Author So Jae-won Criticizes Park Wi's High Lecture Fees: "Do Not Become a Merchant"

Novelist So Jae-won expressed a critical view by mentioning YouTuber Park Wi's high lecture fees. So Jae-won, known as the author of the original novels for films such as 'Beastie Boys', 'Wish', and 'Tunnel' and the original author of the drama 'The Departure Has Left', posted a message regarding Park Wi's lecture fees on his SNS on the 26th. So Jae-won stated, "So a person named Park Wi received as much as 5 million won for a lecture. Even I, who have written four original novels for movies and drama scripts, traveled the country receiving only 500,000 won." He continued, saying that while lecture fees increase as one appears on broadcasts and takes on various lectures, he had wanted to give free lectures but only received the minimum amount of 500,000 won due to the organizers' refusal. He then directly criticized him, saying, "To an author, the readers are faith. Do you go to a cathedral, church, or temple and receive money?" and "If you truly cherish your fans, I hope you do not become a merchant to the public who makes your insignificant works shine."

So Jae-won's remarks came amid the online spread of controversy surrounding Park Wi's past lecture and event contract amounts. According to disclosed data, Geumsan Darakiwon invited Park Wi for the 'Geumsan County Library Special Lecture for Youth' in 2023 and paid 5 million won, and Bupyeong-gu, Incheon, was known to have set a contract amount of 4,462,000 won when inviting Park Wi to an event related to Children's Day. According to data released by the Gangnam Culture Foundation in Seoul, Park Wi signed a contract worth 9.35 million won regarding a one-hour lecture scheduled for the 28th, but it has not been confirmed whether this amount is the pure lecture fee or the total contract amount including various expenses. One media outlet cited the minutes of the Dongjak-gu Administrative and Finance Committee meeting in Seoul, reporting that an amount of "10 million to 15 million won or more" was mentioned as the lecture fee for two hours during the recruitment process for Park Wi's 'Dongjak Life Microphone', but pointed out that it is necessary to distinguish whether this was the actual amount paid or the amount suggested during the recruitment process.

The controversy over Park Wi's lecture fees is gaining momentum as it intertwines with other recent controversies. Previously, on the 21st, Park Wi released CCTV footage through his YouTube channel 'Wi-rakel' showing a fall accident occurring while getting off a KTX train. He explained that the intention was to raise awareness about the mobility safety issues of wheelchair users, but controversy arose as he expressed uncomfortable feelings toward the social service agent who was trying to help during the accident. As the controversy spread, Park Wi set the video to private and posted an apology.

As of the afternoon of the 26th, the subscriber count of the YouTube channel 'Wi-rakel' operated by Park Wi has dropped to the 970,000 range. Compared to when it recorded over 1.01 million, this is a decrease of more than 30,000 in about five days. Due to the aftermath of the controversy, the organizers also announced the cancellation of the '2026 Seoul Youth Policy Network Insight Special Lecture' scheduled to be held at the Seoul City Hall Multipurpose Hall on the 27th and the barrier-free performance 'Wi-rakel Park Wi's Talk Concert' scheduled for the 28th.

Meanwhile, Park Wi has been active operating the YouTube channel 'Wi-rakel', which covers disability awareness improvement and Il-sang content. In 2024, he drew attention by marrying Song Ji-eun, who is from the group Secret.

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