King’s Choice. If you haven’t already heard of it, then spare yourself the psychological nightmare of that website. Carefully designed to prey on the protective instincts of fans as well as their insecurities, it not only has innocuous polls like “King of Kpop”, “Prince Charming of Kpop”, “Best Kpop Group 2019” etc, it also has ruthless ones like “Worst Kpop Singer” and “Most Overrated Idol” - allowing a breeding ground for hate, competition and a ton of anxiety.

With over a million votes being cast to implicate members from different groups to save their own biases, fans seem to be working covertly to save their artists from a hoard of articles from the press, anticipating that once their idols have been dubbed “overrated” or the “worst singer” that’s a mark on their career that isn't going to fade and a validation point for“antis” (people who make it their mission to hate on different artists).

Given their huge popularity, Kpop Idols seem to be taking the brunt of not only the other fandoms and their ire but also the solo stans of their own. Given the recent events in the industry, has it not become increasingly important to call out polls like this and ensure that they are held liable for the content they put out and the hate that they instigate.

The mental health of idols has always been a deep rooted concern for many of us fans. Watching these websites manipulate and instigate hate in such an overt fashion is shameful and something that must be dealt with swiftly.

This brings into question - What’s the solution to this? Boycotting it? Or holding it accountable for the psychological ramifications of its polls through mass emailing.

Looks like the King’s choice is hate. What’s yours?