A former employee of Core Contents Media, the agency once led by Kim Kwang Soo, has posted an online statement suggesting that the rumors of Hwayoung being bullied within T-ara were true.
According to Star News, on November 10, an anonymous netizen referred to as 'A' shared a post in an online community titled “The Truth About the T-ara Incident.” The user began, "I was an employee at Core Contents Media at the time. I’d like to briefly comment on the T-ara incident."
'A' explained, "Someone in Hwayoung’s family was close to an executive at the company. Originally, Hwayoung’s older sister was supposed to join T-ara, but she gave up her spot to Hwayoung. In a way, Hwayoung joined one of the top groups not because of her skills or appearance, but because of connections, and the members couldn’t help but resent that. As employees, we also noticed that Hwayoung had a hard time fitting in with the group."
'A' continued, "The original members were very strong-willed, so Ahreum, who joined after Hwayoung, also struggled to adjust. The allegations of physical and verbal abuse are also true. I once saw Hwayoung crying, and when I asked her what happened, she said a team member had hit her and sobbed. I couldn’t believe it at the time, but the employees generally ignored the situation, despite knowing about it."
The user added, "The bullying within T-ara is real. Even today, there are many entertainers who engage in abuse and power harassment. I was also hit several times with a large stick by a director for making a few mistakes as a deputy manager."
To support these claims, A shared an image of their Core Contents Media business card from that time.
As previously reported, Kim Kwang Soo recently appeared on the MBN show 'GabojaGO,' where he addressed the 2012 “T-ara bullying incident,” commenting that the rest of the "T-ara members were actually victims." Following the broadcast, Hwayoung spoke against his claims, releasing a statement affirming that the bullying incidents were real and that the T-ara members frequently subjected her to physical and verbal abuse.
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