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BTS Fans Slam VMAs’ New K-Pop Category

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  • BTS fans are angry at MTV for adding a new category for K-Pop music at its annual Video Music Awards.
  • Critics claim it separates K-Pop artists from Western artists and blocks them out of major slots like Video and Song of the Year.
  • The hashtag #VMAsRacist spread on Twitter with fans bashing the decision and even calling for a boycott of the award show.

K-Pop Category Receives Backlash

BTS fans are slamming the MTV Video Music Awards and using the hashtag #VMAsRacist after the show shut the band out of major categories, and nominated them in its new “Best K-Pop” slot. 

This is the first year the awards show will have the “Best K-Pop” category, and along with BTS, bands like Blackpink and NCT 127 are also nominated. BTS is nominated in three other places as well, including Best Collaboration, Best Choreography, and Best Art Direction.

However, they were notably left out of the show’s most prestigious categories like Video of the Year, Song of the Year, Artist of the Year, and Best Pop. Now, the boy band’s devoted fan base is arguing that BTS has more than enough merit to be in those spots.

Their video for “Boy With Luv” broke the record for most views on YouTube within 24 hours. With over 470 million views in total, it has racked up more clicks than any of the hits nominated for Video of the Year. 

BTS fans believe that with the addition of the K-Pop category, MTV is separating BTS and K-Pop phenomenons from popular western music. They also believe that since MTV is nominating K-Pop acts separately, they are giving preference to western artists to be nominated in the major categories.

Using the hashtag #VMAsRacist, fans called the VMA’s out for their decision. 

Fans on Twitter were not the only ones expressing their frustrations. This sentiment spread throughout the internet, with Teen Vogue writing a column calling the category “another way to marginalize successful non-white artists.”

 “The details around these nominations sound like they’re saying, ‘You can come, just don’t sit with us,’” the column reads.

Since the VMA winners are fan-voted, some fans are encouraging everyone to vote so BTS will win all their categories. However, they are also saying that when the show airs, they should boycott watching as to not give MTV their views. 

Viewers are something the VMA’s could use more of. Last year, the show hit an all-time low in viewership, with just 2.25 million people tuning into the broadcast. What kind of numbers could K-Pop fans bring to the table? Well, when BTS member J-Hope did a live stream counting down to his birthday, he racked in over nine million viewers. 

Similar Controversies

This is not the first time the VMA’s have come under fire for the creation of international categories. In 2010, they added the “Best Latin” spot to the show. While Latino artists have been nominated in many other categories since then, only once has a Latino artist been nominated for the show’s top prize of Video of the Year. This nomination went to Camilla Cabello in 2018 for “Havana.”

The songs nominated in “Best Latin” also do well globally. This year, “Mia” by Bad Bunny featuring Drake was nominated just in the “Best Latin” category. However, when you look at its YouTube views, the video has 870 million hits. That’s more than double Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy,” which is the most-viewed song nominated for Video of the Year this year.

Some are also saying that like “Best K-Pop,” “Best Latin” should also not be separated from other categories, and those artists should be included in the major categories. 

MTV has not yet addressed the controversy. When the nominations were announced, Bruce Gillmer, the head of music at Viacom and co-brand head of MTV International, released a statement saying he felt the nominations represented the landscape of modern music. 

“It’s been an incredible year in music and this group of nominees perfectly reflect the rich pop music landscape,” he said. “We can’t wait to see the outcome, once the fans weigh in. It’s going to be an awesome, unforgettable evening!”

See what others are saying: (Teen Vogue) (Vox) (Variety)

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Max to Agrees to “Properly” Credit Writers and Directors After Facing Backlash For Lumping Them in As “Creators”

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The company said the credits were laid out incorrectly due to “an oversight in the technical transition from HBO Max to Max.”


After film and television writers slammed Max for crediting all writers, producers, and directors as general “creators” on its platform, the company said it will be adjusting its credits display.

“We agree that the talent behind the content on Max deserve their work to be properly recognized,” the streaming service said in a statement obtained by The Hollywood Reporter. 

Max — the new rebrand of HBO Max that incorporates Discovery content — launched on Tuesday to much criticism. Amid glitches and app-switching confusion, the biggest backlash it faced was over the choice to lump creative roles into one credit section called “creators.” As one viral tweet noted, if a user were to select the film “Raging Bull,” the service’s display would not specifically credit Martin Scorsese as the director, rather, his name would be included at random with half a dozen other people, including writers and producers. 

The decision was condemned by many in the industry who argued it minimizes writers and directors by not properly giving them credit where it is due. Especially amid the ongoing writers’ strike, and with directors and actors starting negotiations with studios, some took it as a slap in the face. 

“The studios don’t want anyone to know our names,” writer Christina Strain tweeted. “It’s easier to pay us nothing if we’re faceless.”

“Another move from studios to diminish the role of writers, directors, actors and other craftspeople. Miss me wit this nonsense,” Jorge Rivera, the Vice-Chair of the Writers Guild’s Latinx Writers Committee, added. 

