China's Weibo Bans BTS Fan Account For Illegal Fundraising
Chinese social media platform Weibo banned a fan club of popular South Korean K-pop band BTS from posting for 60 days, saying it had raised funds illegally
Chinese
social
media
platform
Weibo
banned
a
fan
club
of
popular
South
Korean
K-pop
band
BTS
from
posting
for
60
days,
saying
it
had
raised
funds
illegally,
days
after
photographs
of
a
customized
airplane
funded
by
the
fan
club
were
posted
online.
The
fan
club
account,
which
had
over
1.1
million
followers
on
Weibo,
was
centered
around
BTS
member
Jimin.
The
restrictions
imposed
on
the
account
came
amid
China's
campaign
to
clean
up
the
entertainment
industry
and
clamp
down
on
“irrational
behavior”
exhibited
by
fans.
Chinese
President
Xi
Jinping
has
called
for
a
“national
rejuvenation”
with
tighter
Communist
Party
control
of
business,
education,
culture
and
religion.
The
party
has
since
reduced
children's
access
to
online
games
and
is
trying
to
discourage
what
it
sees
as
unhealthy
attention
toward
celebrities.
Last
week,
the
government
banned
effeminate
men
on
TV
and
banned
idol
development
shows
for
their
“low
moral
values”
that
could
be
a
bad
influence
on
the
youth.
The
BTS
fan
account
was
banned
from
posting
on
Weibo
after
images
circulated
online
last
week
of
a
customized
airplane
from
Jeju
Air
with
images
of
Jimin
on
it.
The
customized
airplane
was
part
of
the
club's
plans
to
celebrate
his
26th
birthday
in
October.
The
stunt
drew
swift
criticism
online
for
its
excess.
Following
the
backlash,
the
account
issued
a
statement
last
week
on
its
feed
urging
fans
to
be
“rational”
when
chasing
celebrities
for
a
“harmonious
and
healthy
internet
environment.”
Weibo
said
in
a
statement
Sunday
that
the
group
has
been
banned
from
posting
for
60
days
after
it
was
found
to
have
raised
funds
illegally.
“Weibo
firmly
opposes
such
irrational
star-chasing
behavior
and
will
deal
with
it
seriously,”
the
statement
said.
The
fan
club
began
raising
money
in
April
to
prepare
for
the
birthday
celebrations,
according
to
state-owned
media
Global
Times,
with
over
1
million
yuan
($150,000)
raised
in
the
first
three
minutes
of
the
fundraising
activity
and
2.3
million
yuan
($360,000)
in
the
first
hour.
The
club
also
planned
to
run
advertisements
celebrating
Jimin's
birthday
in
newspapers
like
The
New
York
Times.
It
is
not
uncommon
for
K-pop
fans
worldwide
to
celebrate
the
birthdays
of
their
favorite
celebrities
by
taking
out
advertisements
in
newspapers
and
billboards
or
customizing
public
transport
vehicles
with
images
of
their
idols.
Many
fans
also
fundraise
to
donate
to
charitable
causes
such
as
funding
education
for
the
underprivileged
or
sponsoring
wild
animals
in
stars'
names
as
part
of
such
celebrations.
Weibo
also
said
in
a
separate
statement
on
Sunday
that
it
banned
21
other
fan
accounts
for
30
days
for
posting
“irrational
star-chasing”
content.
The
banned
fan
accounts
were
mostly
centered
around
K-pop
celebrities,
such
as
members
of
South
Korean
boy
bands
NCT
and
EXO,
and
girl
group
Blackpink.
Celebrities
in
China
are
often
pressured
to
conform
to
values
espoused
by
the
Chinese
government
or
face
the
repercussions.
Celebrities
such
as
Fan
Bingbing
and
Zheng
Shuang
have
been
fined
heavily
for
evading
taxes,
and
popular
actress
Zhao
Wei
last
week
had
her
name
removed
from
credits
of
films
and
TV
shows
she
had
starred
in
without
explanation.
Chinese
singer
and
actor
Lu
Han,
a
former
member
of
popular
K-pop
group
EXO,
said
Sunday
that
he
would
cut
ties
with
Swiss
luxury
watch
brand
Audemars
Piguet
after
a
video
circulated
online
last
week
showing
its
CEO
refer
to
Taiwan
as
an
“ultra-modern,
high-tech
country.”
China,
which
claims
Taiwan
as
its
territory,
objects
to
any
reference
to
the
self-governing
island
as
a
country.
Under
the
one-country
policy,
other
countries
have
diplomatic
relations
with
either
China
or
Taiwan,
but
not
both.