'Fate War 49' faced the prospect of legal action after using the word "kalbbang" toward a fallen police officer following insults toward a fallen firefighter, and the production team ultimately decided to re-edit the show.
In the recently released Disney+ original variety show 'Fate War 49', a mission called "guessing the deceased's cause of death" appeared, sparking controversy. In particular, the process of guessing the causes of death of figures presented as the deceased, such as fallen firefighters and police officers, drew criticism for insulting the dead.
In particular, the bereaved family of the late Fire Sergeant Kim Cheol-hong expressed displeasure on social media immediately after the broadcast. A person identified as the late man's nephew, A, said, "They said it was intended to honor the noble sacrifice, but I don't understand it at all," and added, "They said they had consented, but they didn't know it would be that kind of shamanistic content. If they had known it would be like this, they would not have consented," expressing anger.
On the 20th, the production team issued an apology, saying, "We express deep respect for the sacrifice and conviction of Fire Sergeant Kim Cheol-hong, who gave his life in dedication to protecting the people, and we offer sincere condolences to the bereaved family," and explained, "Given the program's purpose, many lives and deaths would be introduced, and we wanted to use this as an opportunity to reflect on meaningful and noble stories. That is the reason we chose Sergeant Kim's story."
They added, "Before filming, we explained to the bereaved family that this program is a survival-style show featuring fortune tellers and that it would illuminate the deceased's fate through divination, and we obtained written consent from the family member to use the likeness, name, and birth date and time," and said, "We later learned that some bereaved family members and relatives only received information about the prior consent process after the broadcast. We will continue to explain and clear up misunderstandings. We humbly accept the many criticisms and will strive to gain understanding and sympathy from both viewers and those involved. We sincerely apologize to the bereaved family and fellow firefighters who were hurt."
But before the controversy subsided, criticism also arose that the same episode insulted a fallen police officer. In the same episode 2, a cast member used the slang term "kalbbang" while discussing the circumstances of the death of the late Corporal Lee Jae-hyun, and host Jun Hyun-moo repeated the term, triggering a heated debate among viewers.
As criticism over the insult to Corporal Lee Jae-hyun, who died while apprehending a suspect, grew, the Korean National Police Agency reportedly said it was reviewing responses including requesting deletion of the problematic episode from 'Fate War 49', demanding an apology, and requesting a review by the Korea Communications Commission.
On the 23rd, Jun Hyun-moo issued an apology through his agency SM C&C, acknowledging his mistake. He apologized, saying, "I deeply mourn the lives and efforts of all the deceased mentioned on 'Fate War 49' and extend my sincere condolences to the bereaved families. I feel heavy responsibility for causing pain to the deceased and their families with some expressions used in that broadcast. Regardless of the context, I should have been more careful when mentioning the deceased."
His agency said, "While summarizing the cast member's remarks, Jun Hyun-moo mentioned some words verbatim and failed to fully consider the appropriateness of the expressions. We take the failure to show proper respect to the deceased very seriously. We sincerely apologize to the deceased and their families," and added, "We also apologize to anyone who felt uncomfortable watching the broadcast. We will internally review and strengthen standards and responsibility to prevent recurrence."
The next day, on the 24th, the 'Fate War 49' team issued a second apology, saying, "We mourn the fallen people who appeared on the program and extend deep condolences and respect to the bereaved families. We sincerely apologize to the fallen, the bereaved families who may have been hurt, colleagues, and many others who were concerned that an appearing shaman, not knowing the deceased, used divination and included inappropriate language and depictions," reiterating their apology.
They added, "The production team is listening to the bereaved families' accounts, apologizing for the parts where we failed to anticipate their feelings in advance, and working to resolve the issue. We will exercise greater care in overall program production in the future and strengthen internal review and production processes," and said, "Once again, we deeply apologize."
Although the second apology and panelist Jun Hyun-moo's apology followed, questions remained about whether it is acceptable to use someone else's death as variety show material. Ultimately, the production team accepted the bereaved family's opinion and decided to re-edit the relevant content.
On the 27th, the production team said, "We honor the noble sacrifices of the late Fire Chief Kim Cheol-hong and the late Corporal Lee Jae-hyun, and we thank firefighters and police officers who still risk their lives for the nation's safety. The production team has been listening to the words of the bereaved families and related parties. Accepting their wishes, we have decided to re-edit the relevant parts."
Finally, the production team bowed, saying, "We again offer deep apologies to the bereaved families, firefighters and police officers, and viewers who were hurt by our shortcomings and errors. We will heed the opinions we have received and reorganize and strengthen our production processes."
Meanwhile, Disney+'s 'Fate War 49' is a variety show in which 49 fortune tellers gather to test their fates through various missions in a possessed survival-style competition.
[Photo] OSEN DB, Disney+
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