In a statement, Directors Guild President Lesli Linka Glatter said that Warner Bros. Discovery’s choice to “collapse” these roles into one credit “while we are in negotiations with them is a grave insult to our members and our union.”

“The DGA will not stand for it,” Glatter continued.

WGA West President Meredith Stiehm claimed the move was “a credits violation,” as well as an insult “to the artists that make the films and TV shows that make their corporation billions.”

On Wednesday, Max said it would rework its crediting. 

“We will correct the credits, which were altered due to an oversight in the technical transition from HBO Max to Max and we apologize for this mistake,” the platform said.

See what others are saying: (Gizmodo) (The Hollywood Reporter) (The Los Angeles Times)

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A Quarter of Young British Men Support Andrew Tate’s Thoughts on Women

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U.K. residents at large, however, do not view him favorably.


Even under house arrest in Romania, misogynist influencer Andrew Tate still holds substantial sway over young men. 

According to data from YouGov that was obtained by The Independent, 26% of U.K. men between 18 and 29 years old who know of Tate agree with his views on women. That figure was largely the same for men between 30 and 39, as 28% agreed with Tate’s opinions on the subject. 

Men in their 30s were slightly more likely to agree with Tate on his thoughts about masculinity. Three out of ten supported those views, compared to just a quarter of men 18 to 29.

Those statistics only include the thoughts of men who have heard of Tate, but per YouGov, most have. In the 18 to 29 group, 93% were familiar with him, and 86% of men in their 30s knew of him. 

The U.K. at large was less aware of Tate, with just 63% of British adults having heard of him. Of that group, only 6% held a positive view of him. 

Tate has faced substantial backlash for his sexist rhetoric over the years. In the past, he said that men should have “authority” over their wives or girlfriends, and that women should “bear some responsibility” for being raped. He was previously banned from Twitter over his extremist views on women but has since been allowed back on the platform. 

He is currently being investigated in Romania for organized crime and human trafficking. He was arrested and held in custody in December but was released to house arrest earlier this year. No formal charges have been filed against him yet and he has maintained his innocence. 

Tate currently boasts a Twitter following of 6.7 million. It has grown significantly since he was enveloped in legal controversy, and many of his supporters have demanded his release. 

See what others are saying: (The Independent) (Glamour U.K.)

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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Involved in “Near Catastrophic” Paparazzi Chase

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“While being a public figure comes with a level of interest from the public, it should never come at the cost of anyone’s safety,” a spokesperson for the couple said.


“Aggressive” Paparazzi Chase Couple in New York

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were involved in a “near catastrophic” paparazzi car chase Tuesday night in New York City, according to a spokesperson for the couple.

In a statement, the spokesperson described the photographers as “highly aggressive.”

“While being a public figure comes with a level of interest from the public, it should never come at the cost of anyone’s safety,” the statement added.

“This relentless pursuit, lasting over two hours, resulted in multiple near collisions involving other drivers on the road, pedestrians and two NYPD officers,” it continued. 

Details of the incident are still emerging, but BBC News reported that there are claims the chase involved roughly six cars driving recklessly by running red lights, driving on the sidewalk, carrying out blocking moves, going backward on a one-way road, and taking pictures while driving. 

The chase happened after Harry and Meghan were leaving the Women of Vision Awards with Meghan’s mother, Doria. They did not want photographers to learn where they were staying and attempted to avoid them in what turned into a 75-minute chase on a main road in Manhattan’s Upper East Side. They eventually ducked into a New York Police Department Precinct to hide out before getting into a different vehicle.

The NYPD released a statement confirming that they assisted in protecting the couple as “numerous photographers” hindered their transport. Officials said they made it to their destination and there were no collisions, injuries, or arrests. 

The couple’s spokesperson is asking the public to not share or post footage of the incident. 

“Dissemination of these images, given the ways in which they were obtained, encourages a highly intrusive practice that is dangerous to all in involved,” the spokesperson said. 

Memories of Princess Diana

The chase evokes the brutal press hounding Harry’s mother, Princess Diana, was subjected to throughout her life. The paparazzi’s obsession with her ultimately resulted in her death in 1997, when she was killed in a car crash after being chased by photographers in Paris. 

Since marrying Meghan and later bowing out of the Royal Family, Harry has made it explicitly clear that he fears those events could happen again. Meghan has been the subject of endless tabloid scrutiny, enduring racism and harassment from the press. Part of the reason they left the Royal Family was to keep their family protected from such attacks.

Mayor Eric Adams brought up Diana’s tragic passing while speaking about Tuesday night’s chase. 

“I don’t think there’s many of us who don’t recall how [Harry’s] mom died,” Adams said while speaking to reporters. “And it would be horrific to lose an innocent bystander during a chase like this and something to have happened to them as well…I think that was a bit reckless and irresponsible.” 

Adams also questioned whether or not he believes a chase could go on for two hours in a city as congested as New York, but noted that even a 10-minute chase would be dangerous. He said he will be briefed on the exact timeline and details later. 

See what others are saying: (BBC News) (Associated Press) (Yahoo News)

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