ANALISIS RESEPSI FANS NCTZEN PADA ACARA VARIETY SHOW NCT “IT’S AWKWARD BUT IT’S OK” DI YOUTUBE SEBAGAI MEDIUM UNTUK MEMBANGUN KEDEKATAN ANTAR ANGGOTA

Siti Humairotus Shofa. Student ID 202210040311221. "Analisis Resepsi Fans NCTzen pada Acara Variety Show NCT "It's Awkward but It's OK" di YouTube sebagai Medium untuk Membangun Kedekatan Antar Anggota. Undergraduate Thesis, Communication Science Study Program, Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, Universitas Muhammadiyah Malang, 2026.

Variety shows have become one of the content formats utilized by the K-pop industry to present interactions among group members to fans. One of these programs is NCT "It's Awkward but It's OK" (AWSAZ), a variety show that brings together NCT members from different units who are perceived as being awkward or not yet close to one another. This study aims to examine NCTzen fans reception of AWSAZ as a medium that portrays the process of developing closeness among NCT members.

This research employed a qualitative method with an interpretive approach. Data analysis was conducted using Stuart Hall's Reception Theory to identify the dominant, negotiated, and oppositional reading positions, as well as Altman and Taylor's Social Penetration Theory to understand the stages of interpersonal relationship development portrayed in the program. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with nine NCTzen fans from the Malang community, observations of YouTube and social media comments, and documentation from the fan community. Participants were selected using purposive sampling.

The findings reveal that six participants were categorized in the dominant reading position, while three participants were classified in the negotiated reading position. No participants were found in the oppositional reading position. Most participants accepted that AWSAZ successfully portrayed the process of developing interpersonal closeness among NCT members from different units. Meanwhile, participants in the negotiated reading position accepted the program's primary objective but expressed critical views regarding the presence of monitoring, production direction, and the perceived naturalness of the interactions. Based on Social Penetration Theory, AWSAZ was interpreted as a medium that illustrates the stages of interpersonal relationship development among NCT members, including orientation, exploratory affective exchange, affective exchange, and stable exchange. The study also found that fans' backgrounds, fandom experiences, media consumption patterns, and social experiences influenced their reception of the content. Therefore, AWSAZ is perceived as an effective medium for fostering interpersonal closeness among NCT members through interactions that develop progressively.