UK Quiz Show Contestant Says "BTS, an Unimportant Small Korean Band"

The group BTS appeared for the first time on NPR's famous music program "Tiny Desk Concert."
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Eun-young] A contestant on a British quiz show is facing backlash from fans after posting a tweet that dismissed BTS.

On the 25th, the British daily The Independent reported that Anne Hegerty (62), a contestant on the British quiz show "The Chase," referred to BTS as an "insignificant small band."

On the 24th, Anne Hegerty engaged in a debate on her Twitter regarding BTS's online appearance at a side event of the United Nations General Assembly.

The controversy began when Anne McElvoy, editor of The Economist in the UK, posted "Please no" in response to a BTS video. After facing backlash from fans, McElvoy apologized, saying, "My earlier tweet about BTS was in jest and I'm sorry it was taken the wrong way. Apologies."

However, Hegerty further fueled the controversy by replying to the tweet with, "All this about a little Korean boy band that's fundamentally not important?"

Fans are protesting and expressing their opposition to this remark.

Meanwhile, BTS's English new song "Dynamite" surpassed 400 million views on its official music video around 10:40 PM on the 25th. This milestone was achieved approximately 35 days after its release on YouTube at 1 PM on the 21st of last month. The song also made history as the first Korean pop music to reach number one on the US Billboard main singles chart, the "Hot 100."