Of all things, a 'School Violence Public Service Ad'... GwakTube's Controversy Over 'Lee Na-eun Defense' Leads to Ministry of Education Video Being Made Private

GwakTube Apologizes, "There Were Parts I Missed"

Travel YouTuber and broadcaster KwakTube (32, real name Kwak Jun-bin), who has 2.11 million subscribers, has sparked controversy after featuring former April member Lee Na-eun on his channel and allegedly defending the 'bullying incident.' As the controversy grows, a school violence public service advertisement starring KwakTube has been set to private, causing further repercussions.

Travel YouTuber and broadcaster KwakTube (32, real name Kwak Jun-bin) [Image source=KwakTube SNS capture]

On the 17th, the Ministry of Education's official YouTube channel 'Education TV' set the school violence campaign public service advertisement video titled '2024 School Violence Prevention Campaign - Finding the Corner Talent,' featuring KwakTube, to private. This campaign was jointly produced by the Ministry of Education, the Korea Youth Policy Institute, and 17 metropolitan and provincial offices of education nationwide.

The video featuring KwakTube encourages paying attention to friends suffering from school violence, empathizing with their pain, and preventing school violence through prompt reporting.

However, it is unclear whether the Ministry of Education set the video to private or if YouTube changed it to private following a flood of user reports.

The Ministry of Education's '2024 School Violence Prevention Campaign - Searching for the Corner Talent' released on the 13th. [Image source=Ministry of Education]

The controversy surrounding KwakTube began on the 16th when he uploaded a video titled 'The Return of Junbin's Happy Trip' on his YouTube channel 'KwakTube,' documenting his trip to Rome, Italy, with Lee Na-eun.

In the video, KwakTube said to Lee Na-eun, "Whenever the topic of school violence comes up, I used to get very sensitive and immediately blocked you, but I saw articles saying that wasn’t true." He added, "I have shared many stories as a victim, but I felt like I was causing harm to someone who was actually misunderstood." In response, Lee Na-eun said, "It was upsetting and sad that so many people misunderstood me as that kind of person and blocked me."

Some viewers criticized KwakTube for seemingly defending Lee Na-eun, whose involvement in the group's 'bullying incident' allegations has not been resolved. KwakTube had previously confessed in several interviews that he was bullied by friends throughout his school years and dropped out of high school due to the trauma of school violence, so his apparent support for Lee Na-eun was seen as inappropriate.

A video uploaded on the 16th on the YouTube channel 'GwakTube'. [Image source=YouTube capture]

Lee Na-eun debuted in 2015 as a member of the group April and gained recognition as the lead in the web drama 'A-Teen.' However, she halted activities after former member Lee Hyun-joo, who left the group, alleged that she was subjected to group bullying by the members.

At that time, Lee Na-eun, the April members, and their agency DSP Media sued Lee Hyun-joo and her family for defamation, but the police closed the investigation with a 'no charges' decision, concluding the case.

Facing heavy criticism, KwakTube deleted the video and apologized, saying, "There were parts I overlooked and did not think deeply about."