Mnet vote manipulation investigation
The incident primarily involves the Produce 101 series and Idol School, which were intended to create K-pop groups with members selected by audience vote.In 2009, South Korean cable television channel Mnet produced their first reality competition series, Superstar K, which immediately became popular, creating a boom of audition program franchises.[1][2][3] In 2016, they launched Produce 101, aiming to create a short-term K-pop project group of 101 contestants with all 11 members selected by audience vote.The group formed from that show, I.O.I, was successful throughout their one-year contract, and due to their popularity, Mnet subsequently continued the series, creating its own franchise.[7] In addition to the Produce 101 series, Mnet launched Idol School in 2017 with a similar premise, which created the girl group Fromis 9.[citation needed] In response to the allegations, Mnet admitted that there were errors in calculation, but also maintained that the final rankings were correct and that there was no intention of changing X1's member line-up.[11][12] On August 20, 2019, a search warrant was issued on CJ E&M offices and a text voting company by the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency.[22] Participants of Produce X 101 and Idol School and agency officials alleged anonymously that the production teams were biased towards trainees they preferred, such as forcing song producers to give certain trainees more lines and providing them with more screen time; one of them alleged that a contestant had his screen time completely removed after raising a complaint against a staff member, who had yelled at him to wake up.[21] During the October 15 broadcast of PD Note, several trainees anonymously claimed that their living quarters had poor ventilation and some girls developed rashes from dust.[33] The indictment, however, clarified that, from January 2018 to July 2019, Ahn received services 47 times, estimating ₩46.83 million, that were paid for by the five talent agency representatives in exchange for giving their trainees favorable screentime.In addition, Ahn claimed that while he violated the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act, he only drank with entertainment agency representatives without accepting bribes, a statement that was supported by the other defendants.[55][56] On November 18, 2020, the trial of appeals for the case of Produce 101 series was held, the court revealed the list of contestants who were eliminated due to manipulation.[64] Following Ahn Joon-young and Kim Yong-bum's arrests, Mnet stated that their current and future reality programs, such as Queendom and Teen Singer, will be implementing an "observer system", where ordinary people and third parties will be overseeing the votes.[85] On December 30, 2019, Mnet and CJ ENM announced that both Iz*One and X1 will begin discussing future plans for the groups, and that the eliminated trainees will be fairly compensated.[90][91] Following initial accusations in July 2019, politician Ha Tae-keung (Bareunmirae member at the time, now with People Power Party) condemned Mnet, stating that some of the numbers had a low probability of naturally occurring.[12][92] On October 17, 2019, Korea Communications Standards Commission revealed that they may fine Mnet up to ₩30 million for violating the Enforcement Decree of the Broadcasting Act.[27] After Ahn Joon-young and Kim Yong-bum's arrests, Shiori Niwa, another contestant of the first season, posted and later deleted tweets alleging that some of the trainees already knew the lyrics and choreography to "Pick Me" by the time she heard it.[98] Jung Dong-soo, a contestant of Produce 101 Season 2, called for the culprits to be punished and later stated that, while he had suspected the ranks were manipulated, he was "shocked" and "angry".