“Heart Signal 4” Has An Intense New Method To Avoid Contestant Scandals

The popular South Korean dating reality show is about to air its fourth season, and it seems like the production team is doing its best to avoid any more scandals. Hear Signal‘s previous contestants faced multiple accusations, from drunk driving to school bullying and sexual assault. Thus, the popular program had some extra requirements for this year’s contestants who wanted to join this season’s competition.

Heart Signal essentially follows eight people from different backgrounds as they live together for a month in order to get to know each other better. The climax of the episodes happens each night, when the contestants have to send an anonymous text message to one of their peers and express their romantic interest.

As mentioned before, the show has already had its fair share of controversies. The first season, which aired in 2017, had one of its cast members, Kang Sung Wook,  sentenced to five years in prison following sexual assault charges. The second season’s contestant Kim Hyun Woo was arrested for drunk driving in 2018, while the show was still airing. Heart Signal‘s third season also continued the long line of scandalous cast members, with Lee Ga Heun and Cheon An Na both being accused of school bullying.

All of these controversies have seemingly made the Channel A team think of better ways to pick their contestants and avoid facing backlash in the future. Though, industry experts also hint that the rise of school bullying scandals coming out in the entertainment industry, as well as the increase of attention these controversies get, may have also impacted this decision.

A recent article from the Hankook Ilbo revealed that the aspiring cast members for season four of the show had to provide around 12 years’ worth of school records. This would mean the aspirants would have to hand in documents that start all from their elementary school days, go through the time they spent in middle school, and finally high school.

It was the director of Channel A’s production team himself who revealed this information, Lee Jin Min, perhaps in an attempt to ease the viewers’ concerns.

Upcoming popular reality program Heart Signal 4 contestants had to provide school records for their Elementary School, Middle School, and High School before filming.

— Lee Jin Min

Lee hopes this will not only make it possible for the show avoids having any more harmful controversies and aid the wrong people in gaining fame and popularity, but sees it as a good opportunity for the aspirants themselves. After clarifying those who couldn’t hand in the necessary records weren’t allowed to join the program, Lee Jin Min adds that he hopes this can also be an opportunity for self-reflection.

Only those who agreed were able to film, in the process of checking their school records, we believe contestants will have an opportunity for self-reflection.

— Lee Jin Min

Heart Signal‘s fourth season will air this year, with reports saying the show will grace the TV screens of the South Korean public around May.