X's New Policy Exposes Those Who Defamed BTS, Forcing Them to Delete Their Accounts in Humiliation

 

Being a public figure with major influence also means becoming accustomed to being judged or even criticized by the public for improper behavior or questionable attitudes. However, that does not mean tolerating those who exploit freedom of speech and online anonymity to spread misinformation, slander, or defamation on social media. Malicious words, no matter how easily typed from behind a screen, can still inflict deep harm on those who involved. 

Online anonymity was originally designed to protect users' privacy, but its downside is that many bad actors take advantage of it to attack artists, using the guise of "doing good" to show hatred. This has long been one of the most difficult issues for fandoms, artists, and managements companies to address. 

Fortunately, a recent update on X (formerly Twitter) is believed by many fans to offer meaningful support in dealing with anonymous accounts that specialize in spreading harmful content. The feature quickly gained widespread attention, especially among ARMYs, as BTS frequently targeted by malicious campaigns. 

According to the latest update, X now publicly displays several basics but partially identifying pieces of user information, including date joined, account based in, username changes, and connected via. These data points are shown publicly and cannot be edited or hidden, making it much more difficult for users to disguise their identities. 

Shortly after the feature rolled out, ARMYs quickly discovered several cases in which accounts had been using false identities who repeatedly attack BTS members. A notable example includes accounts such as @LandPalestine, @Raji, @nizar_almaire, @falastinarchive, and others — revealed to actually be "accounts based in Israel or the United States."

Those accounts had previously claimed to be Palestinians and to be speaking "on behalf of Palestine" while criticizing V. Some even leveled serious accusations at him, such as "supporting Zionists" or "supporting the war in Gaza" simply because he is the brand ambassador for Coca-Cola Zero Korea. In reality, Coca-Cola Korea operates as an independent franchise with no connection to Coca-Cola in the U.S. or Israel. 

What makes this even more absurd is that those accounts used their criticism of V as a way to raise funds to support Palestinians. Some collected tens of thousands of dollars under the label of being "Palestinian" and gained attention by attacking BTS for using brands claimed to be in the BDS list—yet no one can verify whether that so-called relief money went somewhere else entirely, possibly even to Israel. 

A user confirmed to be a real Palestinian, @meikthvs, once defended V by saying: "As a Palestinian I can tell you that Zionism isn't drinking Coke or seeing how y'all are using the zio word for the most trivial reasons proves that y'all never actually cared about Palestine—it's just an excuse to spread hatred." Yet that person also ended up becoming a target if those impersonators. 

Why would people who are not Palestinian pretend to be Palestinian just to attack V or harass fans who defended him? Clearly, their aim was not peace in Gaza but rather the defamation to the idol. Under the guise of humanitarianism and justice, they found ways to gather more people into hating him. The act of impersonation for the purpose of slander him escalated into something for more complex than most would imagine. 

The positive side, however, is that thanks to X's new policy, those impersonators were exposed, and their attempt to manufacture hatred toward BTS was brought to light, making it harder for the public to be misled. After ARMYs called them out, the accounts in question quickly deleted or deactivated their profiles within hours, showing they were forced into retreat in humiliation. 

While these updates cannot completely eradicate slander on social media, they offer newfound hope to fans and artists alike—proof that anonymity can no longer serve as an impenetrable shield or harmful actions.