HYBE is currently facing criticism for alleged media plays against Min Hee Jin and alleged manipulation of NewJeans‘ parents.
On May 28, media outlet Ilgan Sports released a report alleging HYBE’s PR department pressured their reporters to write negative articles about ADOR CEO Min Hee Jin. Ilgan Sports exposed HYBE for alleged media plays against her, stating, “The goal of this kind of media play is unclear. Are they trying to fire Min Hee Jin? Or make her an outcast in society? HYBE’s nonsensical media play continued. For 3 days, article after article was released about how Min Hee Jin allegedly claimed RIIZE, TWS, ILLIT, and BTS were made by copying her.”
According to Ilgan Sports, a HYBE marketing officer had also met with media outlets to demand they exclude investors names from reports. The media outlet stated, “HYBE publicly revealed Min Hee Jin had met with executives for the label’s major shareholders, but then ridiculously demanded the media outlet remove all the names of the executives that were previously revealed.”
Ilgan Sports continued, “The most irrational media play was 20 minutes before HYBE’s press conference when they announced their audit. HYBE released a press statement stating Min Hee Jin was seeing a shaman to run ADOR. The allegations in the press release that claimed Min Hee Jin was being guided by a shaman were all denied by Min Hee Jin the day before in her answers to HYBE’s questioning on the 24th. Even more of a problem is that once Min Hee Jin sent her answers to HYBE’s questioning, HYBE refused to release them and threatened to take legal action against any media outlet that did. Then 20 minutes before the press conference, they released a press statement saying Min Hee Jin was the one threatening legal action.”
The media outlet further claimed HYBE attempted to pressure news outlets to write negative articles about Min Hee Jin. Ilgan Sports stated, “After the April 25 audit announcement, HYBE’s head PR representative asked why Ilgan Sports and xx were on Min Hee Jin’s side. We never sided with Min Hee Jin. We only wrote about her press conference.”
Ilgan Sports also revealed HYBE had been acting in the same confusing manner with the NewJeans members’ parents. According to their report, “This shaman report is what made NewJeans’ parents lose faith in HYBE. Three of the members’ parents met with HYBE’s CEO Park Ji Won and the label’s executives. After revealing the shaman allegations to NewJeans’ parents, HYBE told the parents not to share the news with their children as it may hurt them. However, the articles were released just 1 hour after their meeting. The members’ parents then felt they couldn’t trust HYBE as the label pretended to care about their daughters only to release the articles themselves.”
In related news, HYBE founder Bang Si Hyuk was previously accused of ignoring the NewJeans’ members when they would greet him according to one member’s parent. Â
