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| Singer Kim Gun-mo / Courtesy of Media Line |
Kim Gun-mo scandal triggers rare debate, divides conservative YouTubers
By Kang Hyun-kyung
Singer Kim Gun-mo is facing the biggest crisis in his 25-year career. He is facing accusations of assault, including rape, an allegation he denied.
His recently revived career is under threat. He saw his popularity rebound after SBS' hit reality show "My Little Old Boy" featured him along with his financee, who is 13 years his junior, discussing their plans to marry next year.
Earlier this month, a woman appeared in a YouTube video last week, claiming Kim raped her. A couple of days later, another woman came out accusing the 51-year-old singer of physical assault which she claimed caused severe injuries to her face.
Denying the allegations, Kim filed a lawsuit against the woman who accused him of having raped her three years ago.
The star singer is reeling from the assault allegations.
His case, however, didn't end up being another celebrity case that is awaiting legal judgment.
It triggered a rare online community debate about the "eligibility of rape victims" and "authentic conservatism."
Conservative YouTubers clashed after a YouTube channel, the Garo Sero Institute, "scooped" the case earlier last week. The conservative channel alleged Kim raped a woman at a room salon, a bar that employs the prettiest girls in the industry to sit and drink with customers, in southern Seoul three years ago. The alleged victim, who was then a room salon worker, claimed she was raped and it was not consensual.
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| Lawmaker Kang Yong-seok, left, answers questions from reporters as he and Kim Se-eui, a former MBC reporter, enter the Seoul Central District Court last Monday to initiate a lawsuit against singer Kim Gun-mo on rape charges. Kang and the former MBC reporter operate the Garo Sero Institute channel on YouTube. / Yonhap |
Boasting 550,000 subscribers, the Garo Sero Institute is one of the most influential right-wing YouTube channels dealing with political news and entertainment stories.
The scandal involving the star singer pit the YouTube channel against other conservative YouTubers.
The critics voiced concern that conservative viewers are distracted by celebrity news involving the singer and claimed liberal politicians, a number of whom are currently involved in political scandals, would benefit from this shift in public focus.
YouTuber Tosoony accused the Garo Sero Institute of using a double standard, saying they are vocal on the rights of the room salon worker, while turning a blind eye to the rights of the singer.
Kim Gun-mo had been popular with all age groups, mainly because of the mega-success of his albums released in the 1990s. Thanks to the phenomenal success of his song "Wrongful Fate," his third album released in 1995 sold 286 million copies, becoming the most-sold Korean music album, a record that still stands.
His recent career revival, however, was short-lived. Kim dropped out of the SBS show as the last episode, which aired on Dec. 8 after the scandal was reported, showed a sharp drop in viewership. He canceled a concert tour which was initially scheduled to take place in six cities, including, Seoul and Daegu until late February.
Lee Byung-tae, a conservative YouTube commentator and professor of the College of Business at Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), blamed the Garo Sero Institute for allegedly dividing the online right-wing camp. He uploaded a post with a link to a YouTube channel, in which a young female YouTuber criticized Garo Sero for "biased coverage" of the singer. It is a reactionary video to a Garo Sero Youtuber's critical comments about her regarding her previous video.
Lee blamed Garo Sero, saying he is tired of unnamed conservative YouTubers trying to use their own standards in screening real conservatives from fake ones. "I hate using right wingers these days because of such judgmental people. Do they really belong to the right-wing camp? If so, aren't they supposed to side with other right wingers?" his post read.
The online community debate about rape and the legitimacy of victims was raised because of the alleged victim's profession. Some questioned if a woman working at a room salon could be considered a rape victim.
A room salon is a bar with several private rooms in which customers sit and drink with pretty girls. Their services ― sitting and drinking with male clients ― are charged based on time shared with customers.
Lawyer Kang Yong-seok, who represented the victim, claimed any sexual relationship that is not consensual constitutes rape, regardless of the victim's profession.
