently applied. In a nutshell, some western artists have "disappeared" from the western landscape as fast as any previously canceled south Korean Idol! It's just been executed through different manners i find and obviously, on the bases of different cultural or criminal wrong doings. But in the end, it don't really matter how you get cancelled, you'll essentially get cancelled anywhere if you screw up bad! In the West or the East!
Nyaz
Although cancel culture in kpop is serious, i think cancel culture in western entertainment is on another level
Maybe because western entertainment have a larger market than kpop, things get blown up a lot faster and have a wider reach, like during the recent lawsuit, the amount of cancelling of the parties involved during the lawsuit, i don't think there'll be one with a scale like that ever in kpop, and it's not the first time such large scale cancelling occurred in western entertainment
caratnotcarrot
Do you agree, disagree? Please share your thoughts and feel free to respond to the questions yourself. Also, keep an eye out because YOU might be the next user to be interviewed. We'll see you next month. 
