Lee Sun-kyun’s sudden death on December 27 shocked netizens not only in South Korea but also worldwide. However, in addition to expressions of shock, sorrow, and remembrance for the late actor, a powerful wave of blame erupted among netizens. Many raised the question of “Who’s to blame for the death of Lee Sun-kyun?”
Netizens and mob mentality
The first target was the netizens themselves. In fact, it was the very netizens shocked by the death of Lee Sun-kyun that once showered the actor in criticism, insults, and harassment, which eventually pushed him to extreme actions.
In fact, the hypocrisy of netizens are implied by many other celebrities who expressed condolences for Lee Sun-kyun.
In particular, Yuri, a singer and member of the first-generation K-pop group Cool said that Lee Sun-kyun is just a human like us and expressed that the actor’s death scares her.
“Should his mistakes cost him his life? This is heartbreaking and tragic. I send prayers to his family”, the singer wrote.
Meanwhile, actor Lee Ji-hoon was upset that Lee Sun-kyun was condemned even before the results of his investigation were revealed. “For those who like to judge others, can you look at yourself in the mirror without feeling ashamed of your own life?“, the actor criticized netizens in a post, though hê later deleted it.
Similarly, singer Kim Song believed that public opinion and society drove people to their deaths. According to her, the mob mentality brings negative effects, as they demand impossible standards from celebrities, who are humans and so will inevitably make mistakes.
The police
Meanwhile, a significant number of people criticized the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, which was investigating Lee Sun-kyun’s drug abuse scandal.
Many were outraged by the news that the actor was interrogated for 19 hours on December 26. They suspected that authorities used illegal means to pressure Lee Sun-kyun, leading him to succumb to the pressure and decide to take his own life.
Under the pressure of public opinion, police representatives denied the accusations on XSports News, claiming that they did not use any illegal interrogation methods.
According to the police, Lee Sun-kyun always had two lawyers with him during the three summons for questioning, and all questioning sessions took place with Lee Sun-kyun’s consent.
Despite this explanation, however, netizens continued to criticize the police, arguing that investigators believed the statements of the bar manager, believed to be Lee Sun-kyun’s affair partner and even released her accusations, even though the actor’s drug test results were negative.
The media
Of course, the media also played a major role, having failed to fulfill its duty of providing accurate information from both sides and instead excessively exploited irrelevant issues about Lee Sun-kyun and his family, causing those involved to be constantly stressed and exhausted.
Other involved parties
Finally, many netizens believed that the root of Lee Sun-kyun’s misfortune was the bar manager, Madam Kim, who accused the actor of drug use.
In addition, YouTube channel Garo Sero Research Institute also came under fire for releasing
voice recordings between Lee Sun-kyun and Madam Kim, which included various private information. According to netizens, the harmful content of this YouTube channel indirectly caused the tragic death of Lee Sun-kyun.
A continued “blame game”
The blame game did not stop at external impacts, as even after Lee Sun-kyun’s death, he was not spared from blame. Some netizens called him irresponsible, seeking death as an escape, leaving a burden for his wife and children.
“I understand he faced a lot of pressure and stress, but think about his family. Now he is putting all the weight of his choices on his family, while the fault is his, not theirs”, an netizen wrote, adding, “All the choices leading to his death are selfish and irresponsible until the last minute. I can’t help but feel disappointed in a man like him”.
But in the end, while discussions about Lee Sun-kyun’s sudden departure have not shown signs of ending and the blame game seems to be never concluding, the fickleness of netizens is note-worthy.
Particular, Lee Sun-kyun previously denied allegations that he used ketamine, and instead insisted that he was tricked by Madam Kim.
“I used a straw to take it through my nose, but I thought it was a sleeping pill. I didn’t know it was drugs,” he said.
However, netizens openly mocked the actor’s statement, and even gave him mocking nicknames.
Then, KBS News released two voice recordings of phone calls between Lee Sun-kyun and Madam Kim, one featuring the male actor confessing his feelings to his lover, while the other discussed drug use.
At that time, the public strongly criticized Lee Sun-kyun, using the term “disgusting” to describe him and stating that the male artist had “fallen”, instead of waiting for the final judgment of authorities.
Throughout the three months of drug investigation, the actor faced many malicious comments from netizens. However, since he took his own life, public opinion has reversed, turning to sympathy, blaming others, and even calling for a tolerant and supportive community for celebrities who make mistakes, as if there were no provocative statements before.
This situation is similar to the controversy surrounding G-Dragon earlier. When the Big Bang leader was pulled into a drug investigation, netizens called for a boycott, attacking him with terrible words. When the male singer continuously received negative drug test results, most people rushed to apologize for not trusting their idol, then turned to criticize the police and the media, without considering whether their previous actions had caused harm to the other party.
As singer Kim Song wrote in her post remembering Lee Sun-kyun, the mob effect is truly frightening.
Source: K14
