The members of variety show “Running Man.” (image: SBS)
SEOUL, Dec. 8 (Korea Bizwire) — “Running Man,” a long-running SBS TV’s variety show enjoying pan-Asia popularity, is being criticized by some Chinese netizens for violating the country’s official ‘One China’ policy.
The latest episode of the show was based on the South Korean board game “Blue Marble” that enjoyed huge popularity in the nation, particularly in the 1980s.
“Blue Marble” is a board game similar to Monopoly where players buy land and build hotels and buildings in the major cities of the world.
In the “Blue Marble” episode that was aired on Sunday, “Running Man” players moved around the board, with the Taiwanese flag being televised when the players passed the property of Taipei.
Weibo users showed strong anger, saying that the program violated the One China principle.
Many Chinese netizens insisted that there is only one China in the world, adding that they would boycott watching “Running Man” in the future .
In recent days, South Korean entertainers have often been targeted by Chinese netizens’ far-fetched claims that are based on narrow-minded nationalism.
A good example of this is the K-pop megastar BTS, which faced a backlash in China over comments about the Korean War.
Chinese pushback flared up after RM, a BTS member, made the Korean War-related remarks during an Oct. 7 ceremony giving the boy band an award for its contributions to the relations between South Korea and the United States.
His comment, however, angered Chinese netizens who claimed that such a comment did not respect the Chinese soldiers who died during the Korean War.
Another K-pop group BLACKPINK was also criticized last month by Chinese netizens for holding a baby panda without wearing gloves.
J. S. Shin (js_shin@koreabizwire.com)
