"This Is the Real Thing"... 23-Year-Old Lee Hoi Chang and Roh Moo Hyun TV Debate Goes Viral Again

YouTube Shorts Video Surpasses 12 Million Views in One Minute
"Healing to Watch?No Sarcasm or Interruptions," Say Viewers

Amid growing disappointment that the 21st presidential election candidates' TV debate failed to properly address policies due to harsh language and slander, a video of the 16th presidential election debate from 23 years ago is gaining renewed attention online. As of June 2, a one-minute YouTube Shorts video titled "A Dignified Debate Unlike Today" has recorded 12 million views. The video is a short edit of the debate between Roh Moo Hyun, the Millennium Democratic Party candidate, and Lee Hoi Chang, the Grand National Party candidate, from the 16th presidential election in 2002. The footage shows the two candidates exchanging arguments, rebuttals, and counter-rebuttals on the topic of relocating the administrative capital.

"This Is the Real Thing"... 23-Year-Old Lee Hoi Chang and Roh Moo Hyun TV Debate Goes Viral Again

Amid growing regrets that the 21st presidential election candidates' TV debate failed to properly address policies due to harsh language and slander, a video of the 16th presidential election debate from 23 years ago is gaining renewed attention online. YouTube channel 'Saram Saneun Sesang Roh Moo Hyun Foundation'

Candidate Roh argued for relocating the capital due to excessive population concentration, while candidate Lee countered with concerns about confusion that could arise from moving the administrative capital. Online commenters noted that, unlike today, the two major party candidates listened carefully to each other and logically presented their arguments, instead of resorting to harsh criticism, slander, or negative campaigning. In particular, another debate video shows candidate Lee asking, "You strongly advocated for the withdrawal of US forces in Korea in the past, but haven't you changed your position recently to say they could remain even after unification?" Candidate Roh replied, "As I continued in politics, I came to make more comprehensive judgments and realized the necessity of US forces in Korea. Please don't blame me too harshly for the misjudgment I made as a first-term lawmaker." Viewers responded to this scene by praising the willingness to admit past mistakes, describing it as "politics that is gentle yet strong, and moving in a way that is different from today."

Other Shorts videos featuring excerpts from the debate are also recording high view counts. The video on pension reform has about 2.05 million views, while the video showing candidate Roh fully agreeing with candidate Lee's call for bipartisan consensus on market opening has about 850,000 views. The video on aid to North Korea has about 700,000 views.

The renewed popularity of the 16th presidential debate is attributed to the fact that both the number and the substance of recent presidential debates were lacking. Above all, this presidential election is going down in history as the one with the fewest debates. Debates featuring two or more major candidates were limited to just three sessions organized by the National Election Commission. According to regulations, at least three debates must be held between the day after candidate registration and the day before early voting, under the supervision of the Election Broadcasting Debate Committee, but only the minimum requirement was met.

Article 82 of the Public Official Election Act stipulates measures to supplement such a low standard for debates. It allows broadcasters and media organizations to hold debates starting one year before the election day. However, in this election, not a single "supplementary debate" featuring multiple candidates took place. Even invitation-style interviews, where only one candidate appears and answers questions from other panelists, were extremely limited, resulting in insufficient scrutiny of the candidates' policies and qualifications. Furthermore, the debates were dominated by criticism and slander against rival candidates, rather than substantive policy discussions, which deepened the sense of disappointment. As a result, the past debate between candidates Roh and Lee is now being remembered as "dignified."

Viewers who watched the video left comments such as, "Is this really a debate from 20 years ago, not one from 20 years in the future?" "I came here to heal after getting stressed out watching the current presidential debates," and "It was an era of different dignity." Other comments included, "Watching past debates is especially moving when, in today's debates, parties are busy filing lawsuits and counter-lawsuits over statements made during the debates. It made me realize how much Korean politics has regressed."