‘Produce’ accused of rigging

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‘Produce’ accused of rigging

Audition program “Produce X 101” may have ended on Friday, but it continues to be in the spotlight as some fans are taking to social media to accuse the show of rigging votes to make sure that the contestants of the broadcaster’s choice won.

“Produce X 101” and previous seasons of the show run on the idea that viewers get to vote for their favorite contestants - idol trainees from different management agencies - throughout the show to eventually pick the top 11 contestants to debut as a boy band with the support of Mnet, the show’s broadcaster.

Although the final episode of “Produce X 101” aired Friday and the 11 top contestants were confirmed via voting, fans began circulating “proofs” in the form of detailed graphs and tables that pointed to a possible rigging.

According to one graph, a numerical pattern appears in the difference between the number of votes that the top 20 contestants received following their last televised performance.

For example, the difference between the number of votes the top and second most popular contestant received was 29,978, which is also the same number as the difference in the number of votes between the third and fourth most popular, the sixth and seventh most popular, the seventh and eighth most popular and the tenth and eleventh most popular contestant.

Disappointed fans are now calling for Mnet to provide an official response, and even demanding the formation of a boy band that includes fan favorites who failed to make it into the top 11.

By Kim Eun-jin
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