Kim Saeron’s father said that his daughter suffered greatly from YouTuber A’s videos.
The bereaved family of the late actress Kim Sae-ron confessed that she suffered greatly from YouTuber A’s continuous videos exposing her private life.
Director Kwon Young-chan of the Korea Entertainment Suicide Prevention Association, who met with the late Kim Saeron’s father at the deceased’s funeral on the 17th, said, “I had many conversations with my father,” and revealed this.
Director Kwon, a former comedian, worked as an adjunct professor and visiting professor at Seoul Arts University and is currently a full professor of Well-Life Branding Counseling at Oikos University in the United States. Director Kwon, who is currently the director of the Korean Celebrity Suicide Prevention Association, visited the funeral parlor of Asan Medical Center in Seoul on the same day after hearing the sad news of the deceased and had a deep conversation with the bereaved family.
According to Director Kwon, YouTuber A posted a video titled, “Kim Sae-ron Self-Shine Again… Disappeared after Marriage Rumors? I Contacted Her Directly” after the deceased posted several photos with a wedding pictorial concept on her SNS in January. In the video, A stated that he tried to contact Kim Sae-ron to hear her side of the story but was unable to reach her, and pointed out that his sincerity in reflecting on her actions was questionable.
In fact, after the news of Kim Sae-ron’s death was reported, YouTuber A took down all of the videos related to Kim Sae-ron that he had uploaded to his channel or made them private, drawing criticism from netizens.
Regarding this, Director Kwon criticized, “Mr. A previously received a tip that the deceased was working part-time at a cafe due to financial difficulties, and uploaded a related video on YouTube,” and “This kind of behavior is a serious invasion of privacy and increases mental pain.” He continued, “Anyone can make a mistake once in a while, and (the deceased) was working part-time to make a living while reflecting on his punishment. Regarding this deceased, Mr. A raised questions about the reflection, and he was criticized by other malicious YouTubers and the public.”
Director Kwon also stated, “Videos related to the deceased have been deleted from Mr. A’s channel, but we are collecting related materials,” and “The bereaved family said they will contact us after the funeral. In the future, we plan to provide various types of support free of charge when the bereaved family files a complaint against Mr. A or files a complaint with the Press Arbitration Commission.”
Director Kwon said, “This incident makes us look back at the psychological pain that celebrities experience and the social pressure they face,” and added, “Celebrities are also human and can make mistakes, and we need social support and understanding so that they can start anew. Above all, institutional devices to prevent damage caused by malicious content must be established urgently.”
Director Kwon said, “Mr. A’s actions went beyond a simple competition for views and destroyed a person’s life,” and urged, “Through this incident, we need to have a social discussion on protecting the privacy of celebrities and regulating malicious content.” He emphasized, “Our society must move in a better direction so that Kim Sae-ron’s tragic choice was not in vain.”
Director Kwon sent a photo of the deceased’s memorial to Ilgan Sports with the consent of the bereaved family and asked for self-restraint from excessive reporting on the funeral.
Meanwhile, according to the police, Kim Sae-ron was found dead at her home in Seongsu-dong, Seongdong-gu at 4:54 p.m. on the 16th. A friend who had been scheduled to meet the deceased found him at his home and reported him to the police. There were no signs of criminal activity, such as signs of external intrusion.
The funeral home has been set up at Seoul Asan Medical Center, and the funeral will be held at 6:20 AM on the 19th.
