JTBC defended Jisoo (BLACKPINK)’s Snowdrop -> Professors and scholars of Korean studies submitted a petition to Disney Plus
Eun Young Ro (played by Jisoo) and her father Eun Chang Su are at the center of Snowdrop’s “historical distortion” controversy.
On January 10, more than 30 major professors and scholars of Korean studies gathered to submit an official petition to the president of Disney Plus Asia-Pacific regarding historical concerns over the drama Snowdrop.
The initiator was Georgia Tech Assistant Professor Bae Keung Yoon. He wrote an open letter to Walt Disney Asia-Pacific President Luke Kang. As an assistant professor of Korean studies, he was concerned as Snowdrop used the name of democracy activist Cheon Young Cho for Jisoo’s character. The character Eun Chang Su, the heroine’s father, was also modeled after Park Jun Byeong – the leader of the massacres belonging to the Gwangju movement.
The letter says: “We are not writing to ask the company to stop airing the series. Instead, we are asking the company to seek out experts to carefully look into the historical references in the drama and review the way such materials are being used. We are making this request because we do not believe that Disney Plus, a global platform, is aware of the historical and sociopolitical context of the drama. We believe that streaming platforms should make informed decisions when broadcasting a drama set in Korean history (1987) globally”.
Besides Professor Bae Keung Yoon, many Professors from Ewha Womans University, Pusan National University, George Washington University, PhD candidates from Princeton University, Harvard University, University of Toronto,… also gave their signatures under this letter.
Meanwhile, in terms of viewership rating, Snowdrop is doing better after facing severe backlash in earlier episodes. The latest episode exceeded 3% and drew more positive reactions.
