“Psick University” Comedians Apologize Days After “Insulting” Video Causes National Criticism
On May 11, 2024 (KST), the YouTube channel Psick University uploaded a video titled “Visiting Gyeongsang Province’s Smallest Town, Yeongyang” as part of its regular content of “Made In Gyeongsang-Do,” set for exploring areas in the southeastern part of Korea.
As soon as it was released, however, the unveiled episode received some scathing reviews for disrespecting the area in general, the businesses that the three hosting comedians visited in the area, and the residents who had long lived there.
Throughout the 36-minute video, comedians Lee Yong Ju, Jung Jae Hyung, and Kim Min Soo shared what viewers felt were “insulting” opinions. From referring to the area as “China” (for being rural and unknown) to describing the flavor of ginseng as “the flavor of chewing on a grandma” and even dubbing the local river as “sh*t water,” the trio were unhinged.
While the viewers were unimpressed by the whole episode, they found some parts to be extra hateful toward the locals and their hometown. In one instance, the trio pointed out that “local women” were “walking around all dolled up” for them, having heard about their visit—which some viewers found to be rude.
They knew we were coming. The two ladies we saw earlier? They got all dolled up. They keep walking around…
— Psick University Comedians
Then, after poking fun at the fact that the area does not have a fast-food franchise (and so the locals settle for “fake burgers” sold at a local bakery), the trio dined at a local restaurant and, without censoring the business name, commented that the food was “insignificant.”
I heard they don’t have a Lotteria here. So the young locals, when they want burgers… They have this instead.
— Psick University Comedians
For a week, viewers voiced criticism toward the episode. The trio remained silent, until the backlash began growing across online communities.
Koreans were incessant at calling out Psick University for having crossed the line, especially after the locals mentioned in the video all stepped forward to comment on how their town was portrayed in the video.
Yo… This tastes like a grandma. It’s grandma-flavored. Like I’m actually biting into a grandma.
— Psick University Comedians
And, as the backlash grew, Korean press also began calling out the trio for their silence. Some of Korea’s largest outlets, like SBS, KBS, and JTBC, discussed the controversial episode as part of their main news segments.
The restaurant’s owner even commented via an interview that the comedians were “rude” when the owner had been generous to let them order outside regular business hours.
Sure, they were a bit rude. We saw the video, too. We told them that we were not taking any orders, but they insisted that they had to dine at our restaurant. So we took them in as the last customers for our lunch service.
— Restaurant Owner
By May 18, 2024 (KST), the size of the channel, which had been sitting at over 3.18M+ subscribers, had been impacted—losing at least 50K subscribers and counting.
And amid the national rage, the trio finally posted an official apology on their Instagram.
View this post on Instagram
“Hello, this is Psick University’s Lee Yong Ju, Jung Jae Hyung, and Kim Min Soo.
We would like to apologize for the “Made In Gyeongsang Province: Yeongyang” episode uploaded to the Psick University’s YouTube channel on May 11.
We have read all the comments without deleting any, reflecting on the aspects that have been criticized. While we understood the importance of a prompt statement addressing the issue, we believed it was more crucial to offer a sincere apology to those directly involved in this incident. Additionally, we were concerned that our sincerity might not be fully conveyed through an apology lacking sufficient reflection. After careful consideration, we have decided to post this apology today.
We apologize to everyone whom we have offended with our immaturity.
The “Made In Gyeongsang Province” content is based on Lee Yong Ju’s hometown and his identity as someone from the area. The original intention was to capture his most awkward moments when facing actual Gyeongsang province natives, contrasting his claim of being from Busan, and to turn it into comic episodes. As the episodes progressed, we added an aspect of exploring the different regions in Gyeongsang province, naturally incorporating promotional content for the region. However, we failed to deeply contemplate the negative impact it could have on those regions.
We admit that the Yeongyang episode was problematic in that, in an attempt to highlight the town as being relatively unknown despite having many attractions, we used exaggerated expressions to bring comedic appeal to the content. Particularly, we admit that we made comments lacking consideration for the residents and small business owners of the area. Comments such as ‘This feels like China,’ ‘The restaurant lacks uniqueness,’ ‘The river smells like sh*t,’ and ‘The ginseng tastes like grandma,’ and others pointed out in the criticism were conveyed to the viewers without filtration, in a form that is difficult to accept as comedy. We take full responsibility without making any excuses and sincerely apologize for all the mentioned issues.”
