Is NewJeans’ fan union taking over group’s management? Legal action against ‘malicious posts’ sparks speculation

Team Bunnies, NewJeans' fan union, has lately become the prime source of information regarding the girl group members. Their official X (formerly Twitter) page, @NewJeansSTRM, provides updates on everything from their upcoming activities to legal proceedings. Recently, on April 26, they posted a statement, citing their recent actions regarding the quintet. Many were shocked to know that the fan union took legal action on behalf of the K-pop artists.

In the statement, Team Bunnies mentioned that they filed "additional lawsuits and complaints" on April 25 against people trying to malign NewJeans' reputation. They stated the action was being taken on the basis of "reports and monitoring of harmful content across various online communities and social media platforms, including Instiz, Theqoo, DC Inside, and FM Korea." They further wrote, "The malicious posts reportedly contained false information, defamation, racial discrimination, and sexual harassment."

They filed the first complaint on April 11 and, through the April 25 notice, provided an update on the progress of the case. "An investigator has been assigned to the complaint and accusation filed on April 11, and warrants have been executed for each community to obtain information on the (defamatory) post writers, and responses are currently being received." Two days before that, Team Bunnies also shared a link asking fans to send a letter of support to NewJeans member Hanni.

They mentioned that Hanni will receive them personally, indicating close contact between the NewJeans members and the fan union. Recently, the K-pop group's agency, ADOR, brought in allegations against Team Bunnies trying to collect private information of NewJeans under the guise of promotional activity. This statement came after the fan union became the first to announce the news of an upcoming Indomie Migoreng pop-up store, where NewJeans' new moniker NJZ's official merchandise will be available for purchase.

All these recent actions hinted at the possibility of Team Bunnies handling NewJeans' management following their legally disputed termination of contract with ADOR. They also refuted ADOR’s statement by saying, “Pop-up stores can be opened without prior contractual approval, and Indomie Pop-up Stores are events held not only in Korea but also worldwide. We hope that there will be no confusion due to the announcement from ADOR."

ALSO READ: NewJeans vs ADOR: NJZ's Seoul pop-up store to open in May amid group's independent promotion ban