Texas news anchor under fire for bizarre ‘Death to America’ joke over BTS-themed Oreos on live TV

A Texas news anchor is under fire for making a bizarre joke in which he claimed that Oreos released in collaboration with South Korean boy band BTS spelled out “Death to America.” FOX 34 Lubbock anchor James Eppler and his co-anchors were chatting about the new limited-edition cookie during a lighthearted segment Tuesday when the broadcast suddenly took a strange turn. “The cream is supposed to taste like the South Korean treat hotteok, which is a brown sugar-stuffed pancake that some of the band members say they ate as kids,” Eppler said. “That sounds good,” one co-anchor replied. “That does sound good, right?” Eppler continued. “The cookies’ wafer is the BTS signature color purple. Wafers are also engraved with one of 13 designs, which spell out a message to fans when put together that is ‘Death to America,’ which I think is really strange.” His co-anchors immediately looked stunned. “No, it’s not,” Eppler quickly clarified while laughing. “Somebody could just be tuning in,” one co-anchor responded. The limited-edition BTS Oreos feature purple wafers and a hotteok-inspired cream filling. Eppler then continued with the segment as normal. The comment quickly sparked backlash online, with viewers and BTS fans calling the remark inappropriate and completely out of place. Oreo described the collaboration as “deeply meaningful” as the band — which consists of RM, Jin, SUGA, j-hope, Jimin, V and Jung Kook — placed “a piece of their Korean heritage inside an iconic cookie they’ve always loved.” Eppler, who is also a professor at Texas Tech, appeared to brush off the remark in real time, but many fans demanded an apology and called for his firing. “You need to train your news anchor better after you [have] fired this one, this was supposed to be a wholesome collaboration between Oreos and BTS,” one fan wrote online. “There is no room for ignorance, xenophobia, prejudice, racism or anything in between in journalism. If James Eppler cannot report news without being unprofessional, he doesn’t need a platform,” another posted. BTS swept the 2026 American Music Awards this week, taking home artist of the year and two other trophies. “What about this is funny,” one user wrote. “If you knew BTS they are the most humble respectful men you will ever know,” another added. “What the hell did I just hear?” another viewer posted. The Post has reached out to Eppler for comment. The backlash comes during a major week for BTS. The K-pop group swept the 2026 American Music Awards on Monday night, winning all three awards they were nominated for, including artist of the year. The group also won best male K-pop artist and song of the summer for “Swim,” the lead single from their new album “Arirang.” “Armys, we did it once again!” band leader RM said during the group’s artist of the year acceptance speech. “It’s an honor to have this precious award,” he added. “Our biggest thanks and gratitude, as always, go to Armys all over the world, who stood by us for the past 13 years. Thank you so much.”