Kim Jong-kook lambastes Canadian fitness YouTuber

Entertainer Kim Jong-kook is seeking to put an end to doping rumors, and most recently he appeared in a YouTube video with a media lawyer to talk about defamation.

In the video, posted Thursday on Kim’s bodybuilding channel, media and telecommunications practice lawyer Park Min-chul joined the singer as he denied the doping rumors.

“I have worked as a television celebrity for 27 years and believed that the most important role as a celebrity is to bring joy and happiness to the public. I even thought that enduring online criticism and hate speech was part of my job, if they were a form of catharsis for the people who are suffering hard lives,” said Kim in the video.

“But I think the recent event simply crossed the line. And I would like to show and inform people what kind of actions they can get after spreading unverified rumors and hate speech,” Kim added.

The video continued with Park’s explanation of defamation and its legal consequences.

The controversy started when a Canadian fitness YouTuber named Greg Doucette suggested that Kim might be using steroids.

Doucette posted a video in October accusing Kim of abusing steroids.

Though Kim initially said he “enjoyed” the online rumor and was “proud” that his physique had made people suspicious, he later uploaded a video showing himself taking a blood test and consulting a doctor when the issue gained unexpected media attention.

The Canadian bodybuilder said on Instagram last week that Kim was getting more attention, more views on social media and more followers on YouTube because of the controversy, “and so they’re trying to use his career being in jeopardy against me when in fact I’ve quite literally helped him to gain more popularity.”

In Kim’s video on Thursday, he said this would be the end of the matter.

“I am thinking of giving the Canadian YouTuber a chance to apologize as a human and as a man. But whether he apologizes or not, the doping control test results will be revealed next week and I will be done with steroid-related content. I promise viewers that I will return with more fun and healthy content,” he said.

The videos concerning Kim are currently not available on Greg Doucette’s YouTube channel.

By Lee Si-jin (sj_lee@heraldcorp.com)