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Fan club activities Fans sent me gold for my birthday. In broadcasting programs, idols do not hesitate to describe what expensive gifts they have received from their fans. Some fans, as if in competition, save money to present a better gift to a celebrity to whom they often refer as my oppa, literally, my older brother. As the number of older (old enough to be the celebritys older sister or even an aunt) and more financially capable female fans has risen, the types of presents they give have become more expensiveevolving from game consoles to luxurious brand name watches and bags. On certain occasions, celebrities have created folders on social network service homepages and posted pictures of particular items they want , and the fans then give them the items as presents. The culture of fans giving presents to their stars, however, is changing. A new fandom phenomenon, donating money or rice under the name of favorite stars, is spreading. Recently, on the 6th, fans of TVXQ donated 140 bags of rice to the Seoul Social Welfare Community Chest under the name of U-Know Yunho, a member of TVXQ, in celebration of his birthday. In 2008, the same fan group donated 2,060,000 won to needy neighbors residing in urban slums in Yeongdeungpo, and gave 2,620,000 won last year for Haitian refugees suffering from earthquakes. An employee of Yunhos management company SM Entertainment says, Yunho does a lot of good deeds at any given day. Seeing him, his fans collect money around Yunhos birthday and donate it [to a good cause].

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A star fan club giving donations has become a common occurrence. On the 13th, January, 41 celebrities, including Yi Jun Ki, 2PM, SS501's Kim Hyeong Jun, Wonder Girls Min Sun Ye, JYJs Park Yoochun (Micky Yoochun) as well as Bae Yong Jun, entrusted 11 tons of rice collected by each celebritys fan club to 2 international relief organizations: KFHI (Korea Food for the Hungry International) and the Rice Wreath Dream. Those fans in their 30s and 40s rooting for Park Yoochun, a member of JYJ, recently collected 10,000,000 won and made a visit to the pediatric ward of the National Cancer Center; the Jang Keun Seuk fan club sent rice to a regional children welfare center. The fan club of singer Kim Hyeon Jung created the Kim Hyeon Jung Scholarship Fund and has been systematically helping students in difficult circumstances. Also on the rise are fan-club-level direct actions to help out stars in dilemmas. No longer impotent fans who merely shed tears over the news of the breakup of a popular [band] group, some take action in a pro-active manner. JYJ, which split from TVXQ to stand on its own, had many restrictions in appearing on over-the-air TV music programs. To support their favorite group, the JYJ fan club association collected funds to post advertisements on buses. In 10 days, from January 14th to 24th, the 9,817 members participated to collect 150,000,000 won. With the caption We Support Your Youth, the poster will be plastered on 120 busses in Seoul, Gwangju, Daejeon, Daegu and Busan, until the 26th. Many fans began participating lightheartedly for a chance to see the

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face of their favorite star just one more time. However, gradually, they end up participating for the satisfaction of doing a good deed, regardless of the star. A female fan in her 30s, also known as an older sister fan, says At first, I participated because I was growing fond of the image of Yi Jun Ki, but I continue participating because I was proud of myself thinking of and helping others. However, making donations under the name of a celebrity raises come concerns because it can come to be seen as a mere gimmick to promote a star. Also, recently, some fan clubs have been making donations as if in competition, causing the amounts donated to balloon. An official from Keyeast Co., Ltd. says, Fan clubs giving donations has good points, but Im concerned there might be moneyrelated wrongdoings, and adds a management company does not involve itself with fan club activities. Still, the issues over donation should be managed and overseen by posting guidelines and such.

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