YouTuber of Job Seekers Who Caused 'Moon's Downfall' Becomes Secretary to Mayor Oh
Channel Virtually Closed
[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] "'Isn't this hypocrisy?", "There was no problem in the hiring process, so I don't understand why this is controversial."
Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon is facing controversy over hiring a 20-something YouTuber, Mr. A, as a message secretary. Mr. A is known to have strong conservative tendencies, having referred to President Moon Jae-in as 'Mr. Moon' on his YouTube channel in the past.
Some criticize Mr. A as having an 'extreme right-wing tendency' and deem the hiring inappropriate. On the other hand, since the message secretary position is a special appointment without specific qualification requirements, some argue there is no problem. A Seoul city official reportedly explained, "Mr. A is not extreme right-wing."
According to Seoul City on the 6th, Mayor Oh recently hired YouTuber Mr. A as a special appointment public official equivalent to grade 8, serving as a message secretary. The message secretary is responsible for drafting and revising messages issued by the mayor's office, such as speeches, congratulatory messages, and addresses.
Mr. A, who was a job seeker before being appointed secretary, had no prior work experience but reportedly served as the head of the citizen support committee in Mayor Oh's election campaign during the Seoul mayoral by-election.
The issue is that Mr. A may become embroiled in controversy over political bias. Since the message secretary is responsible for drafting texts issued by the mayor's office, political neutrality is paramount, but there are concerns that the position could lean toward one side.
Mr. A has been active as a conservative YouTuber. With about 23,000 subscribers, he has uploaded videos titled ▲The Fall of Mr. Moon ▲Yoon Seok-youl! Suing Mr. Moon?! Mr. Moon Reduced to Defendant? ▲The Manipulation of the Monthly Garden Incident! The Fall of Mr. Moon Begins ▲The Chaotic Comment Section on Moon's Facebook! Shaking Public Sentiment! ▲Our Country Has Become a Complete Pushover?, among others. Additionally, Mr. A has stirred controversy by referring to President Moon as 'Mr. Moon' in some videos.
In this regard, pro-government online communities such as 'Clien' have pointed out Mr. A's 'extreme right-wing tendency' and argued that this hiring is inappropriate.
One netizen commented, "If the secretary manages the mayor's SNS, there will be considerable influence and controversy depending on the level of authority." Other netizens responded, "This is absurd. Because of this case, extreme right-wing YouTubers will work harder to secure positions," "It's ridiculous. Although special appointments follow the elected official's tendencies, there should still be some boundaries," "Hiring an extreme right-wing person is understandable from their side, but hiring a young unemployed person with no social experience as a secretary drafting speeches is unacceptable," and so on.
Meanwhile, there were criticisms that this appointment is 'hypocrisy.' While Mayor Oh criticized broadcaster Kim Eo-jun for political bias, hiring a person with strong conservative tendencies is seen as inappropriate.
One netizen said, "Hiring someone who matches your own tendencies is the inherent right of a local government head, so there's nothing to say. But pointing out political bias in Kim Eo-jun while making this kind of hire is hypocrisy, isn't it?"
On the other hand, some argue there is no problem since the message secretary position is a special appointment that can be hired without separate qualification requirements. Special appointments are public officials who perform specific tasks or mainly assist as secretaries, and many come from election campaign teams of the head of the organization. Also, special appointments can be appointed without a separate recruitment announcement and are known to receive salaries equivalent to those of general public officials of similar rank.
Office worker Mr. Jeong (29) said, "I don't know if referring to President Moon as 'Mr. Moon' is such a big issue to cause controversy," adding, "Also, special appointments can be hired without separate qualifications. Ultimately, there was no problem in the hiring process, so I don't understand why this is controversial."
Another office worker, Mr. Lee (25), pointed out, "Special appointments should assist close to the mayor. Isn't it contradictory to hire someone with a different political color?"
Meanwhile, Mr. A reportedly received a so-called 'yellow tag' warning from YouTube after mentioning President Moon on his channel, after which he referred to him as 'Mr. Moon.' The 'yellow tag' is a warning mark attached to video content that violates YouTube's operational standards, such as for sexual content, violence, or political bias.
As the controversy grew, Mr. A eventually effectively shut down his YouTube channel. He made all his previously uploaded videos private or deleted them and also removed the channel name and profile picture.
Regarding this, a Seoul city official told multiple media outlets, "Mr. A is not extreme right-wing," and added, "We judged that delivering messages from a youth perspective to youth would be more effective."
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