Aespa’s Winter Faces Backlash for Mentioning BTS Jungkook’s Name During Live Broadcast

aespa Winter is facing controversy after a live broadcast clip dragged Karina into the ongoing dating rumors with BTS Jungkook.

The controversy began when Winter and Karina were playing a guessing game on a live broadcast. Karina said a name—her grandma’s—and Winter suddenly blurted out, “Jeon Jungkook.” Fans immediately noticed how odd it was for Winter to say Jungkook’s name without any honorifics, especially since he is older and a senior idol.

aespa’s Karina and Winter

HYBE and SM Entertainment have responded to the viral dating rumors and the “proof” circulating online, but the chatter has only intensified. New and old clips of idol behavior are being re-examined and shared widely.

“Companies’ Responses To BTS Jungkook And aespa Winter’s Dating Rumors Lead To Heated Reactions”
— Koreaboo report

This moment sparked a ton of netizen reactions on social media about the awkwardness and suddenness of Winter’s comment. Many pointed out how strange it is to drop a senior’s full name like that. Others felt bad for Karina since she’s being dragged into drama despite no signs of dating.

“This is kinda… yeah.”
“This was on live broadcast…?? They did that while fans were watching?”
“Even if they weren’t dating, he’s her senior and way older — that’s just crazy behavior.”
“No one calls a senior by their name like that LOL”
— Comments from theqoo

Theqoo comments
| theqoo

Fans also shared sympathy for Karina, recalling her past privacy invasions and public backlash related to her dating history with Lee Jae Wook. Many see her now being caught up in this as unfair.

“Karina didn’t even show signs of dating, but she got secretly filmed, had her private life exposed, got cursed out like crazy, had to write a handwritten apology letter, and now she’s basically cleaning up someone else’s dating mess.”
“It’s honestly funny in a sad way LOL”
— theqoo user

Karina
| theqoo