'Anti-male Controversy' Ad Designer "I No Longer Want Any Harm to Occur"
Sharp 'Gender Conflict'... Impact Extends Beyond Companies to Regular Employees
Critics Point Out Similarity to Past 'Game Industry Feminist Expulsion' Controversy
Freelancers and Outsourced Contract Workers More Vulnerable
Convenience store brand GS25's promotional poster for camping supplies posted on Instagram on the 1st. / Photo by Instagram capture
[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] The controversy over the GS25 advertisement poster accused of misogyny is a conflict commonly seen in the gaming industry. The gaming sector is particularly sensitive to gender conflict issues, and industry workers who have expressed support for feminism have faced fierce consumer backlash and boycotts.
On the 9th, an anonymous post appeared on the workplace community 'Blind' from a netizen who introduced themselves as the designer of the GS25 advertisement poster. The netizen stated, "I am the GS25 designer at the center of this controversy," and added, "The situation has grown too large, it has already escalated, and it seems irreversible, so I am posting this out of genuine hope that no further damage will occur."
They continued, "As a working mom with a son and husband, I am very far from misogyny," emphasizing, "I want to clarify that I do not support any particular ideology."
The creator of the GS25 poster, which sparked controversy over alleged misandry, posted an explanation on a workplace community. / Photo by Internet Community Capture
They also said, "The company is currently conducting investigations through internal procedures such as organizational culture and management diagnosis regarding the issue," and appealed, "I have heard about other designers in the design team who are being misunderstood because of me. I am writing this in the hope that no more victims will arise. Please stop digging into the personal information of the designers."
The GS25 misogyny controversy erupted on the 1st. GS25 posted an advertisement poster promoting camping products on its official Instagram account, but the sausage and hand gesture images in the poster raised suspicions of misogyny. Some male netizens claimed that the distinctive hand gesture, where the thumb and index finger are pinched together, is used in the radical feminist internet community 'Megalia.' According to these netizens, the gesture mocks a specific male body part.
Some netizens argued that Megalia members secretly operating within the advertising and distribution industries should be identified. Various online communities posted messages urging a boycott of GS25 convenience stores until the company completely dispels the Megalia suspicions. The misogyny controversy has thus affected not only the company but also ordinary employees.
Some have pointed out that this development resembles the past 'feminist expulsion' controversy in the gaming industry. That incident began with collective consumer backlash and boycotts against certain voice actors and illustrators in the gaming sector.
In 2016, voice actress Kim Jayeon posted a message supporting feminism on social networking services (SNS), which led to a boycott campaign by game consumers. / Photo by Internet homepage capture
The controversy first arose in 2016 with the voice actor replacement incident in the online game 'Closers' by the game developer Nexon. At that time, voice actor Kim Jayeon, who was participating in the game's voice recording, posted a photo on her Twitter account wearing a T-shirt with the phrase "Girls do not need a prince." Upon seeing this, game consumers launched a collective boycott demanding the replacement of the 'Megalia voice actor,' and Nexon eventually replaced Kim.
Since then, 'Megalia controversies' have continued to surface in the gaming industry. When industry workers post pro-feminism content online, they face a barrage of criticism, and production companies often terminate contracts. In March, an illustrator known as A, working on a small to mid-sized domestic game, had their contract terminated for sharing feminism-related articles on their social media.
As the expulsion controversies persisted, the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) issued a recommendation to the government in July last year to improve misogynistic and discriminatory practices in the gaming industry. The commission noted cases where industry workers were effectively expelled for sharing or supporting feminist content and urged, "It is desirable to prevent the spread of hatred and create an environment where victims can resume activities in the related industry."
In the gaming industry, there have been ongoing controversies in the past regarding the expulsion of feminists. / Photo by Yonhap News
The feminist expulsion controversy in the gaming industry is seen as similar to the misogyny controversy in that some consumers proactively search for so-called 'evidence of Megalia' and engage in collective boycotts.
The problem is that if such controversies intensify, relatively vulnerable employees or outsourced contract workers suffer significant damage. Especially, outsourced workers and freelancers who have contracts with companies risk losing their jobs.
Regarding this, the designer who created the GS25 poster embroiled in the misogyny controversy also bowed their head in a post on 'Blind,' saying, "I want to sincerely apologize to the designers who have suffered misunderstandings and damages because of similar professions."
Experts advise that companies need to actively protect relatively vulnerable individuals amid socially intense gender conflicts.
Kim Jihak, director of the Korea Diversity Research Institute, said, "This issue started from so-called misogyny conflicts, but the problem is that such conflicts can attack truly socially vulnerable groups such as women and minorities," and pointed out, "It is not good that female workers are placed in a situation where they have to explain the controversy themselves amid such sharp social conflicts."
He added, "Companies should be able to protect vulnerable workers more actively."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
