How many more people have to die in order for things to change in Korean show business?

[LisaVandercunt]

Lets have a real and open conversation about this. How many more celebrities have to kill themselves or get killed in order for things to change in the Korean entertaining industry? I just cannot fully comprehend how nothing has been done so far in order to prevent tragedies from happen in the future. So many Korean actors and actresses have taken their own lives for no reason. Why isn't anyone from the industry making a stand and speaking out about mental health and self care? I remember back in the Eat Your Kimchi days when Simon & Martina were discussing mental health and employment in Korea they said that potential employers look at your medical records as well and that there is a huge stigma in Korea regarding psychologists and psychiatrist and people simply do not want to taint  their work record by seeking help. That is so so wrong. 

 

Aside from suicides from mental health issues deaths and serious injuries were caused by car accidents. Ladies Code lost members because of a car accident. SECRET was involved in a very nasty car accident as well as countless other groups and group members and nothing has been done about that either. Why isn't anyone speaking out about these things? This isn't something that can be swept under the rug and everyone will just carry on and pretend like there is no problems. Why are label executives afraid to face the issues? 

 

Depression and anxiety can get the best of anyone in this world. Wealth, social status etc... do not mean anything. You can be the wealthiest person on the planet and you can still be battling your inner demons every single day of your life. Which is why help has to be provided for individuals who are facing such issues. 

 

I've been out of touch with the kpop scene for quite a while but I cannot imagine that those survival shows are not taking a toll on the psyche of a person. It's also quite sad because it seems like in this day and age there are children who are much younger who participate in these types of shows and who want to pursue a career as an idol. Isn't there enough red flags for the parents to say "no"? I mean after all the parents are the ones who have to deal with the legal side of all of this for obvious reasons. 

 

When will enough be enough? Will there ever be a change in the industry? I honestly feel like the Korean entertaining industry is a lot more toxic and unhealthy than the entertainment industry in the western hemisphere. 

 

[2020superman]

Suicide is a problem in every south korean industry. They arent just the plastic surgery capital, but also the suicide. They need to reform the whole country because their way of thinking is so fucked up.

 

Koreaboos might see sk as a fantasy land, but it's a depressed country.

[TriHard]

Instead of saying Korean show business , you should say Korea in general because they have the highest suicide rate in the world.

 

http://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/suicide-rate-by-country/

 

36.8 suicides/thousand

[LisaVandercunt]

Suicide is a problem in every south korean industry. They arent just the plastic surgwry capital, but also the suicide.

Which is why its more surprising that no one is addressing this issue. The country is facing a real issue ( not gonna call it an epidemic ) but its time to do something. Perhaps a change in the society and the culture is needed in order for the young generation to feel secure and comfortable in their own skin. 

[eunjo]

I'm cynical but until the President of South Korea* himself addresses this issue and takes actual measures (like new legislation that prevents discrimination based on mental health) I seriously doubt anything will happen.

[starsocks]

It would be good if a discussion could open up after this tragedy.

 

But it would also be a shame that a celebrity had to die in order to talk about suicide.

 

Unfortunately, there's unlikely to be any real change given the lack of action up to this point and South Korea's stigma about mental health.

[denizen mars]

I think Koreans are very aware of their suicide issue, and of all the things that contribute to it. I don't think you can live there and not be aware. But I think it's become so entrenched that many people become hopeless and just think, 'that's just the way things are here'. Heck, I even see it in expats who've lived in Korea so long they start absorbing the same mentality. Which makes it all the more special when a person tries to go against that worldview.

[denizen mars]

I'm cynical but until the President of South Korea* himself addresses this issue and takes actual measures (like new legislation that prevents discrimination based on mental health) I seriously doubt anything will happen.

 

It'd be a really good time for that legislation if nothing like it has been tried yet, especially considering they just outlawed the requirement of photos and other information on government job applications. 

[Zaiku]

Why wait for it to happen to a celebrity? Can happen to everyone.

[foo]

The combination of Korea being a collectivist society + high population density + ridiculous competition makes this a hard issue to fix. 

 

There are so many people willing to work in Korea, that if you can't keep up, someone is waiting to replace you. People are just seen as cogs in a machine(society). If a cog breaks, you replace it with a working one. 

 

That's why mental issues aren't brought forward. People don't want to show themselves as weak/unfit for society. 

 

It's just a sad situation. 

[petrichor;]

The combination of Korea being a collectivist society + high population density + ridiculous competition makes this a hard issue to fix. 

 

There are so many people willing to work in Korea, that if you can't keep up, someone is waiting to replace you. People are just seen as cogs in a machine(society). If a cog breaks, you replace it with a working one. 

 

That's why mental issues aren't brought forward. People don't want to show themselves as weak/unfit for society. 

 

It's just a sad situation. 

[denizen mars]

The combination of Korea being a collectivist society + high population density + ridiculous competition makes this a hard issue to fix. 

 

There are so many people willing to work in Korea, that if you can't keep up, someone is waiting to replace you. People are just seen as cogs in a machine(society). If a cog breaks, you replace it with a working one. 

 

That's why mental issues aren't brought forward. People don't want to show themselves as weak/unfit for society. 

 

It's just a sad situation. 

 

sounds like the problem is capitalism my dude

 

instead of being like, 'man it's so sad, but guess we can't do anything about it' maybe we should.... get it of it? put in more safety nets to help people failed by it? some combination of the both?

 

let's call it like it is. not necessarily in regard to this, as a suicide is a deeply personal matter and people need time to grieve, but in general

[Suzy Quatro]

I'd say this is an issue that goes beyond kpop and entertainment industry so it's flawed to attribute to them as every developed country suffers from it and nos just people who work in this industry. It's a problem of post-modern society as a whole.

[cheap thriâ„“â„“s]

it won't change until the government pushes it, it's not the first time a loved celebrity has died in Korea and they haven't done anything to fix it.

[petrichor;]

i don't know, but i really, really hope it does. i'm so devastated beyond words

[Deâ„“phina]

I'll give you some interesting statistics: In 2016, the suicide rate in SK was around 27/100k. That's the second highest rate in the world (to compare, the US rate is half of that). In raw numbers, that means about 14000 people managed to successfully end their lives that year, one person every 37 minutes. 

There are about 2000 or so idols currently active and the Korean show business is just a reflection of Korean culture. Now, ask yourself this question, if Korean culture is not changing after the equivalent of 7 times the entire active idol base take their lives every year, would it change for a couple of idols dying?