Why are there so many trainees involved in celebrity scandals?

Article: Why is there always an 'celebrity trainee A' in entertainment industry scandals?

Source: Sports Chosun via Daum

▶ Who exactly is 'celebrity trainee A'?

An entertainment company representative said, "There are seriously a lot of young students who aspire to become celebrities. It's a career that they can enjoy and achieve their dreams with, and if successful, can earn both honor and wealth at once."

Celebrity hopefuls will use online applications or the mail to send their pictures and profiles to various companies. Some even end up sending in their applications to the wrong companies out of desperation. An agency that manages actors will often receive profiles from students who "hope to become singers."

The agencies will look over the applications and pick out ones to hold separate interviews with. Once they pass the interview, they move on to the contract stage. "We look at their potential as a celebrity. The most important aspects we look at are their talents, physical beauty, character, and work ethic."

Once the contracts are signed, they officially become a trainee. Singer trainees will often have to train longer than actor trainees, but both receive $0 in pay for the entire duration of their training. They're instead put in acting lessons and asked to focus on working out to improve their appearance in preparation for their debut. All of the expenses are covered by the company.

Companies will also provide a personal manager to help them attend auditions. As companies are often making a gamble with their investments on the future of these trainees, they have to be careful every step of the way.

▶ What are the chances of 'A' becoming a celebrity?

Then what is the actual chance of these trainees actually becoming a celebrity? "It's more difficult than getting into Seoul University. We've noticed an increase in broadcast and entertainment related majors in universities across the country, which is a reflection of how badly people hope to join the industry."

In the past, the 'normal' way of becoming a celebrity was auditioning for each broadcast channel. These days, the only way to become a celebrity is to join an agency, which often requires that you go through tough competition and endure a long and arduous training process. Even if you do make it through and finally debut, broadcast officials unanimously agree that it doesn't guarantee you anything with the fickle public.

One celebrity who's already made her debut has never had the opportunity for a drama or a movie, and the majority of such celebrities live for months on end with $0 in income.

"That's why you call the successful celebrities 'stars'."

▶ So why is it always the 'celebrity trainee A' that gets into the scandals?

Then why is it that there's a trainee usually involved with every entertainment scandal? One representative reasons that because it's so difficult to actually cross the line into making an actual debut and securing a future, trainees already recognize that luck plays a bigger role than hard work. "The entertainment industry is a lot like a game based purely on luck. Your basic potential and effort are important but luck plays a bigger role."

If you asked any celebrity who's been in the industry for 10 or 20 years how they're able to maintain their popularity, they'll usually reply with the same answer: "I always work hard but I wouldn't be where I am today without luck."

To the trainees, that hope for luck is all they need, especially when they're trapped in a world where working hard doesn't guarantee you anything. They'll instead focus on trying to get close with popular celebrities to get their foot in the door faster.

"There are a lot of trainees who want to raise their chances by becoming friends with popular celebrities." Such is the reason why trainees are so often involved in celebrity scandals.

That doesn't mean these scandals can be blamed entirely on the trainees. "The problem lies in the fact that people are using the desperation of these trainees to their benefit. Being trainees, a lot of them are beautiful so celebrities will develop an interest in them. Some will try to use their position and status as a celebrity to fulfill their own needs and desires. Agencies will also use trainees to fraud them out of money."

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1. [+466, -15] I feel that the journalist cut to the core of the problem. South Korea is a celebrity heaven today. Famous celebrities can earn incomprehensible wealth and honors like being able to meet the president easily. They are paid in amounts that the average citizen couldn't even image of earning in a life time. The problem is, though, that because these celebrities are being used as products, the majority of their income is not earned through their work in their profession but through the money they make from CFs and advertisements. In the end, it becomes the responsibility of the consumers to fund them.

2. [+370, -6] I feel bad, the journalist is leaving out the trainees from B to Z

3. [+248, -11] 99.9% of the 'celebrity trainee As' end up being sexual puppets to the industry.

4. [+130, -3] Interesting how the article doesn't mention that there are a lot of celebrity trainees also working in the adult industry to make money while upping their chances of meeting someone from the entertainment industry and get noticed. In the end, it's 90% networking and 10% actual effort.

5. [+121, -4] Basically, some trainees are just looking for an easy short cut without wanting to put in the time or effort. Once money and power doesn't work, they'll lobby their bodies out for an opportunity.

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