Far-right YouTubers under criticism for fueling division, Seoul court attack

YouTube has emerged as a political battleground in South Korea, in particular over the arrest of impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol, with some far-right video bloggers sending out inflammatory rhetoric, sensational content and conspiracy theories that incite violence and amplify divisions.

There is no doubt that YouTube is a powerful digital platform offering a variety of useful information and content to audiences across the globe. But it is also an obvious fact that YouTube often serves as a key tool for malicious individuals and groups armed with video cameras and mics to disseminate misinformation in real-time due to the absence of effective and timely regulations.

In particular, far-right YouTubers have been accused of peddling fake news to inflame partisan supporters, deepening the nation’s political and social fractures. Troublingly, certain politicians appear to be fanning these flames to bolster their own positions, exacerbating the political instability.

A striking example is the shocking mob violence that took place on Jan. 19, when Yoon’s staunch supporters stormed the Seoul Western District Court and staged a violent protest against a judge’s decision to issue an arrest warrant for Yoon over his short-lived martial law declaration last month.

Several far-right YouTubers, alongside pro-Yoon protestors, scaled the court’s security fencing, livestreaming as they smashed glass, broke into the building and searched for judges in a way that stirred up tensions among their viewers. Worse, other far-right figures including some politicians joined the fray.

The violent and unprecedented act committed by the pro-Yoon protesters is deeply regrettable not only because it is a serious crime that violates the rule of law and the judicial system, but also because it is an inevitable outcome of what far-right YouTubers have done so far with their provocative actions and live streams.

Similarly, the controversy surrounding alleged election fraud has fueled conspiratorial narratives over YouTube. False claims that over 90 Chinese nationals detained at the National Election Commission training facility were sent to a US military base in Japan and confessed to election tampering have been widely debunked. Yet, far-right YouTubers persist in twisting these baseless assertions, stoking conspiracy theories for political and financial gain.

Behind this incendiary behavior lies calculated financial motives. Experts say that for many of these far-right video content creators, inflaming controversy is highly lucrative. A single viral moment can attract a surge of subscribers and donations through Super Chats.

According to Rep. Chung Il-young of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, some top far-right YouTube channels doubled their income through Super Chats in December when the martial law order by Yoon triggered a huge wave of controversies and boosted their viewership.

This suggests that some YouTubers could be exploiting the political turmoil sparked by Yoon’s martial law, impeachment and formal arrest for personal enrichment.

The outrageous developments from far-right YouTubers add to concerns over South Korea’s political divide, with the country already reeling amid the tension between the two rival political parties over the impeached president.

If South Korea’s political environment fails to stabilize soon, aggressive provocations stoked by such extremists could intensify. The timing of the presidential election, depending on the Constitutional Court’s ruling on impeachment proceedings, could provide fertile ground for further polarization.

Against this background, it is hard to understand why the ruling People Power Party has invited controversy by sending gifts to ten conservative YouTubers ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday -- including some of those who were directly involved in the Jan. 19 court attack.

It is imperative to curb the proliferation of fake information disseminated by some extremist YouTubers. Political parties must also resist the temptation to ride this wave of online sensationalism.