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SEVENTEEN's Joshua's fans were enraged after an anonymous Chinese netizen allegedly posted evidence about the alleged dating issues that the idol faced in August 2023. The netizen claimed on Wednesday, December 27, 2023, that the rumors about the relationship were fired by a modeling agency, leading to fans feeling infuriated. The SEVENTEEN member was rumored to be dating a South Korean model Mi Young in August 2023.
While none of the rumors were confirmed, the idol faced a lot of hate and criticism from certain netizens. The hate and dislike reached a level where people began protesting for the idol's departure from SEVENTEEN. Joshua and the band's fans also noted that they saw a physical change in him during his public appearances.
As the rumor slowly lost heat, a recent post by a Chinese netizen claimed that the rumors were fired by a modeling agency called CN company. The netizen went on to claim that CN company allegedly did so through one of their models to garner attention to their brand and promote themselves through controversy.
As mentioned earlier, when fans learned about this, they were enraged, especially after they saw how the rumors affected the idol, his health, and his social image. They took to social media, especially X, formerly Twitter, to demand that people apologize to Joshua for their criticism and hatred and also began trending hashtags about the same.
Fans enraged after learning SEVENTEEN's Joshua's dating rumors were strategized by a modeling agency
In August, SEVENTEEN's Joshua garnered a lot of negative attention for allegedly dating a South Korean called Mi Young. The rumor was sparked from a Chinese online community platform, Weibo. Several supposed connections between both their outfits and the model's attendance at SEVENTEEN's Follow to Seoul concert in July fueled the rumors.
Since dating rumors are often a heavily criticized topic in the K-pop industry, the idol received much hatred following the surface of these rumors. From protest trucks to online campaigns, several netizens strongly advocated for the idol's departure from the group. However, fans defended the idol and also stated that the rumors had not been confirmed by the idol or his agency.
While the rumors and criticisms slowly and eventually died down, the issue was brought back to the spotlight by an anonymous Chinese netizen on Wednesday. They revealed that the model who was rumored to be dating Joshua was signed under the modeling agency, CN Company. The netizen found various items of proof connecting the company and the model to stabilize their justification.
However, these alleged claims, like the rumors, were also not confirmed by either the idol or his agency.
Additionally, the netizen allegedly found that the modeling agency has several connections with entertainment companies. This led fans to believe that purchasing hot searches on Weibo and other account engagements was easily accessible to the company. This, the netizen explained, might be the reason behind the dating rumors kickstarting from Weibo.
Therefore, the netizen believes that CN Company, with the help of their resources, has used Joshua to promote their model, Mi Young. By creating dating rumors, the model was expected to garner more attention from the masses and profit while promoting herself through the opportunities of being 'Joshua's girlfriend.'
While the scandal may have brought the model and the agency to the forefront, it only led to SEVENTEEN's Joshua facing heavy backlash and resulted in huge losses. Since the netizen's latest alleged narrative claims that the idol wasn't even related to the controversy, his fans were enraged about the same. They took to social media to express their fury and also demanded that those who criticized the idol should apologize to him.
Fans have also been calling out Joshua's agency, Pledis Entertainment, for staying silent throughout the entirety of the issue. The agency didn't release any statement denying the rumors and they also reportedly took no action against the malicious comments directed towards the idol despite persistent requests from fans.
