How to Manage YouTube Channels Funded by Political Donations [Leaking Sponsorship Funds]⑩

132 out of 144 21st Term Expired Lawmakers Own Channels
Some Videos Cost Hundreds of Thousands Won, Only 9 Used After Term
One Studio Operation Case... YouTube Ads on Videos After Term
Central Election Commission's First Voter Interpretation to Our Inquiry: "Not Illegal"

Editor's NoteIn the past, the reason for abolishing the district party offices was due to illegal political funds. Recently, the two major parties have been pushing for the revival of district party offices. The prerequisite for the revival of district party offices is the transparent use of political funds. What is the actual situation? Asia Economy requested information disclosure from the National Election Commission and regional election commissions and secured six months' worth of accounting reports before the expiration of the terms of 144 members of the 21st National Assembly. These individuals are now former lawmakers. Based on the secured data, we prioritized verification items by examining the appropriateness of expenditure purposes and usage locations. We confirmed with the parties involved and the election commission, and also conducted on-site reporting. We also uncovered the reality that the election commission does not properly verify accounting reports. We focus on verifying and reporting the use of political funds by lawmakers near the end of their terms. ① Spending millions of won on office supplies at a kimchi factory logistics warehouse ② Using political funds for meals at Gangnam wine bars, hotels, and famous restaurants... 'Meetings = Gourmet tours?' ③ Retirement pay is illegal... 'Retirement consolation money' is legal ④ Large-scale holiday gifts to fellow lawmakers with political funds ⑤ Spending 10 million won 10 days before term expiration for a solo trip to the U.S. ⑥ Large legal fees spent despite the election commission's 'no problem' response ⑦ Spent millions on supporting fellow politicians ⑧ Political funds used to pay traffic violation fines? ⑨ End-of-term political fund accounts are overdraft accounts? ⑩ What to do with YouTube channels grown with political funds

As the importance of new media has been emphasized, the majority of the 21st National Assembly members operated YouTube channels for reporting their legislative activities or election campaigns. However, many who lost in the 22nd general election have not uploaded videos since the April 10 general election. YouTube channels funded by political funds have been effectively abandoned after their terms ended. Among them, some former lawmakers have attached monetizable YouTube ads to videos posted after retirement. There are calls for establishing regulations to manage the operation of lawmakers' YouTube channels, as there are currently no specific rules in place.

According to the "Accounting Reports of 144 Members of the 21st National Assembly Whose Terms Expired," obtained by Asia Economy through information disclosure from the National Election Commission as of November 25, a total of 132 members maintain YouTube channels. Most of them used their channels during their terms to upload edited videos of key statements from standing committee activities, media interviews, election campaigns, or videos produced for early-year legislative activity reports.

For key statements from standing committee activities, media interviews, and election campaign videos, legislative office staff often use video editing software costing 40,000 to 50,000 won per month. On the other hand, legislative activity report videos and election campaign videos are mostly outsourced to production companies, costing political donations ranging from 2 to 3 million won at the low end to 4 to 5 million won at the high end. Legislative activity report videos are used at legislative activity report meetings and then uploaded to YouTube.

Although these YouTube channels feature videos funded by political donations, there is significant variation in channel management and content among legislative offices. Many stopped uploading videos after losing elections or deciding not to run again, leading to public criticism of wasted funds, according to some aides. Only 26 lawmakers uploaded videos of standing committee activities, press conferences, or thank-you messages after the April 10 general election. Among them, only nine?Kim Nam-guk, Kim Du-kwan, Kim Jin-pyo, Yang Hyang-ja, Woo Sang-ho, Yoon Mi-hyang, Lee Won-wook, Choi In-ho, and Hong Seok-jun?posted political or personal videos on their YouTube channels after their terms ended.

Among lawmakers who posted videos on their channels after their terms ended, the only one who operated a YouTube studio using donations from their support committee was former lawmaker Kim Nam-guk. Excluding the security deposit returned at the end of his term, Kim spent 12,718,470 won of support committee donations on YouTube studio operating expenses such as moving costs due to studio relocation, brokerage fees, setup and estimate work costs, monthly rent, and management fees. According to the list of equipment attached to the accounting report, Kim registered with the election commission four cameras, two wireless microphones, one computer, two TVs, two monitors, two lights, three chairs, one soundbar, one Bluetooth speaker, and one video switcher as YouTube studio equipment.

Kim Nam-guk, who owns the Kim Nam-guk TV channel with 163,000 subscribers, uploaded a total of four live streams (political content, from September 26 to October 2) and four edited videos (political content, from September 29 to October 5) after his term ended. The live streams recorded 2,900 to 6,700 views, and the edited videos averaged 2,000 to 3,000 views. Typically, two YouTube ads are shown per video.

Because he spent support committee donations on studio rental and setup costs to maintain the YouTube channel, questions have been raised about whether it is appropriate to generate revenue by uploading videos after the term ended. An aide to a lawmaker who requested anonymity said, "Usually, YouTube channels operated by lawmakers do not apply for ad revenue after their terms end. This is the first time I've seen such a case," adding, "Although the channel was created before the term ended, since support committee donations were used, we need to consider how the public would view receiving ad revenue from videos posted on the same channel after the term ends." A former deputy prosecutor turned lawyer with experience in public security investigations said, "It is unclear whether this should be seen as political activity or, despite the small amount, as profit-making activity, so it is difficult to judge illegality based on limited information," but added, "As lawmakers' social media (SNS) and YouTube channel operations become more active, and given the potential for abuse, there is a need to consider institutional improvements."

However, Kim explained, "YouTube activities during the term were for delivering political messages and strengthening communication with voters, which is clearly defined as legitimate political promotional activity," adding, "Considering that most paper legislative reports are discarded, I chose YouTube as an effective promotional method to enhance communication." He also stated, "After the term ended, all related equipment was sold as used, and the details were transparently reported to the election commission." He further clarified, "The YouTube channel was personally operated before the start of the National Assembly term, and I resumed activities about six months after the term ended. The few tens of thousands of won earned from ad revenue afterward have nothing to do with the support committee donations spent during the term."

After Asia Economy inquired about the legality of Kim's case, the National Election Commission's Political Funds Investigation Division deliberated and issued its first voter interpretation. A National Election Commission official said, "It is too clear that acquiring assets funded by political donations for profit after the term would be illegal, but this case does not appear to violate the Political Funds Act," adding, "For example, a lawmaker can use the knowledge and experience gained during political activities to engage in profit-making activities such as external lectures after retirement. If YouTube operation after the term is also controlled, it raises the question of whether it is reasonable for the election commission to control all profit activities after legislative activities."

Regarding the possibility of future abuse as YouTube use related to politics increases, the official said, "There will inevitably be situations that the system cannot perfectly control," but added, "If cases arise that could be considered violations, we will have to conduct more in-depth reviews at that time."