Pinkabombom

Dirty Dirty JAM JAM

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Throwback SUT Progression Fair in April 2026 in my college👀❤️‍🔥

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Week 6: Digital Citizenship, Hashtag Publics,Political Engagement and Activism- BLACKPINK Broke the Internet Again 🌐

Welcome back to Pinkabombom’s Blog. This year, the Met Gala was celebrated the other day with the stunning theme of “Costume Art.” Once the red carpet looks were released, I noticed how my social media were filled with amazing fashion from some really artistic designers from across the world. Every person who attended the event came prepared to stun everyone with daring silhouettes and interesting fashion concepts. But the most shocking and exciting moment of the night was seeing all members of BLACKPINK🖤🩷 appearing at the event as solo artists, shining individually. I can’t believe how proud BLINKS feel when they see them there representing their incredible power in fashion and music as individual artists. Their appearances quickly became one of the hottest topics across social media, proving once again the powerful global presence of BLACKPINK.

Met Gala is much more than just another fashion show. It has already been established as a digital community event. Previously, celebrity events were covered via TV and magazines. However, today we have entered the age of digital citizenship and platformization, when fans no longer just watch an event, they become part of it on a virtual level.

K-pop fans collaborate in a participatory culture where they actively create media and take leadership roles within their fan communities by producing and promoting content on social media (Roslan et al., 2024). According to earlier research by Kim et al. (2022), pro-social and responsible actions taken by SNS members outside of their official roles are referred to as SNS citizenship behavior. Thus, BLINKS engaged in meme-making, reposting livestream footage, debating fashion elements, translating interviews, and posting updates across various social media platforms. In some cases, fans were even quicker than official news sources. Seriously, K-pop fandoms need journalism degrees at this point.

And it’s here where the power of hashtag publicity comes. Omena et al. (2020) pointed out that using hashtags can convey local or international discussions, small or large events, and contentious or uncontroversial topics. Last night, hashtags like #BLACKPINK, #Jennie, #Lisa, and #MetGala2026 totally took over all of the social networking sites. People from all across the world who had never met each other suddenly found themselves interacting together online over dresses, hairstyles, luxury goods, and interactions between idols.

The other crucial idea mentioned was platformization. Based on James (2025), platformization is the process of changing daily interactions from offline to technologically mediated. They have evolved beyond being mere applications for communication since algorithms have become essential in defining users' media and cultural consumption online. TikTok consistently pushed BLACKPINK covers on people's For You Page feed, Instagram highlighted luxurious fashion content, while Twitter enabled users to participate in trending topics. People who did not consume K-pop music found themselves well-informed about BLACKPINK's Met Gala fashion despite their unwillingness (love Jisoo🪐 looks by Dior).

To sum up, BLACKPINK at the Met Gala is much more than celebrity fashion media. It speaks how digital community, hashtag public, digital participation, and platformization play roles in kpop fandom culture and global popularity. Social media have empowered fandoms, turning them into active content creators rather than passive consumers of content🌟

Anyways, Anna Wintour, can you invite my bias Kim MingYu from Seventeen after his military term ends in 2028👉🏻👈🏻

( BTW Isuccessfully secure the Asia Top Music Festival today to meet CxM🩵)

References:

James, S. (2025). Affective participation from the In-Between: the platformization of K-Pop fandom. Social Media + Society, 11(2). https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051251351390

Kim, J., Kim, K., Park, B., & Choi, H. (2022). The Phenomenon and Development of K-Pop: The Relationship between Success Factors of K-Pop and the National Image, Social Network Service Citizenship Behavior, and Tourist Behavioral Intention. Sustainability, 14(6), 3200. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14063200

Omena, J. J., Rabello, E. T., & Mintz, A. G. (2020). Digital methods for hashtag Engagement research. Social Media + Society, 6(3). https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305120940697

Roslan, M. A. A., Nasharuddin, N. A., & Murad, M. A. A. (2024). The social media effect: How K-Pop fans are driven by social influence and community norms. Journal of Media and Information Warfare, 17(2), 83-92.

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Week 5: Digital Community and Fandom- 13 Men, Zero Peace, Full Entertainment Show

Welcome back GUYS! As a K-pop person surely you won’t miss any of the variety shows of your favourite groups. If you are a new Carat, I highly recommend you watch “ Going Seventeen” 🙋🏼. At first you may think that they are just a chaotic crazy variety show (cause mostly you will hear people screaming crazy😵‍💫), you are definitely WRONG❌ Aside from being funny and entertaining, Going Seventeen is a perfect representation of what modern-day fan culture is like in the age of the internet.

In the past when I’m a “newbie Carat”, being a fan meant just watching my favourite idols on TV, but now…. Welcome to the digital communities🥳✨ where fans connect, interact and share experiences and information all around the world. Based on Park & Srisuwan (2025), emotional resonance and community identity are becoming more important to these cohorts than conventional technical features and practical value. For the SEVENTEEN fanbase known as CARATs 💎 watching each episode of Going Seventeen goes beyond just watching videos since fans will always comment, post, and tweet on social media platforms about their finds and joys.

