This feature presents an investigation on the effect of sexiness on the popularity of a girl group's releases. I have questions about the methodology - I haven't read the actual report on the investigation, but looking at only three groups can't be considered as validly representing the population. Also, there are other factors that may be affecting the ranking of the release, such as whether the group is debuting or it has an established fandom. For all we know, it may be that the market is reacting to the hype generated by these groups' companies.
So we see how we can't really call this an objective, valid study on the effect of sexiness in "market viability". Yet I'm sure there will be people who will still see this as confirmation of the belief. Maybe because it's been posted where everyone can read it. Maybe because there's these interesting graphs and cool pictures. Maybe because the conclusion one draws is so easy, so intuitive. It confirms what we've "known" all along, doesn't it?
I call BS (for the non-American readers who likely don't get the reference, BS refers to the excreta of male cows' digestive systems). The world runs on people who never question what is "common sense."
Take the idea that women are physically weaker than men. I've a kung-fu sister who is female, approximately in her fifties, has agoraphobia and has had no prior intensive physical training. She's an average adult, senior to me by a year in the style we're studying. After more than two years of training she is so strong young males in their twenties and thirties could not move or uproot her; only two of my other seniors can tie with her. She also is very religious in training and has been doing iron palm for some time now.
Women are weak? Really?
We accept these generalizations as gospel - never questioning how the gospel limits us. My favorite example though is Sandara Park. Ms. Park started out in the Philippines by winning second place in a now-defunct talent show. She was paired off with the winner of said show, both of them billed as a "love team;" they mostly starred in cornball roles for fluff movies. I looked into what record is left of that time online and it seems like Ms. Park was almost always on the bad side of the judges both for lack of talent and lack of mastery of the local language. She did however gain the sympathy of voters (the show's contestants were eliminated through online votes). I suppose to the Filipinos at the time she was something novel, and her constant crying probably brought out some white knight tendencies.
Eventually, the Filipinos tired of Ms. Park. She was reduced to posing for a local men's magazine in order to drum up interest in herself. In the end, she accepted a contract to be an idol in South Korea. So what was that again about sexiness selling? It didn't help her out then.
Now though, Ms. Park is known as a widely-successful international star; she is arguably the most successful and well-known out of all the big names that talent show was supposed to have spawned. And yet she herself admits that she doesn't have that much talent; she says she just tries to work hard.
So in this case hard work and good attitude sold.
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