Are K-drinking shows nearing their end? Korean government to revise guidelines on alcohol presence in YouTube videos and other platforms

With the increase of K-drinking shows on YouTube and other video-streaming platforms recently, the Korean government has announced its plans to revise its guidelines on the presence of alcohol-related scenes that are put forth on the internet.

Given that all currently running drinking shows are accessible to all groups and kinds of audiences, the influential presence of alcohol in these shows has raised concerns about its adverse effects on minors and other younger audiences. Additionally, given that the participants of these shows are famous and popular figures in the industry, the audience might perceive the alcohol-related scenes without understanding the harmful effects it holds.

Since there are chances of alcohol intake being glorified through the K-drinking shows, the Korean government has revised the Media Drinking Scene Guidelines by implementing age restrictions on these shows along with other measures.

---

Korean government to revise their guidelines for K-drinking shows on YouTube and other video-streaming platforms

Since the start of last year, there's been a significant increase in K-drinking shows, which also brings impressive viewership. Several shows, such as Lee Youngji's Nothing Much Prepared, BTS' SUGA's Suchwita, Shin Dong Yeop‘s Zzanbro, and more, have garnered attention for their intriguing qualities and the ongoing trend of drinking shows in the Korean Entertainment industry.

However, a constant concern and criticism raised by several netizens regarding the K-drinking shows is its unconscious or indirect glorification of alcohol. Given that the participants of the show are famous in the industry, they can directly influence minor audiences and might be motivated to overlook the harmful effects of alcohol. Therefore, the prevalence of these drinking scenes on YouTube and other video-streaming platforms can be detrimental.

This resulted in urging the Korean government to revise its Media Drinking Scene Guidelines bill. The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korean Institute for Health Promotion and Development put forth the revised bill by increasing the number of guidelines from ten to twelve.

Here are the two recently added guidelines,

1. Contents that excessively highlight or glorify drinking must minimize accessibility to children and teenagers through age restrictions.
2. The harmful effects of drinking must be made known through warnings.

Therefore, The Korean government recommends that all K-drinking shows be accessible only to audiences above eighteen years of age, and appropriate health warnings should be placed in these shows. In addition to the revised bill, The Ministry of Health and Welfare commented on the following about their recent decisions,

“The new guidelines were created with YouTube and OTT in mind. There are many drinking scenes on YouTube, etc., but since they cannot be regulated by law, we have revised them to urge voluntary self-restraint.”

The revised bill will be officially announced to commemorate the Drinking Harm Prevention Month event, expected to be held at the end of this month, on November 30, 2023.

---

Following the official announcement of the revised bill, all upcoming K-drinking shows are expected to adhere to the two newly added guidelines.