TV Chosun’s ‘Mr. Trot’ accused of abusing show contestants

Popular trot competition program “Mr. Trot” found itself at the center of controversy hours before its finale on Thursday evening.

On Wednesday, local media outlet Sports Kyunghyang reported about suspicions of gapjil [abuse of power] being used against the show’s participants. TV Chosun, which broadcasts the show, refuted the matter on Thursday, confirming that there was nothing “particularly unfair or unjust” about the contracts the contestants had signed to be on the program.

“The participants’ contracts are similar to any other audition program, and after seeking legal advice upon the matter, there was nothing particularly unfair about them,” the cable channel said. “We negotiated the terms with the participants ahead of time, and they all agreed to them.”

One of the lines in the contract highlighted by the report read, “If the participant degrades the program through wrongful actions, TV Chosun may cancel the contract and sue the participant in a damage suit worth 100 million won [$83,000] for violating the contract.”

Another condition read, “Participants will be offered a pay of 100,000 won per episode, but this only applies to those who make it to the first round.”

On Thursday afternoon, Sports World reported that one of the show’s contestants received threats from a producer at KBS for appearing on “Mr. Trot.” Insiders told a reporter that the participant was warned by the producer that he would not be allowed to appear on KBS music programs if he participated on “Mr. Trot.”

The article stated that the contestant was one of the show’s final seven participants.

By Lee Jae-lim