— Lee Yong Ju, Jung Jae Hyung, and Kim Min Soo
The apology explained that the trio had since re-visited the bakery and the restaurant, met with the business owners, apologized to them in person, and received feedback from them.
“Firstly, we would like to express our sincerest apologies to the two business owners who were directly impacted by our content.
The members of Psick University, Lee Yong Ju, Jung Jae Hyung, and Kim Min Soo, re-visited the bakery and the traditional Korean food restaurant directly mentioned in the episode to offer apologies.
To the owner of the bakery, we deeply apologized for the disrespectful behavior within the premises and inconsiderate reviews of the baked goods. Fortunately, the bakery owner kindly agreed to sit down and have a conversation with us first, and graciously forgave us, stating that they were alright. We express our gratitude once again and apologize sincerely.
We also offered multiple apologies to the business owner of the traditional Korean food restaurant for our rudeness. We acknowledged our shortcomings due to this incident and we expressed our commitment to becoming better individuals. In response, the restaurant owner reminded us that everyone makes mistakes, though repeating it becomes a wrong. The restaurant owner kindly advised us not to repeat the same mistake and encouraged us to move on.
Both business owners have mentioned that there is currently no damages caused by the episode, but we will continuously monitor for any potential future consequences and do our best to assist if needed.”
— Lee, Jung, and Kim
The apology also noted that the episode will be deleted from the channel.
“Secondly, we would like to express our sincere apologies to the residents of Yeongyang, the public officials working in town, and employees of the Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) for the harm and concern caused.
We deeply regret having offended you. We made thoughtless remarks about the town of Yeongyang and its specialties, which may have elicited discontent for the locals. We sincerely apologize to the local residents who consider Yeongyang as their livelihood.
In our attempt to undo any damages done, we have contacted the Yeongyang County Office. While immediate actions may not follow, we will consistently strive to find ways to rectify our mistake in the future.
Thirdly, we apologize to everyone who felt uncomfortable watching our content.
We sincerely apologize to all those who have supported us by watching the content on our comedy channel, and we deeply regret the disappointment we may have caused.
We, at Psick University, are comedians. As a result of this incident, we will reflect once again on the social role of comedians.
We have put in a lot of effort to create good comedy, but it seems that we still have room for improvement. We will continue to show the development of Psick University in the future.
Once again, we apologize to the residents of Yeongyang who have suffered from this incident and to our subscribers who have expressed concern.
*Upon issuing this apology, the Yeongyang episode will be removed from the channel.”
— Lee, Jung, and Kim
As expected, the “belated” apology left Koreans divided.
- “Should’ve deleted it earlier.”
- “I think the apology was well-written. But it came so late. The video was up for far too long, too. And they still haven’t addressed any of the other issues that resurfaced because of this incident. So it does make me wonder if the apology is sincere. In short… I don’t know that I’ll ever watch their stuff again.”
- “I hope I don’t ever come across their content again. Like, this apology is f*cking belated.”
- “Now I know not to associate with anyone who subscribes to this channel…”
- “You know why they didn’t take down the video earlier. I didn’t watch it, and I don’t think I’ll ever watch any of their stuff going forward.”
- “Sure, it’s late. But I think the apology was clean and not full of excuses. I think we should keep our eyes on them and see if they change.”
- “It’s a well-written apology, but I think the video already revealed what kind of people they really are. So I don’t think I’ll be watching any of their content.”
- “Sucks I can’t unsubscribe since I never subscribed to their channel.”
- “I actually like the fact that they re-visited the businesses and apologized to them in person. That’s sincere. I’ve unsubscribed, so I won’t be watching their stuff again. But hopefully, they’ll be more thoughtful going forward.”
In addition to the now-deleted video, a previous episode featuring IVE‘s Jang Wonyoung also sparked backlash for questionable design choices in the thumbnail. Read more about what the viewers are saying:
Netizens Criticize Psick Unversity’s Thumbnail Choice For IVE’s Jang Wonyoung
