Song Ji-eun [CBS TV YouTube channel 'Saereopge Hasoseo']
Song Ji-eun [CBS TV YouTube channel 'Saereopge Hasoseo']

Amid unrelenting public anger over the controversy surrounding YouTuber Park Wi, 39, his wife Song Ji-eun, 36, appeared on a Christian broadcast program — drawing a fresh wave of criticism that ultimately led the video's comment section to be disabled.

Song, a former member of the girl group Secret, appeared Monday on "Saereopge Hasoseo," a CBS TV YouTube channel program released that day.

The show is a Christian testimony program hosted on a rotating basis by composer Joo Young-hoon, Song Ji-eun, comedian Lee Jeong-su and others.

In the video, Song was moved to tears while listening to a believer recount the loss of her 17-year-old son. She also said, "I am so grateful to be living with the hope that I, too, can become a footprint that leaves the fragrance of Jesus in the lives of my family and in the lives of others."

The comment section quickly filled not with responses to the broadcast's content but with remarks about the "Park Wi controversy." Many viewers criticized Song for appearing on air while her husband had remained silent for more than three weeks since the controversy erupted.

Because the video featured the personal story of a private individual, the volume of comments focused on the couple's controversy appears to have prompted the disabling of the comment function. The production team did not publicly explain its specific reason for closing the comment section.

Park Wi and Song Ji-eun. [Park Wi's social media]
Park Wi and Song Ji-eun. [Park Wi's social media]

Park became embroiled in controversy last month after releasing CCTV footage of himself falling from his wheelchair while boarding a KTX train. The footage showed a social service worker who was assisting Park accidentally catching the wheelchair's wheel on a ramp, causing the fall. Critics accused Park of using his influence as a YouTuber with about 1 million subscribers to engage in gapjil — the abuse of power — and to impose private sanctions against the service worker. The backlash was particularly sharp because Park, a quadriplegic YouTuber, had built his following by advocating for the care and protection of society's most vulnerable. Many expressed disappointment that he had acted as the more powerful party in the situation.

However, as criticism has continued for more than three weeks — with even minor past remarks and actions being dug up — some have begun to argue that the backlash has gone too far.

The controversy pushed Park's YouTube subscriber count below 1 million, and some of his scheduled speaking engagements were canceled. The couple had served as Seoul Metropolitan Government ambassadors and appeared regularly on broadcasts and at speaking events, but following the controversy they stepped down from their ambassador roles and lost further engagements.

Shortly after the controversy broke, Park deleted the CCTV footage and said he had "acted without thinking it through," but he has since maintained silence, posting no new content on his YouTube channel for more than three weeks.

Park and Song married in October 2024.


paq@heraldcorp.com