President Yoon Suk-yeol: How Did He End Up Captured by 'Far-Right YouTube'?

Emergency Martial Law Reveals 'Election Fraud Theorists'
Believed YouTubers Were Behind Presidential Victory
Cheon Haram "Relied on YouTubers as Approval Ratings Fell"

Since his inauguration, there have been frequent claims that President Yoon Suk-yeol was "influenced by far-right or conservative YouTubers." After the declaration of martial law on the 3rd of last month, a series of President Yoon's actions and responses confirmed that these claims were not mere rumors. Cheon Ha-ram, the floor leader of the Reform Party who was formerly affiliated with the People Power Party, analyzed that President Yoon valued these YouTubers because he believed he won the presidential election thanks to conservative YouTubers, and as his approval ratings declined, he seemed to psychologically rely on conservative YouTubers who evaluated him favorably.

Yonhap News

On the 3rd, within political circles, the issue of YouTubers' influence over President Yoon shifted from a 'matter of suspicion' to a 'matter of certainty.' Earlier on the 1st, President Yoon sent a letter bearing his signature to the hardline supporters and YouTubers gathered around the presidential residence, stating, "I see your efforts through real-time live-streaming YouTubers." Terms used by President Yoon such as ‘patriotic citizens’ and ‘forces infringing on sovereignty’ are commonly used by far-right YouTubers.

Moreover, the idea of occupying the Central Election Commission during martial law to find evidence of ‘election fraud’ also shows the influence of YouTubers who have advocated election fraud theories. In a statement on the 12th of last month, just before the impeachment motion, President Yoon mentioned that one of the purposes of martial law was based on the election fraud theory. He said, "The Election Commission is a constitutional institution, and since judicial officials are members, it is practically impossible to conduct searches or forced investigations based on warrants," adding, "I instructed the Minister of National Defense to inspect the Election Commission’s computer system." This implies that due to suspicions of election fraud, they attempted to verify it through martial law forces.

In fact, during President Yoon’s inauguration, many conservative YouTubers were invited, and some were appointed through greetings, leading to analyses that the president was overly absorbed in YouTube. Former National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo revealed in his memoir last June that during the recommendation for the dismissal of former Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min related to the Itaewon tragedy, President Yoon said, "There are strong suspicions about the Itaewon tragedy, so I cannot make a decision," and "It cannot be ruled out that this incident was induced and manipulated by certain forces." Kim recalled, "It was hard to believe that conspiracy theories from far-right YouTubers were coming so smoothly from the president’s mouth." However, the series of events following the martial law declaration revealed President Yoon’s true nature.

Jo Gap-je, CEO of Jogapje.com, mentioned on CBS Radio the previous day, referring to President Yoon’s decision to move the presidential office to Yongsan, the expulsion of Reform Party lawmaker Lee Jun-seok from the People Power Party, and the unscientific decision to increase medical school admissions, stating, "(President Yoon) is using terms directly from extreme YouTube," and criticized, "He has been completely brainwashed."

Why Did President Yoon Rely on YouTubers?

Floor leader Cheon said on YTN Radio, "(President Yoon) had an extraordinary love for YouTube from the early days of his administration," and introduced, "I even heard that President Yoon and First Lady Kim Keon-hee personally invited YouTubers and gave them cash gifts."

Behind President Yoon’s obsession with far-right YouTubers was a sense of gratitude for their contribution during the presidential election process. Floor leader Cheon said, "(The Yoon couple) believed that conservative YouTubers made them presidents," and explained, "Since President Yoon had no conservative roots, the foundation for forming a prevailing trend, winning the primary, and becoming president was that before declaring political participation, First Lady Kim Keon-hee actively managed conservative YouTubers and made them allies. This belief was ingrained from the start."

There was also analysis that the more the president’s approval ratings declined after inauguration, the more he depended on them. Floor leader Cheon diagnosed, "As approval ratings dropped sharply, President Yoon went beyond using YouTube to relying on it," adding, "Only YouTube gave him comforting words, praising him and making him feel good." He continued, "Conservative YouTubers told me that the president falls asleep with his YouTube playing," and "He has trouble sleeping, but since YouTube praises and compliments him, he has to listen to it. There were even rumors that he drinks and sleeps with YouTube playing."

On the morning of the 3rd, as officials from the Corruption Investigation Office entered the presidential residence in Hannam-dong, Seoul, to execute an arrest warrant for President Yoon Seok-yeol, supporters of President Yoon gathered on the road near the residence in Hannam-dong to hold an anti-impeachment rally. Photo by Heo Young-han

Some argue that President Yoon believed in election fraud theories even before the presidential election. On the 5th of last month, lawmaker Lee Jun-seok revealed on social media (SNS), "The first conversation I had with President Yoon at Acro Vista was, 'When I was at the prosecution, I tried to send people from the Incheon District Prosecutors’ Office to sweep the Election Commission but failed,' and that was the first topic of conversation with President Yoon."