'Presidential Bid Kickoff' Hong Jun-pyo: "Old-School Far-Right YouTube Must Disappear... Worried About Presidential Election Season"

"YouTube as a Hotbed of Fake News"
"Worried It Will Worsen During the Presidential Election Season"

Hong Joon-pyo, the mayor of Daegu who has made his candidacy for the next presidential election a foregone conclusion, directly criticized, "These days, YouTube has become the source of fake news."

Hong Joon-pyo, Mayor of Daegu / Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

On the 21st, Mayor Hong said on Facebook, "I am worried that it will become even more rampant during the presidential election season," adding, "I hope the 'teuldak' YouTube channels that deceive people with provocative thumbnails to make money will disappear soon." 'Teuldak' refers to 'people who click their dentures,' a derogatory term for the elderly.

"It has already been six years since I created the YouTube channel Hong Kakolla," he lamented, "When I first created it, I was convinced that the media was too biased and that the era of one-person media would come. But these days, YouTube has become the source of fake news and the source of agitation, which is regrettable."

In a previous media interview, he evaluated President Yoon Seok-yeol's declaration of martial law, saying, "I have never seen martial law declared so carelessly in the world. He must have been misled by far-right YouTubers."

Recently, as the possibility of an early presidential election increased due to the impeachment crisis of President Yoon, Mayor Hong has raised the level of his potential candidacy. He strongly distanced himself from allegations of involvement with political broker Myung Tae-kyun and recalled the situation during the last presidential election, sending a hopeful message about the possibility of reestablishing a conservative government. "I thought the point of differentiation from the Yoon administration would be from the fourth year, but it came too early," he expressed regret, while adding, "One fortunate thing is that the conservative forces in this land are still strong, and the opponent is the criminal and rioter Lee Jae-myung," suggesting the possibility of reestablishing a conservative government.