Baek Ji Young, Lee Young Ae, Song Hye Gyo, and IU Take a Stand Against Malicious Netizen Comments

Recently, more and more stars are reporting netizens to the police about harmful comments.  The entertainment industry seems to now be taking a more aggressive stance than their usual passive approach. 

This past July, singer Baek Ji Young sued netizens who posted harmful comments about her on the internet.

These netizens posted extremely malicious and hateful comments about Baek Ji Young in the aftermath of her painful miscarriage: “I pity their child,” “She smokes, she’s old, she brought this upon herself.”  On top of this, netizens posted photoshopped pictures of Baek Ji Young and Jung Seok Won’s child.  This, particularly, came as a huge shock to the singer.

Baek Ji Young’s agency stated, “We put up with as much as we could.  But when we saw comments and pictures that really should not be posted, we finally decided to sue.”  They added further, “We will not forgive this.” 

Baek Ji Young is not the only one taking action against netizens.  Recently, actress Lee Young Ae sued netizens who posted false rumors about her and her family for libel. 

Singer IU, also, reported netizens to the police with regards to her pregnancy rumors that were spread this past May, and the distributor was recently arrested.

Actress Song Hye Gyo, who has in the past dealt with malicious netizens in a relatively generous manner, has fined netizens for their hateful comments. Following Song Hye Gyo’s victory in court, a considerable change has come to the entertainment industry.  Previously, due to concerns about additional slander, stars were reluctant to and often did not take any action, even if the rumors were completely false.

One entertainment agency explained, “The moment we sue someone, the rumors that they started actually spread even more, getting published in newspapers and such.  In these cases, it actually ends up in additional defamation.  That’s why celebrities have always been passive towards netizens.”

However, Song Hye Gyo’s case proved that taking action can actually decrease the number of hateful comments and rumors, and it seems that more and more celebrities are ready to follow suit, with a ‘zero tolerance principle.’