Read on Twitter
Thread on the Emily situation and why it’s become what it is now. On April 14, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) published a story discussing merch and its role in fandom (not just BTS but other artists as well), essentially saying that it’s gone too far.
Attached is a screenshot of what Emily Wang, the only Army interviewed, had to say about it. Obviously, this didn’t land well with a lot of Armys, bc of how ridiculous a sample size of 19 is and how negative the interview seemed (using the word greediness, etc).
This then turned into some lighthearted joking when Bighit, very soon after the article, announced the Bangbangcon 2021 merch (e.g. if you saw jokes about Emily and her 19 friends). After that, things calmed down and no one (that I saw) was speaking about the article at all.
Now a few days ago, a big academic Army account @ResearchBTS came out in defence of Emily, saying that they had spoken to her and that she had been misrepresented by the journalist and that her research was much more nuanced than how it appeared in the article.
They’re private now, so I can’t attach their thread but if anyone has it please share, but their explanation of Emily’s side of the story seemed iffy (did not explain the sample size, affirmed the use of greediness, etc).
They (or Emily) did not share the research, so many Armys were frustrated that these big Army research accounts( @TheR3Journal and @BangtanScholars as well) seemed to be backing Emily and dismissing rightful criticisms of her simply bc she is a researcher and is connected to them.
Then last night, Emily shared her research and confirmed what many Armys had thought, that the research was flawed. Many other accounts have thoughtfully critiqued (peer reviewed some might say) the study so I won’t add to it but feel free to read though the quotes and comments. https://twitter.com/sbykjeon/status/1385700110294609924
The reveal of the research confused me (and others) bc from what was presented, Emily wasn’t exactly misrepresented in the article. So why would these accounts involve themselves and speak on her behalf affirming the quality of the research if they had read the same thing we did.
This research it turns out, was in its preliminary stages, and was presented at an Army research conference of sorts hosted by @TheR3Journal. This is where I place the blame-
why was Emily not advised by any of the academics involved in these three accounts that her research was not up to par yet and was definitely not ready to be presented in media? Why was it even presented to the WSJ in the first place?
Other academic accounts involved with @ResearchBTS are now speaking up, saying that this response has made them scared to publish their own research that may focus on negatives of Army or BTS. https://twitter.com/ale777pm/status/1385980588788703241
Further investigation of these accounts shows that they follow known antis, racists, and people that have harassed Armys. Now my question is, @ResearchBTS did you know these accounts had this bias towards Armys when you invited them to speak in a PAID conference for Armys? https://twitter.com/jjkbts14/status/1385984015342186499
You must have, since you’re liking the tweets inferring that Armys are irrational and can’t handle criticism of their fandom. https://twitter.com/prodgwanju/status/1386003455123222530
All I’m seeing now is that many of the researchers here are simply using Armys and BTS to further their careers and their reputations, and think that we are below them and unable to understand the nuances of academia simply bc we are not as “educated” as them.
How do we move on from this? I don’t know. All I’m asking is that you don’t speak on behalf of Armys or BTS in the media ever again, and see how far your professional career goes without that clout.
Update: Many of the prominent Army scholars on here are following and engaging with ppl that have genuine hatred towards Armys and BTS. I cannot and will not ever again trust someone who chooses to associate with and defend these sorts of people. It’s a no from me. https://twitter.com/MegaStringbean/status/1386282797871030277
