Mnet's audition show "High School Rapper" is once again mired in controversy, but this time, the issue targets the program and the people behind it.
According to Korea Herald, "High School Rapper" is currently in hot water because of its final round episode aired on Feb. 3.
While nothing was wrong about Lee Jee Eun, Park Eo Jin and Bang Jae Min's performances, viewers were disturbed after the program mistakenly wrote "raping" instead of "rapping" for the subtitle.
The particularly word appeared during Lee Jee Eun's act wherein the following texts were flashed: "Dancing and dancing and I'm raping and raping, uh!"
"High School Rapper" viewers, particularly those who are English-speaking, worried upon seeing the mistake. Most of them were bothered by the fact that the staff failed to see the error beforehand.
"Due to the busy production schedule, there were parts that were overlooked prior to airing. It was a clear mistake and we apologize," the Mnet show said in a statement.
A student, who watched the controversial episode, said she could not believe what she saw. "It was just disappointing that the production team would let such mistake, which makes a big difference, slip through," Lim So Jung stated.
Another one commented he was surprised how Mnet and CJ E&M have overlooked such mistake, considering their reputation in the broadcasting industry. "It was kind of funny and at the same time sad that such a big company would make a mistake like that," Oh Gyoo Yeol said.
Just last month, "High School Rapper" made headlines for bullying issues involving two of its participants. The first one was Jang Yong Joon, a son of a politician who was accused of harassing his schoolmates and being rude to his mom as cited by Soompi.
Not only that, the aspiring rapper was even linked to "conditional meetings" or something that has to do with soliciting prostitution. Following the controversy, Jang Yong Joon issued a written apology and bowed out from "High School Rapper."
Two weeks later, another contestant of the Mnet program, named Yang Hong Won, drew backlash for bullying. But unlike Jang Yong Joon, the aspiring rapper chose to continue his battle on "High School Rapper" after apologizing to the viewers and to the program.
