{"id":13187,"date":"2026-11-02T22:18:53","date_gmt":"2026-11-02T22:18:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=13187"},"modified":"2026-11-02T22:18:53","modified_gmt":"2026-11-02T22:18:53","slug":"a-year-after-streamer-crackdown-bucheons-chaos-eased-but-not-gone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=13187","title":{"rendered":"A year after streamer crackdown, Bucheon’s chaos eased but not gone"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A banner put up by the city government reads, \u201cIllegal YouTubers out. Stop threatening citizens\u2019 safety and merchants\u2019 livelihoods,\u201d in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Park Ung <\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

BUCHEON, Gyeonggi Province \u2014 Park Hye-ran, 47, a mother of a 6-year-old son, often finds it unsettling to walk around her neighborhood in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, a city known for its many online streaming creators airing outlandish broadcasts.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m worried about being filmed, and the broadcasting makes me uncomfortable. As early as the afternoon, many people are streaming around the food alley near Bucheon Station,\u201d Park said, adding that it can\u2019t be good for children to see.<\/p>\n

Last year, Bucheon made headlines for streamers who vied for viewer donations with attention-grabbing stunts such as dancing shirtless, singing loudly in public and mocking police officers called to the scene. Things turned violent when a YouTuber in her 30s was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after stabbing a man in his 30s with a weapon during his livestream.<\/p>\n

In response, the city announced a crackdown on streamers in September 2025, citing broadcasts that seriously damaged its brand image and harmed merchants and residents. It applied crime prevention strategies using environmental design techniques in the parks and streets where streamers often gathered, removing seating to keep them from lingering and stepping up patrols.<\/p>\n

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Bollards line a sidewalk to discourage loitering and sitting on the streets in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, Wednesday. A banner beside them says the area is under monitoring and urges people to report disruptive livestreaming to police by calling 112. Korea Times photo by Park Ung <\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Last month, the city said disruptive streaming near Bucheon Station has declined. Related complaints filed through the government\u2019s online petition portal fell 71.4 percent, from 77 in the second half of last year to 22 in the first half of this year.<\/p>\n

On Wednesday, streamers were still broadcasting around Bucheon Station from early morning, alone or in groups of two or three. Residents said things have calmed down considerably since last year\u2019s peak, though some streamers still frequent the area.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe number dropped a lot when the city ran a campaign and the media covered it heavily last year. At its worst, it was definitely noisy, with people drinking and broadcasting here. The shouting was unpleasant, too,\u201d said Kim Myung-seop, 39, who has run a butcher shop near the station for 10 years. <\/p>\n

Kim added that there used to be a few such streamers, but the problem worsened after the COVID-19 pandemic ended.<\/p>\n

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A streamer causes a disturbance at a convenience store while shirtless in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province. Captured from the YouTube channel Bucheon Inbang <\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Park Hyo-jong, 63, who has run a fruit stand near the station for two years, said streamers thinned out after senior volunteers began patrolling the area to drive out malicious YouTubers.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the height of it, those guys were lawless. Many weren\u2019t sober and cursed as they streamed,\u201d Park said. \u201cNo matter how good the money is, you shouldn\u2019t stream like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yoon, 36, a streamer who was broadcasting near Bucheon Station and asked to be identified only by his surname, said streamers gather in the area for exposure.<\/p>\n

\u201cI stream in Bucheon because there are many other streamers here, so we can create synergy. The promotional effect is huge,\u201d Yoon said. \u201cAt first nobody watches your streams, but if you show up on other streamers\u2019 cameras, that promotes you. That\u2019s why more of us gather to help make ourselves known.\u201d <\/p>\n

Yoon, who lives in Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province, said he rents a room in Bucheon for two to three months at a time because broadcasting there gets him so much exposure.<\/p>\n

With streamers still drawn to the area, many residents hope the city will maintain its policy to bring their numbers down even further.<\/p>\n

Ko, in her 60s, who has cleaned Bucheon Station for 11 years, said the streamers\u2019 broadcasts make her anxious.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wouldn\u2019t mind if they just streamed quietly and left. But they go to places like the plaza and run wild in strange outfits, and that\u2019s what we didn\u2019t like,\u201d Ko said. \u201cWhen people walk around carrying things and making loud noises, it\u2019s intimidating, and I worry they might do harm.\u201d<\/p>\n

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A banner put up by the city government reads, \u201cIllegal YouTubers out. Stop threatening citizens\u2019 safety and merchants\u2019 livelihoods,\u201d in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Park Ung BUCHEON, Gyeonggi Province \u2014 Park Hye-ran, 47, a mother of a 6-year-old son, often finds it unsettling to walk around her neighborhood in Bucheon, Gyeonggi…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_templately_pack_id":"","_templately_imported_at":"","_templately_source":"","_templately_import_session_id":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[16,14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13187","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-korea","category-trending-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t