The dissemination of edited photos and videos of BLACKPINK Lisa and BTS Jungkook has become a serious issue.
Recently, edited videos of BTS Jungkook and BLACKPINK Lisa have spread widely on Instagram and TikTok.
On May 30th, a video posted by an international fan and subsequently spread showed Lisa and Jungkook sitting side by side. Particularly, the video included a surprising scene where Jungkook caresses Lisa’s hand and the two exchange glances.
In another video, multiple Lisa and Jungkook’s affectionate selfies are shown. They lean their heads together and have their shoulders close, while wearing stage outfits or casual clothes, looking like a real couple. Numerous posts implying Lisa and Jungkook’s romantic relationship were also found online.
Furthermore, when searching for Lisa and Jungkook’s names in the Google search bar, a flood of “couple photos” of the two would show up.
In response to this, Korean fans and netizens have been questioning the authenticity of these photos and videos.
When a fan asked, “If you watch YouTube, it says Jungkook likes Lisa and they are a couple. Is it true?” on an online community, netizens left comments:
- “It seems that foreign fans are more involved in creating such things than we are”
- “Foreign fans start this dating rumor by editing these videos and photos”
- “Since Jungkook reacted well during BLACKPINK’s award ceremony, international fans have been doing this more intensely”
- “Jungkook was also rumored to be dating IU, and the views were extremely high”
- “Jungkook and Lisa have never actually done anything together”
- “The edits were done really well. They look like a foreign couple”
- “This is all fake but they look real…”
When distributing manipulated videos or fake videos using ‘deepfake’ techniques, which involve editing additional photos onto existing photos or videos, one can be sentenced to imprisonment for up to five years or fined up to 50 million won (around 37,765 USD).
In December 2020, a teenager was arrested for distributing and selling photos that illegally combined the faces of more than 150 singers.
Moreover, the distorted fandom behavior of some fans, which deviates from the truth and spreads false information, can lead to legal actions for defamation of an artist’s reputation in civil and criminal cases.
