Chinese Netizens Also Disappointed in Hwayoung's Expulsion from T-ara

On July 30, Kim Kwang Soo, CEO of Core Contents Media, announced revocation of T-ara‘s now formal member Hwayoung‘s contract. He explained the reasons behind Hwayoung’s departure from the group as “conflicts with staff members” and “bad effects on T-ara’s teamwork.” He did not mention or explain anything regarding the “bully rumors.” However, most netizens and fans are already convinced that Hwayoung was being bullied badly within the group based on several video clips from variety shows in the past and T-ara members’ tweets from July 25.

Hwayoung’s questionable revocation of contract with Core Contents Media and T-ara is garnering much attention internationally, too. China’s Sina.com, 21CN, and several other online media outlets have published news articles covering T-ara’s disbandment and the “bully theory.” Shortly after Kim Kwang Soo’s official announcement, Sina.com have published an article titled, “The Behind Story of Hwayoung’s Departure Stirs Curiosity,” and reported the entire series of twitter mentions among T-ara members and the official press release from Core Contents Media. 21CN also published the entire official announcement.

Chinese netizens commented on these news articles, “Hwayoung’s been sacrificed, I feel bad for her,” “Without her, who will bring liveliness to the team? The agency could be a little more humane,” “What in the world is going on? Why is the entertainment industry so wicked?” “I’m very disappointed, I’ve become interested in T-ara recently and did not see this coming,” “Poor poor Hwayoung. What a scary world it is out there in the Korean entertainment industry,” and “T-ara’s agency is so weird. They get rid of an old member when a new member comes in.”