Erin Molan has been slammed on social media by outraged K-pop fans for presenting a ‘disgusting and xenophobic’ segment on Channel Nine’s 20 to One that mocked Korean boy band BTS.
Both Erin and Nine were inundated with complaints, while the hashtag ‘#channel9apologize’ topped Twitter’s trending topics in both Australia and South Korea.
‘Literally every sentence said in this video is problematic and is filled with racial undertones and xenophobia,’ tweeted one fan.
Backlash: Erin Molan has been slammed on social media by outraged K-pop fans for presenting a ‘disgusting’ segment on 20 to One that mocked Korean boy band BTS
‘Dear 20 to One, you should definitely reflect and apologise for this disgusting, misinformed report about BTS,’ they added.
‘Apologise to BTS, you coward,’ another tweeted, this time directly to Erin herself.
The problematic segment repeatedly mocked BTS, beginning with Erin introducing them as ‘the biggest band you’ve never heard of’ before an awkward reference to North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un was made.
‘Literally every sentence said in this video is problematic and is filled with racial undertones and xenophobia’: The segment was slammed by K-pop fans (Pictured: BTS)
They then showed several celebrity guests making snarky comments about the band.
‘When I first heard something Korean had exploded in America, I got worried,’ comedian Jimmy Carr said.
‘So I guess, it could’ve been worse – but not much worse,’ he added as a clip of the group performing was shown.
Erin then expressed surprise at the group’s chart-topping success in America, because ‘only one band member actually speaks English’.
‘I was appalled’: Disgusted fans flooded Twitter to slam Channel Nine and host Erin Molan
‘Apologise to BTS, you coward,’ another tweeted directly to Erin herself
Former Australian Idol star Rob Mills also took a swipe at the group’s singing abilities while 20 to One played an out of context clip of member Jimin’s voice cracking on stage during a performance.
Comedian Mel Buttle later suggested that BTS should fire four of their seven members, because she felt that there were too many of them.
Erin and co-host Nick Cody took things even further by mocking the group’s work with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
While playing a clip of BTS discussing their philanthropic in a speech to the UN last year, the pair remarked that they must have been speaking about ‘hair products’.
‘When I first heard something Korean had exploded in America, I got worried’: The segment included several celebrities mocking BTS. (Pictured: Jimmy Carr)
Pot calling the kettle black? Former Australian Idol star Rob Mills also took a swipe at the group’s singing abilities
BTS partnered with UNICEF in 2017 to launch a two-year campaign to stop violence against children. So far, the campaign has raised almost AUD$3 million.
Channel Nine defended the segment in a statement issued to SBS PopAsia on Thursday.
‘As a light-hearted entertainment program, it is our belief that last night’s episode of 20 to One, which highlighted the Greatest Global Crazes, did not breach any broadcast regulations, and was intended to humorously highlight the popularity of the group.
Low blow: Erin and Nick went as far as to make fun of BTS’ philanthropic work with the United Nations, joking that the boys must have been discussing ‘hair products’ while addressing the UN last year
‘We apologise to any who may have been offended by last night’s episode.’
This isn’t the first time that Channel Nine has been in hot water with K-pop fans.
On Sunday, the network used footage from Korean girl group BLACKPINK’s recent Sydney concert in a news story about an unrelated drug bust.
The segment, which aired on Nine News, was about five people who had been arrested on drug supply charges at the I AM HARDSTYLE dance festival, which took place at Olympic Park over the weekend.
Big mistake: On Sunday, Channel Nine used footage from Korean girl group BLACKPINK’s recent Sydney concert in a news story about an unrelated drug bust. (Pictured: BLACKPINK)
‘Poor journalism and lack of integrity’: Fans were outraged to see the beloved girl group wrongfully implicated in a drug bust
BLACKPINK’s army of fans took to Twitter to criticise the network for using video of the band’s performance in the news bulletin, labelling it ‘disgraceful’ journalism.
‘Poor journalism and lack of integrity,’ one fan tweeted. ‘What they reported did NOT happen at a BLACKPINK concert.’
‘Using BLACKPINK’s concert video clips saying that people were using drugs, when in fact it was in another stadium with a rave party is disgraceful,’ wrote another.