The Problem With Ageism In Survival Shows

The finale of A2K brings the debut of VCHA and another discussion of ageism in K-Pop.

VCHA | JYP/Republic Records

Many fans were concerned with the final lineup. While this isn’t unusual for a survival show, the discussion heads towards the topic of ages, due to one member being born in 2010.

The youngest member of VCHA born in 2010, Kaylee Lee | JYP/Republic Records

Many fans note the lack of adults debuting in K-Pop, with concerns that newly debuted idols are getting younger and younger, and the treatment of adults in K-Pop is discriminatory.

Sori as she appears in Mix Nine

When singer Sori appeared on Mix Nine as a contestant, controversy stirred when Yang Hyun Suk commented on her age and the state of her career because of it.

You’re pretty old. 28… Isn’t that the age for an idol to be retiring?

– Yang Hyun Suk

He questions the time she’s spent since her debut with CocoSori in 2016, and casually mentions that she shouldn’t be enjoying what she does considering her group had failed. Despite his comments, Sori managed to make it to the final lineup, only for the debut to be cancelled.

Yang Hyun Suk’s controversial comments on Sori | MIXNINE SUBCORD/Youtube

Netizens were not happy about this, and it’s just one of many discussions about ageism involving the discrimination of adults in K-Pop in favor of minors debuting.

sometimes i think we should band together and vote in survival shows to ensure only adults debut, but i just can't bring myself to watch and keep up with them. we need like an organised effort across all kpop fandoms idk, it's so sad seeing these kids being shoved into the camera

— ???????????????? (@NEWTOPI4) July 18, 2023

kpop fans: we want more adults to debut and less minors !!!
jyp: ok im gonna train only minors for my survival show including a 12 year old

— shu (@kittyeyecrust) July 21, 2023

The producer of Produce 101 also made a controversial comment for High Cut Magazine when asked how male viewers would enjoy the second season of Produce 101, which involved male contestants.

Basically, if the program is solid and well structured, both men and women would enjoy it. It’s more about quality. I don’t know how to express the first thing I did with the female version. It’s because I think we needed to make wholesome porn for men. (Laughs) If you look at the performers, they look like younger sisters and nieces, but they’re cute, right? I wanted to make that kind of pornographic content.

This comment was considered extremely inappropriate, considering many Produce 101 contestants were minors at the time, as well as the correlation between younger sisters and nieces to pornographic content.

IOI, one of the first groups formed from a survival show, as well as a group that contained several minors

Minors have always debuted from the beginning of K-Pop, exploring “sexy” content inappropriate for those under 18 to be performing, which is why many fans desire to see more groups of grown adults and for the addition of minors, especially as young as 14, to be excluded from debuting.

What are your thoughts?