ChimChakMan Suddenly Says, "This Taste Is a Damn B****" While Eating Tteokbokki... "Blatant Misogyny" vs. "It Was Just a Skit" [What Do You Think?]

[Financial News] ChimChakMan, a famous webtoon artist and broadcaster with more than 3.2 million subscribers, has come under fire for using a derogatory slur against women while reviewing the taste of food. ChimChakMan, whose real name is Lee Byung-geon, is 42. The scene containing the remark was quietly deleted from the edited version after the controversy erupted.
On the 27th, ChimChakMan posted an edited video titled "One Step Ahead Makes You a Genius, Two Steps Ahead Makes You a Fool" on his YouTube channel. The video showed him sampling unusual menu items at a franchise cafe with fellow webtoon artist Kim Poong. It was re-edited from a livestream held earlier this month.
The controversial scene occurred while they were sampling Boba Tteokbokki, a tteokbokki dish made with tapioca pearls. When Kim Poong commented, "Women seem to like the chewy texture. I've never seen a woman who dislikes tteokbokki," ChimChakMan tasted the food and mimicked a woman's manner of speaking in a high-pitched voice, saying, "Oh, this bitch. What's with this thing?"
He then asked Kim Poong, "Didn't I sound kind of like a woman just then?" before saying, "This taste is a damn b****," using a vulgar term for women to describe the food.
The remark spread across several online communities after the livestream and drew fierce criticism. Netizens condemned it, saying, "Was there really any reason to use a vulgar term for women while reviewing the taste of food?" "Using a derogatory term while imitating a woman was an unmistakably misogynistic expression," and "As a major influencer with an influence comparable to that of public media, his choice of words was extremely careless." Some also brought up a previous case in which a comedy YouTube channel used an expression disparaging elderly people while tasting local specialties and faced widespread social condemnation.
Some fans and netizens, however, pushed back, saying, "It was merely a crude joke that came out in the context of an exaggerated skit and over-the-top reactions," and "There was no malicious intent to hate or disparage women." They argued that the backlash amounted to an excessive witch hunt, leaving the two sides sharply divided.
As the debate over the remark spread, ChimChakMan's side cut and deleted only the segment in which he said, "This taste is a damn b****," from the final edited video released on the 27th. The skit and exclamations before and after the controversial remark remain intact; only the vulgar term was removed.
ChimChakMan's side has not issued a separate official statement or apology regarding whether the edit was made in response to the controversy or explaining the circumstances surrounding the remark.
[email protected] Moon Young-jin Reporter