We conducted a phone interview with Mrs. A, the mother of a member of New Jeans. The interview took place after claims that Bang Sihyuk, as the chairman of HYBE, mistreated New Jeans' members.
Mrs. A said, "In the email we sent, it was mentioned that Bang Sihyuk refuses to receive New Jeans' greetings. This doesn't only happen to my daughter, but also to the other members. They all had similar experiences since their debut. One member even said that he refused to response to her greetings even though they were in the elevator together." She continued, "When we raised this issue, HYBE's staff said, 'Mam, it's a misunderstanding,' and mentioned that 'Chairman Bang may have prosopagnosia (NB: Face blindness)."
Previously, New Jeans' parents sent an email to HYBE last month, expressing their objections to this matter and raising concerns about similarities between New Jeans and the rookie group of HYBE's subsidiary BELIFT Lab, ILLIT.
Regarding the statement that "Chairman Bang may have prosopagnosia," some fans on Twitter speculated, "Does that mean they admit that Bang Sihyuk did not respond to the girls' greetings?", "They don't want to admit Bang Sihyuk's at the fault. So, instead of saying 'He has prosopagnosia,' they said, 'He may have prosopagnosia." Criticisms followed, including "Even if he really does have prosopagnosia, isn't it a basic manner to respond to someone's greetings?"
Mrs. A also added, "I thought, 'Even if he really does have prosopagnosia, wouldn't he hear the greetings? And even if he can't recognize who it is, wouldn't you normally respond when someone greets you?"
Meanwhile, HYBE dismissed the claim that Bang Sihyuk mistreated New Jeans' members, saying "It's a one-sided claim."
-The more excuses they make, the weirder, annoying, and cowardly it gets...
-Can't they just admit it?? They're supposed to be adults...
-They couldn't even lie?? 'Prosopagnosia' is hilariousㅋㅋㅋ
-How much more embarrassing can HYBE get?
-They'll be the laughingstock foreverㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-Even if they have prosopagnosia, ignoring someone who greets you in a company where you're the chairman? That's even more ridiculous.
-Even if I have trouble recognizing faces, I'd still respond to someone who greets me, even if I don't know them...
-Even if you can't see their face, wouldn't you hear when someone greets you??ㅋㅋㅋ
-They're digging their own grave.
-Even if they have prosopagnosia... when someone greets you, shouldn't you respond?
-Do they really think having a disability means he can't greet people?
-Seriously, real people with those disabilities would be even more diligent in responding to greetings, what nonsense.
-HYBE is like a meme generator at this point.
-They're basically confirming that Bang Sihyuk refuses to respond to New Jeans' greetings.
-Even if you don't know who they are, if they greet you, you should respond, you human being.
-They should've said that he also has a hearing loss...
