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A scene from the EBS show, Live Tok! Tok! Boni Hani, aired live on YouTube on December 10. A scene was captured in which an adult male performer seemed to be hitting an adolescent girl, stirring controversy. Captured on YouTube. |
The adult male performers in the EBS TV show, Live Tok! Tok! Boni Hani, were at the center of controversy for allegedly assaulting and sexually harassing an adolescent girl who appeared on the show. This has reignited the issue of the labor environment for child and teenage entertainers. Experts point out the need for a guideline to protect the human rights and labor rights of minor actors.
Lee Hyun-sook, head of TacTeen claims that children and teenagers are not free from the power relationships in broadcasting. This means that they may not be protected from the hierarchy of age and status. Lee said, “Regardless of whether there actually were incidents of assault, the young performers could be frightened by the fact that an older male threatened them.” She further elaborated, “It is highly likely for them to be unable to freely express their opinions even in the process of shooting the show.” Jin Jae-yeon, secretary-general of Hanbit Media Labor Rights Center said, “Just as idols have become the dream job, the teenagers who appeared on Boni Hani probably want to continue their careers into adulthood,” and added, “That is why it is hard for them to say anything even if they feel uncomfortable.”
The age of children and teenagers competing to appear on TV has also fallen. When Boni Hani first aired in 2003, the role of Hani was given to a twenty-something actor, but since the seventh Hani who began appearing in 2011, the role has been played by a teenager--usually girls aged 15-16. The competition for the role is fierce. The competition for the twelfth Hani in 2016 was a thousand to one. In such a competitive environment, teenage actors can be replaced anytime. Thus, it is difficult to express discomfort or voice different opinions.
The fundamental problem is the lack of sensitivity to human rights in the shooting studio. In the early stages of the Boni Hani controversy, the production staff explained, “The performers are very close, and things went a little too far when they were fooling around,” and had to endure fierce attacks from the public. Miji, a youth rights activist said, “It’s time we took a good look at our society as a whole, including the EBS production staff, and ask if we are not lacking awareness of youth rights and sensitivity to sexual awareness.”
Our society is also missing a guideline for broadcasting studios in general, including public broadcasting stations like EBS and real-time streaming sites like YouTube. Jin said, “There are no articles in current law, such as the Popular Culture and Arts Industry Development Act, to prevent such incidents,” and argued, “We need measures to prevent recurrence, such as ensuring the young performers’ right to health and right to learning and provide psychological counseling.”
Je Chung-man, a children’s rights activist said, “The latest incident was revealed because it was a video from a well-known broadcasting station like EBS. There are probably countless similar incidents on YouTube and Afreeca TV channels.” Je further said, “This case shows that teenagers appearing on various video media are exposed to danger.” The Boni Hani video in question was also streamed live on YouTube.
The shooting regulations of The House of Us, a film directed by Yoon Ga-eun, released in August, can act as a guideline for the basic rights of minor actors.
The House of Us production staff listed eight items in the shooting regulations titled, “Request to Adults Working with Child Actors.” They included “Respect child actors as actors and view them as a being equal to adults as well as a being with his/her own life,” “Refrain from slang or dirty talk that you might unconsciously share in front of the young actors and be careful with words that assess appearances or the body from adult standards,” and “Be careful when making physical contact with child actors.”
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