This is when participatory culture plays its role. Fans are not only viewers and consumers, they are the inspiration and producers. Jenol and Pazil (2022) pointed out that fans actively produce media content and play a social role in their respective fandoms as part of a participatory culture. Fans usually take their favorite part and recreate it into something entirely different, bringing out new things into the show outside the TV screen. Hence, everytime Internet will be flooded with memes, editing video and inside jokes after each episode, especially during Mafia games series (watch the reaction of a tame “tiger” Hoshi becomes crazy after knowing MingYu identity). By now, the fandom has become a part of the production crew… just for free.

The other major factor that makes Going Seventeen so attractive is because of interactivity. As soon as an episode comes out, fans will start posting comments, discussing their take on the show. The results show that real-time interactions and a sense of community across geographic boundaries are made possible by platforms like Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok (Shukri et al., 2025). This produces a shared emotional experience that is simply unmatched by traditional media.

SEVENTEEN, meanwhile, had played an important role in the entire show. They show their real personalities through the show that includes their funny and unpredictable side. Thus, social media users now actively contribute to the creation of content rather than merely consuming it, establishing a two-way communication channel by creating a strong powerful bond between idols and their fans (Shukri et al., 2025).

In summary, Going Seventeen is more than just entertainment. It reflects how fan culture today is interactive, creative, and deeply interconnected🥰

Before ending, HYBE when can I have my next series of GOING SEVENTEEN, I miss my Mafia Game🥲

References

Park, J. S., & Srisuwan, W. (2025). Influence of K-Pop Fandom Dynamics on Digital Marketing Strategies for Consumer Electronics in Southeast Asia.

Jenol, N. a. M., & Pazil, N. H. A. (2022). “I found my talent after I become a K-pop fan”: K-pop participatory culture unleashing talents among Malaysian youth. Cogent Social Sciences, 8(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2022.2062914

Shukri, A. A., Zainal, C. N. A. S. C., & Bakar, A. S. A. (2025). Exploring the Digital Wave: Social Media Strategies in K-Pop Influence on Fan Engagement and Artist Promotion. Pena International Journal of Media, Journalism and Mass Communication, 1(1), 36-42.

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Week 8: Digital Citizenship and Health Education: Is It Just Me or Are K-pop Idols Getting Skinnier Every Comeback?

Hey guys, a real quick discussion here! Have you ever noticed that the K-pop female idol groups over the past few years have been extremely skinny, like unreal level😱Initially, I believed it was due to styling issues, and after a few weeks everything would go back to itself. However, as I continued to scroll through my phone, I realized something was getting wrong and shocking me.

In social media, there is something known as aesthetic templates, especially in the K-pop industry. Nowadays, K-pop female idols are shaped by strict visual standards, where their image is influenced by industry control, with elements that “dictate all choices related to the group’s aesthetic,” reinforcing idealised beauty expectations (Grilo, 2022, p. 4). This is basically like an “ideal look" which defines what beauty should look like and everyone just follows blindly. For example, having a tiny waist, sharp features, long legs and others. For them who always appear in the spotlight, it would be necessary for them to follow the template since that has become the norm because it’s part of their job to control.

Next is the microcelebrity culture. Idols need to be “multitaskers”, not just performers. They are required to continuously develop and maintain an online “branded self,” in which their looks, especially every post of selfie, stage outfit and airport look are tailored towards the public consumption. This reflects how the K-pop industry systematically produces and manages idols as marketable figures, where their image and identity are carefully constructed for audiences (Lee, 2021). Their popularity usually depends on likes, views, and followers, so their appearance becomes a huge part of their “brand.” And let’s be honest, fitting into whatever beauty trend is trending (super skinny or muscularity standard) can definitely help them get more attention and hype.

An interesting formula comes out of my mind:

➡️More likes + more attention👀 = more success💡

But here’s the twist, it’s not just the companies or social media creating these standards, honestly it is us who did. As we know, algorithms love to push content that gets attention to users, and usually posts that fit beauty standards perform better. Hence,the more we like, share, and hype those visuals, the more the system will filter and say, “Okay, THIS is what people want the most”,leading to a cycle that continues. And then comes something called identity dissonance that cannot be avoided. That’s the gap between real bodies and what we see online. Based on Fardouly & Vartanian (2016), idols can even find it difficult to keep up with this image, and fans will eventually start comparing themselves, since “exposure to idealized images on social media is linked to body dissatisfaction and appearance comparisons.”

Ohhhh, during you’re scrolling social media posts and out of a sudden your mind thinking, “wow, I wish I looked like that,” maybe just pause for a second. Think carefully is it a MUST to become so skinny by harming our body🥺

Not worth it❌ Before ending, I’m curious… will someone stop this aesthetic fatigue?

References:

Fardouly, J., & Vartanian, L. R. (2016). Social Media and Body Image Concerns: Current Research and Future Directions. Current Opinion in Psychology, 9, 1–5. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2015.09.005

Grilo, C. C. (2022). Avatars, Sexualization and Affectivities: The Case of K-Pop Girl Group Aespa (Master's thesis, Universidade Catolica Portuguesa (Portugal).

Lee, D. (2021). Strategic organisational change and artist-leadership in the K-pop industry: a narrative analysis approach (Doctoral dissertation, University of Warwick).