In the glittering realm of K-pop, it seems there are some topics that even idols dare not touch upon. Stray Kids' Bang Chan recently faced backlash after expressing personal disappointment about a junior idol who neglected to greet him, an incident that led to a distorted controversy and him being unfairly labeled as an "old-fashioned senior."

During a recent live broadcast, Bang Chan was asked by fans about the recording of KBS2's music program 'Music Bank' World Tour held in Paris, France. This question led him to express his thoughts on basic manners like greeting others. He admitted, "I don't know if my story sounds like that of an old fogey, but it seems we live in a time when even greeting is no longer a basic manner. I think it's extremely important to greet people, but there are juniors who don't return the greeting."

Despite clarifying that he wasn't trying to point fingers or bash anyone specific, online speculation began, suggesting Bang Chan was targeting a specific junior who had failed to greet him. As a result, some fans of the accused group started criticizing Bang Chan.

In the wake of the controversy, Bang Chan apologized, saying, "I caused discomfort to many due to my words during a live broadcast. I'm sorry. I reflected deeply on how my words and actions could influence others. I didn't mean to single out a particular artist, and my comments were totally unrelated to the artist currently being associated with this. I will always be careful in the future to prevent this from happening again."

His original intention wasn't to target someone but rather to express his disappointment with the current situation where even basic etiquette, like greetings, is neglected. What is perplexing about this controversy is that manners, such as greetings, are universally seen as a virtue, irrespective of the generation. It seems idols can't even discuss commonplace things anymore without landing in hot water.

While there have been criticisms that Bang Chan's comment was reckless as it led to misunderstanding and blame on unrelated idols, the broadcast didn't point at anyone in particular, and Bang Chan also emphasized he wasn't trying to criticize anyone.

In the past, many idols have freely shared similar experiences on variety shows. Such discussions would typically conclude with a focus on the importance of greetings, but this time, Bang Chan's comment ended with a storm of criticism. Are we missing the forest for the trees, or deliberately turning a blind eye? The backlash should be directed towards those who have muzzled the idols, preventing them from even discussing basic societal etiquette due to unnecessary speculation.

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