Cloud USA

— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^

[Cloud USA 5/16/11] Wow. Where do I begin?

Words are powerful, so much so that it always floors me when people aren’t careful how they use them. One statement, taken as fact and forwarded by everyone who encounters it, can circle the globe at light speed and negatively affect a worldwide fan base. Three sentences, depending on how they are translated from one language, can make someone who is humble and caring mistakenly appear to be haughty or arrogant in another.

The Associated Press article that was published Saturday, May 14, about Rain (a.k.a. Jung JiHoon, South Korean mega-entertainer), » Rain talks music and movies, but not military duty, still has me in a daze, for several reasons. A full accounting of Rain’s press conference in Macao needs to be released, and soon, so that his dedicated fans worldwide who were upset by the article can rest assured that they aren’t supporting him for nothing.

I sit here incredulous. There’s no time like the present, so let’s get right to my point of view on this subject.

• Before this past Saturday, Rain couldn’t have bought a mention when it comes to the English-speaking press. The man could have singlehandedly rescued a bus load of children from a sinking bridge, evacuated an entire village from an exploding volcano, and literally saved Planet Earth from an invading alien force, all in one day, and the American media wouldn’t have even bothered to write about him. As usual. But then a 16-paragraph article comes out where it looks like he’s being difficult or trying to hide something, and every U.S. news source, on-line and off, from The San Francisco Chronicle to The Boston Globe and everything in between, decides to throw that story up front and center? Really?

• Where is the rest of what Rain said during this event? Where is the rest of the story, a full transcript or uncut video of this recent Macao press conference? There is no way that he walked into a room full of world press, sat down, said only those three sentences (which would have taken all of ten seconds), and then split. Which means that those three sentences [“Now America is no longer dominant. Now many Asian movies and songs are very popular. The two regions have the same status now.”] are sitting there in that article out of context, without what came before or after them and without their proper meaning.

This is a good place to bring up the “lost in translation” problems that are always present when it comes to English and Korean, as well. Korean-to-English conversion never comes out that cleanly and almost always has to be reworded to make proper sense. This is obviously a rewording—just how close is it to Rain’s original statement? Was the translator careful? The image in my mind of Rain looking into a camera and flat-out telling the U.S. that it is lacking is about as ludicrous as him looking into a camera and telling the Filipino people that their food was “decent” last fall. In the nine years of his career, he’s been careful not to be rude or insulting in the press to anyone, so those three sentences attributed to him do not jive, frankly. I’m not buying this clipped translation. There must be more to it.

• Something else I’m not buying is the statement But Rain thinks his entertainment future lies in Asia. This is not shown in the article as a direct quote from Rain, but as the writer’s conclusion, and it should be taken by fans as such. Why? It completely contradicts direct quotes that have come straight from Rain’s mouth in written and live interviews from the latter half of 2010 up until now. I’m going to try to put out a new album, finish a movie, have a concert tour, serve my time in the military, and then throw myself into struggling hard as an actor in the States. Please support me. That’s what the man’s been saying for months and Sundays. His KBS Global interview/article… his KBS 1TV live interview in April… when E!News Asia’s Dominic Lau talked to him before his show in Malaysia a few weeks ago… his February interview with Yonhap News… and on and on.

Not only does the writer’s claim contradict what Rain has been saying, it also contradicts the last words we heard straight out of his U.S. management’s own mouth, who I doubt would be spending time and money representing him over here if he had no career plans.

• Rain talks about his impending military service all the time. He’s been quoted left and right about it for the past year. He talked to Channel News Asia about it last month. He talked to Yonhap News about it. He talked about it to a huge press corp at Incheon Airport recently. He’s always talking to KBS about it. So he declines to talk about it in Macao and it’s some huge deal? So what? Which segues nicely into my next bullet point…

• If you already know that Few details of his military duty have been disclosed, but he told South Korean media last month that it would start at the end of this year, then why ask about his enlistment to begin with? What else is there for the man to say that hasn’t already been said? Wouldn’t it be more appropriate, in the little time he had, to talk about his current important projects and what he was in Macao for? Don’t celebrities, politicians, law enforcement officials, attorneys, et cetera, regularly determine the subjects to be covered during some press conferences in order to cut down on extraneous drivel that is inevitably droned on and on about by reporters (if they allow questions at all, that is)? Let’s face it, time is money.

Do I feel that Rain is turning his back on his future goals, plans, and dreams in the United States? No, and why would I, until he himself makes a statement changing his stance? Why should any fan believe that the Rain they’ve listened to for months would suddenly make such an abrupt character change, especially when the Media says so? And while I’m on that subject, when are fans across the world going to stop immediately taking everything the Media says about Rain as gospel, and continue believing in him for a minute? Will that day ever, ever come?

Rain is transitioning into a new phase of his life, and for him to continue hugging Asia while putting his arms around America seems a natural part of that. Both parts of the world are really important to him—America set the standard and has opened doors to him, and he’s proud of the strides that Asia has made in meeting the bar America has set, which wasn’t easy. I believe he’s simply talking up Asia, not putting down America. He wants to embrace and be embraced by both, together. » This is further enforced in my mind by the footage (edited) of Rain’s BEST Macao press conference that has come to light.

The question is, will the Media consciously hinder him in the future with what they decide to print?

And will we, as his fans, stand for that kind of behavior?

Stephe @cloudusa.wordpress.com / www.cloudusa.org 

Posted in Bi Rain, Bi Rain News, Cloud USA, Jung Ji Hoon, Rain Topics
Tags: Bi Rain articles, Bi Rain News, bi rain press conference, Cloud USA original article, Jung Ji Hoon, rain bi, The BEST Rain 2011 Tour