Mukbang; Watch Me If You Can

Hi everyone, Welcome to my channel.

Today I'll be talking about the topic of eating show craze started in South Korea and now has become a worldwide trend.

I am so excited to bring you guys to the world of 'Mukbang'.

Here we go !

What the heck is 'MUKBANG'?

Mukbang is a combination of two Korean words for 'Let's eat(Muk-ja)' and 'broadcast(Bang-song)'. So it means 'eating broadcast' or 'eating show'.

In Mukbang videos, the hosts (Mukbangers) eat a large quantity of food in front of the webcam while talking to their audience. It is common for them to describe tastes or give additional explanations of food. However, some differentiate themselves from others by reading scary stories or dealing with social issues while they're eating. They usually upload a recorded version on YouTube, but sometimes they communicate directly with viewers through live streaming.

Mukbangers make money from advertising revenue on videos, donations from viewers, or sponsorship by enterprises. Many Mukbangers are known to make more than the annual income of a salary man within a month. The Mukbang market is already a red ocean. Nevertheless, some people still come up with brilliant new ideas and captivate millions of viewers. So why do people go crazy about watching other people eat?

Loneliness Behind the craze

It is not a coincidence that watching Mukbang became so popular as the number of single-person households in Korea increased rapidly around 2010. An independent lifestyle became ideal for many people, but it didn't change that dining is one of the most enjoyable social activities. When you can't socialize with others in real life, the most accessible alternative is to check your phone or turn on your laptop.

The first time that I started watching Mukbang was also when I moved out of my parents'. My own quiet place would give me comfort and loneliness at the same time. However, whenever I had to have a meal alone, the loneliness always took over.

Back then, one of the front-runners in the Mukbang scene was Banzz, who popularized the word 'Mukbang' itself in Korea. He is one great eater. He eats an unbelievably massive amount of food. Still, he is in such great shape. In an interview, he said he would spend 4-5 hours working out a day to stay fit.

I was about to make do with an instant noodle and Kimchi for dinner. Then I found Banzz's live-streaming Mukbang eating the same menu as my dinner. Thousands of people were already in the chat when I logged in, and that was the first Mukbang that I've ever watched. He treated viewers as his friends and actively interacted with them. It almost seemed like they were eating 'together'.

That night, I could get a good understanding of why so many people want to consume Mukbang. It was more than just watching other people eat. I knew I would be one of the thousands of viewers for him. Still, he gave me almost the same comfort and joy that I could get when I sit right in front of my friend to have dinner with.

The only difference between him and me was he finished 5 packs of noodle so easily.

Vicious Satisfaction

To make the definition of Mukbang clearer, it's not just an eating show; it's a binge-eating show. Most Mukbangers go far beyond the right amount and gorge on food. Of course, some people do Mukbang eating an appropriate amount of healthy and fresh food. However, the Mukbangers who ranked on top are always consuming a crazy massive amount of unhealthy food, such as instant or junk food.

@veronicawangco; Toronto, Canada based Mukbanger having 1.61M subscribers on her YouTube channel. The most popular video on her channel titled "EXTREME SPICY NOODLE CHALLENGE / RACE MUKBANG" hit over 21M views.

@zachchoi; Korean-American Mukbanger. According to socialblade.com, his estimated networth is two million US dollars. This video 'MOST POPULAR FOOD FOR ASMR (KFC, ONION RINGS, MOZZARELLA CORN DOG, CHICKEN NUGGETS) NO TALKING' hit over 35M views.

Here we can guess another good reason why people are crazy about Mukbang - Vicious satisfaction. Have you ever felt the urge to pig out on all the food you can get your hands on? Anyone who has suffered from stress eating or obsession with weight can relate to that.

A few years ago, I was watching Mukbang like crazy, and that was when I tried so hard to lose some weight. After eating a small salad for dinner, I went to the gym every night. Before I went to sleep, I would always watch tons of Mukbang like a habit.

Watching people binge-eating lousy food was a guilty pleasure when they were forbidden fruit for me. I searched the titles with the food that I desired and watched them for hours. It felt like they were eating instead of me.

I thought, 1) Mukbangers eat (literally) any food as much as they want. 2) They earn (a large sum of) money if they do it on camera. 3) Thousands (or millions) of fans support them to keep doing so. 4) And they (most of them) are still not fat?

Well, the only key to happiness is to become a Mukbanger then.

Is it really, though?

Criticism

April 08, 2019, a tragic incident happened in Japan. A Japanese woman, a Mukbanger, got choked while live-streaming herself, eating a big rice ball in one bite. After she collapsed, one of the viewers called an ambulance, and it arrived at her place 20 minutes after. Unfortunately, she died of asphyxiation while being transported to a hospital. The scene of her suffocating, foaming her mouth, and an ambulance worker attempting first aid was broadcast live. The video has been closed to YouTube as of the day.

As the Mukbang trend spread to other countries, it became more competitive and challenging. The more you eat, the faster you eat, the more popular you become. However, eating is not a sport. It's okay if Mukbangers truly enjoy eating that large amount of junk food and feel no ill effects on their bodies. But that's impossible.

To get more subscribers means to make more money, Mukbangers have to upload videos at a steady pace. It implies that Mukbangers have to fill their bodies with a crazy amount of food at least a few times a week. Repeated binge eating can lead to eating disorders in them. Also, The viewers may grow accustomed to watching overeating and get tempted to have the decadent Mukbang lifestyle themselves.

Since 2018, the Korean government has developed guidelines for media and advertisements that encourage binge eating. They also have established a monitoring system. In a survey conducted at that time, more than half (51.4 %) of the people voted for the food broadcast regulation. Mainly, considering that the primary audience for Mukbang is impressionable teenagers, the rule also seems essential to prevent distorted perceptions of food for them.

Two-edged Sword

Eating food is a natural human act. Still, many people are in a complicated relationship with food. So, the contents that can satisfy the irresistible desire oddly are undoubtedly appealing. Likewise, the reason why I started watching Mukbang was to soothe my appetite when it reached its peak. However, as with all the fashionable things, Mukbang trends will either survive or disappear over time. We can't lean on a half-measure to solve our deep-down problem.

It was not long after I realized that watching Mukbang could only give me half-baked satisfaction. I started stumbling upon them to find comfort and vicious joy. However, I ended up feeling discomfort and irritation to watch people indulging in food to satisfy other people. And I stopped watching any Mukbang until this day. We have to lean on a more long-term and beneficial solution to dissatisfaction with food.

I have no intention to say that watching Mukbang has only its drawbacks. People consume the same content for different reasons. However, Mukbang is definitely a double-edged sword for both eaters and viewers.

I hope to see Mukbang trend develop into a way to spread the pleasure of eating and be a breakthrough for people in a bad relationship with food to get off the hook.