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Fans of NCT member Jaehyun attack The Straits Times over story they say damages K-pop star’s reputation

  • Singaporean newspaper’s story on Jaehyun’s Instagram apology for a night out in Seoul amid social distancing faced an immediate backlash
  • Hashtag #StraitsTimesIsOverParty has been trending on Twitter all week, but various netizens have accused the Jaehyun fans of overreacting

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Jaehyun from K-pop boy band NCT. The singer’s apology for visiting Seoul nightlife district Itaewon during social distancing caused a stir online when a Singaporean newspaper reported on it.
Haneesa Begum

Singapore’s flagship newspaper The Straits Times has been feeling the wrath of K-pop fans this week after it published an article on South Korean idol Jaehyun’s apology for enjoying a night out in Seoul amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Fans of Jaehyun – a member of boy band NCT – took to social media accusing the newspaper of damaging the reputation of the singer, and the hashtag #StraitsTimesIsOverParty has been trending on Twitter all week.
The drama started on Monday when it was revealed that Jaehyun and three other K-pop idols visited Seoul nightlife district Itaewon, the centre of a recent coronavirus outbreak, on April 25, but had all tested negative for the virus. The other celebrities involved in the incident were BTS’s Jungkook, Seventeen’s Mingyu, and Astro’s Cha Eun-woo.

Jaehyun took to Instagram on Tuesday where he posted a handwritten apology saying “I’m sorry about causing trouble during this hard time.” Adding that he deeply regretted his “reckless” visit, he said “I will be more careful and considerate of my actions in future.”

 

The Straits Times reported on the incident the same day in an article headlined “NCT vocalist Jaehyun posts apology letter after flouting social distancing rules” – and immediately faced a backlash from the singer’s fans. The hashtag #StraitsTimesIsOverParty quickly became the top-trending topic in Singapore and remained there until Wednesday night.

In particular, fans were irate about the picture used in the article. Some said they believed that the photo, taken from Jaehyun’s Instagram and showing him decorated with faux body art, was deliberately chosen to portray the star in a negative way.

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