A vote manipulation investigation was conducted in South Korea and involved a scandal that concerned electoral fraud in several survival show series produced and broadcast by Mnet. The incident mainly involves the rigging of the shows Produce 48, Produce X 101, and Idol School. These shows were intended to form new K-pop groups with members selected by audience vote, however this was certainly not the case.
On January 22, 2016 and April 7, 2017, Mnet released the first episode of season 1 and season 2 of their new survival show Produce 101. Both seasons gained a significant viewership. 101 trainees from different companies would compete in singing, rapping, and dancing. Audiences would vote on different trainees based on their performances. The 101 trainees would be narrowed down to only 11 by elimination, and contestants would make their debut as the groups IOI and Wanna One.
However, when the groups IZ*ONE and X1 were formed in the 3rd and 4th seasons, viewers noticed something suspicious; many of the votes were multiples of 7,494. This raised many questions, and on August 1st, 2019, 272 viewers filed a lawsuit against Mnet for electoral fraud since the voting service charged ₩100 per vote. X1 had to disband prematurely and IZ*ONE went on a 3 month hiatus.
To many, the rigging was obvious. On Produce 48, contestants Lee Kaeun and Han Chowon had spectacular performances, yet they ranked 13th and 14th respectively, just missing the 12-person lineup. The stars, based on the viewers’ votes, should have been ranked 5th and 6th. Contestant Kang Hyewon ranked 8th, when the audience determined she ranked 18th.
Idol School, another survival show hosted by Mnet that formed the group fromis_9, was also unfairly rigged. This was the most obvious of them all; contestant Lee Haein earned the highest number of votes and was expected to debut because of her amazing facial expressions and stage presence, however, she was unfairly eliminated and replaced with another member.
Following all this, many fans suspected other vote manipulations on Queendom 2, and Girls Planet 999, both survival shows produced by Mnet, though Mnet denied any claims.
Producers of the Produce series, Ahn Joonyoung and Kim Yongbum, were arrested on November 5, 2019. Ahn later admitted to manipulating the rankings to all four seasons. On December 3, 2019, Ahn, Kim, and six other entertainment agency representatives were charged for obstruction of business, fraud, and bribery.
Source articles: https://www.soompi.com/article/1436690wpp/idol-school-producers-admit-to-vote-manipulation-but-plead-not-guilty-on-related-charges
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mnet_vote_manipulation_investigation
https://www.quora.com/Are-there-vote-manipulation-in-the-Girls-Planet-999-final-results
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idol_School_(2017_TV_series)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Produce_101
https://www.asianjunkie.com/2021/09/29/mnets-idol-school-fromis-9-was-manipulated-233-times-had-10-contestants-unfairly-eliminated/
https://www.allkpop.com/article/2022/06/netizens-find-more-possible-evidence-of-mnets-score-rigging-for-queendom-2
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I.O.I
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wanna_One
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fromis_9
On January 22, 2016 and April 7, 2017, Mnet released the first episode of season 1 and season 2 of their new survival show Produce 101. Both seasons gained a significant viewership. 101 trainees from different companies would compete in singing, rapping, and dancing. Audiences would vote on different trainees based on their performances. The 101 trainees would be narrowed down to only 11 by elimination, and contestants would make their debut as the groups IOI and Wanna One.
However, when the groups IZ*ONE and X1 were formed in the 3rd and 4th seasons, viewers noticed something suspicious; many of the votes were multiples of 7,494. This raised many questions, and on August 1st, 2019, 272 viewers filed a lawsuit against Mnet for electoral fraud since the voting service charged ₩100 per vote. X1 had to disband prematurely and IZ*ONE went on a 3 month hiatus.
To many, the rigging was obvious. On Produce 48, contestants Lee Kaeun and Han Chowon had spectacular performances, yet they ranked 13th and 14th respectively, just missing the 12-person lineup. The stars, based on the viewers’ votes, should have been ranked 5th and 6th. Contestant Kang Hyewon ranked 8th, when the audience determined she ranked 18th.
Idol School, another survival show hosted by Mnet that formed the group fromis_9, was also unfairly rigged. This was the most obvious of them all; contestant Lee Haein earned the highest number of votes and was expected to debut because of her amazing facial expressions and stage presence, however, she was unfairly eliminated and replaced with another member.
Following all this, many fans suspected other vote manipulations on Queendom 2, and Girls Planet 999, both survival shows produced by Mnet, though Mnet denied any claims.
Producers of the Produce series, Ahn Joonyoung and Kim Yongbum, were arrested on November 5, 2019. Ahn later admitted to manipulating the rankings to all four seasons. On December 3, 2019, Ahn, Kim, and six other entertainment agency representatives were charged for obstruction of business, fraud, and bribery.
Source articles: https://www.soompi.com/article/1436690wpp/idol-school-producers-admit-to-vote-manipulation-but-plead-not-guilty-on-related-charges
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mnet_vote_manipulation_investigation
https://www.quora.com/Are-there-vote-manipulation-in-the-Girls-Planet-999-final-results
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idol_School_(2017_TV_series)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Produce_101
https://www.asianjunkie.com/2021/09/29/mnets-idol-school-fromis-9-was-manipulated-233-times-had-10-contestants-unfairly-eliminated/
https://www.allkpop.com/article/2022/06/netizens-find-more-possible-evidence-of-mnets-score-rigging-for-queendom-2
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I.O.I
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wanna_One
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fromis_9
