Park We Remains Silent for Two Weeks After KTX-Sancheon CCTV Controversy; Three-Year-Old Video Resurfaces

[Financial News] The controversy surrounding YouTuber Park We has spread to videos from the past.
Park We has not issued any significant statement for two weeks following the controversy over the release of KTX-Sancheon closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage. Meanwhile, a video released in 2023 is being discussed again online.
The video was uploaded to Park We’s YouTube channel, ‘Weracle,’ on September 30, 2023. Its title was ‘My Wheelchair Tire Burst as Soon as I Arrived in the United States... The Airport Says It Wasn’t Their Fault,’ prompting one online user to question it as “a Park We video title that is impossible to understand.”
In the video, Park We boarded business class, unlike the members of his group, who traveled in economy class. With assistance from a flight attendant, he transferred to an onboard wheelchair and used the aircraft restroom. After arriving at an airport in the United States, Park We transferred back to his own wheelchair. Before long, he discovered that the right tire had torn and lost air. When the wheel would not roll properly, he said with a worried expression, “What am I supposed to do? Seriously. I’ve never gone around for this long in a wheelchair with a flat tire... Ah, this is driving me crazy. How could this happen?” Park We found a tire shop run by a Korean owner about an hour away and resolved the problem. The video also showed him taking photos with Korean fans despite facing a difficult situation at the airport.
When the video was first released, viewers focused on how Park We and the production team worked together to resolve the unexpected situation. After the CCTV controversy, however, comments criticizing the same video began to appear.
One online user took issue with the difference between the title and the actual content of the video. The user said that, despite the provocative title, the video never showed airport staff denying responsibility for the tire problem. The user asked, “Then why was the title ‘The Airport Says It Wasn’t Their Fault’? And what exactly did the airport do wrong?”
Some online users criticized Park We’s video title and attitude. Their reactions included, “Why is this the airport’s fault? Couldn’t the wheel have already been damaged before he arrived in the United States?”, “I don’t understand why he doesn’t carry a tire-puncture repair patch,” “It keeps revealing more and more, like peeling an onion,” “Immediately trying to find someone to blame really shows the raw side of human nature,” “Why does he keep blaming others?”, “I don’t understand why he is blaming someone else for that,” and “Did he act like that in the United States too?”
Others cautioned against excessive criticism. Some said, “The airport’s response was inadequate,” “Isn’t this just unfairly piling on? Don’t YouTubers usually use provocative clickbait titles to attract views?”, and “Don’t be so hard on Park We. Public opinion is already too critical. Will you be satisfied only after driving one person completely into the ground?”
Earlier, Park We was involved in an accident while getting off a KTX-Sancheon train, when he tripped over the foot of a public-service worker who was supporting a ramp. He later released CCTV footage of the incident on his personal channel, ‘Weracle,’ to raise the issue, but the controversy grew.

Park We emphasized the need for safety training to prevent similar incidents. However, he was criticized for releasing unedited CCTV footage showing the worker’s mistake on a channel with one million subscribers, even though the public-service worker had apologized several times. Park We deleted the video and apologized, saying, “I was short-sighted.” However, he subsequently faced an exodus of subscribers, and videos from his past have also been brought back into the spotlight.
There have since been indications that Park We made some of his YouTube videos private. However, he has not engaged in any notable social media activity or uploaded content for two weeks.


[email protected] Han Seung-gon Reporter