TWICE endorsing "skin whitening" creams leads to mixed reactions from fans

Popular girl group TWICE’s latest endorsement of Scarlett Whitening has led fans to demand that JYP Entertainment cancel the girl group’s contract with the company. ONCEs (TWICE fandom) believe that this was an irresponsible step on the company’s behalf as the girl group is finally getting more exposure in international waters.

However, the reactions are divided in half, as a part of the fandom disagrees. They claim that skincare products, like Scarlett Whitening, don't necessarily promote colorism.

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Fans demand TWICE cancel their contract with "skin whitening" product brand Scarlett Whitening

On October 16, Indonesian cosmetics brand Scarlett Whitening revealed TWICE as their newest brand ambassador. The group is particularly endorsing two special packages - the Brightly Care Package and the Acne Care Special Package.

As per Koreaboo, the three ingredients in the 'Brightly Ever After' range of toners, serums, and creams are labeled as "whitening" ingredients. Nicotinamide and ascorbyl glucoside help inhibit melanin transfer and formation. Meanwhile, Glutathione helps lighten tanned skin or skin that has grown dark over time.

ONCEs have raised concerns that this deal will end up endorsing the group in a negative light. The brand deal would take impressionable minds further into prejudice and bias due to colorism. They’ve also voiced that this might make more people give in to the “skin whitening” temptation. Their tagline says, “Reveal Your Beauty”.

A major point in their argument is that after The Feels promotions, TWICE is finally expanding beyond the seas and gaining international recognition. At a time when the world's biggest companies, such as Johnson & Johnson and Unilever faced backlash and had to take their skin whitening creams off the shelves, this move from JYP Entertainment seems offensive and backdated.

After the backlash, the tweet was deleted from TWICE’s Twitter, but the posts remain on Scarlett Whitening’s Instagram account. Since then, fans have also been demanding an official apology.

However, as some fans stated, Scarlet Whitening can sue the group and company for defamation if they take one wrong step. Everything boils down to the two words “brightening” and “whitening”. Fans, especially Indonesians, claim that the products TWICE is endorsing are skin “brightening” products, insisting that they don’t change the skin tone but rather help by making the user's real skin glow.

While that may be true, it’s a no-brainer that both “whitening” and “brightening” have been used for years by companies in the same context - to lead to fairer skin while implying that white skin is superior. So while TWICE may be endorsing “brightening” products, the messaging it gives off could be promoting colorism.

As is, the K-pop industry is notorious for fansites (and sometimes even agencies) whitewashing their artists’ photos.

The ONCE fandom continues to take a varied stance on the matter. JYP Entertainment has not yet released any official statement regarding TWICE's endorsement.