(KBS2)

KBS program “Bon Bun Olympic,” which aired for the first time on Wednesday, is facing harsh criticism for harassing female kpop stars on the program.

The special program, which piloted over the Lunar New Year holiday, involves assigning celebrities missions to test how well they perform their duties as stars.

(KBS2)

One of the show segments that drew the most criticism was when fake cockroaches were thrown at the female stars. In a later segment, the stars were made to watch their reactions in slow motion in a studio, drawing forced bitter laughter at their own distorted expressions.

(KBS2)

Furthermore, the girls had to dance in a sensual manner on the rooftop of the building in sub-zero temperatures. This was not actually a test of their dancing abilities. Instead, there was a scale hidden on the dance floor to measure their weights without their knowledge. In a later segment, the show’s hosts revealed each of the female K-pop stars heights and weights without prior permission from them. They even compared these figures with how much the celebrities had said they weighed, pointing out those who had lied.


All of the activities done on the program were justified by the fact that the stars had signed contracts that said, “All copyrights belong to KBS and the contents are consented by the cast.” However, the stars who appeared on the program claimed that they had been unaware of what the show had intended to do.

There was public outcry about this with some people accusing the program of violating basic human rights.

By Kim Ji-young(christinekim@heraldcorp.com)