A YouTube Case Study: Nikocado Avocado
“I am always two steps ahead…” Nicholas Perry (known as Nikocado Avocado, with 4. 5 million subscribers as of Oct. 2024) shocked the world with his transformation. Famous for his explicit mukbang content and provocative persona, the YouTuber went viral for his weight loss transformation through his video titled “Two Steps Ahead” after being inactive for 7 months. In the video, unlike his usual superficial, bombastic demeanor, Nicholas Perry gives a distinctly profound speech of his experience, where he leaves the question: who is the real villain? Through taking a closer look at Perry’s transformation, the dangers of unethical content consumption and the dehumanisation of content creators by the viewers will be explored. The following is a part of Perry’s speech:“This has been the greatest social experiment of my entire life. It’s alluring, it’s compelling, it’s gripping to observe all these unwell, disoriented beings roam the internet and search of stories, ideas, rivalries, where they feel encouraged and engaged, where they involve themselves with the stories and become a product of influence thirsty for distraction from time unspent, spoiling their minds yet stimulating them at the same time. It’s brilliant and it’s dangerous. I feel as if I’m monitoring ants on an ant farm: one follows another, follows another, follows another. (…) All these little consumers, all of these lost and bored people. People consuming anything that they’re told to. ”In his speech, Perry constantly likens viewers to “ants” in his “social experiment” who are “thirsty for distraction from time unspent”. His speculation causes us to think about the negative reciprocation between the content creator and the content consumer. Perry’s succinct speech is followed by a mukbang video, and the uncanny discrepancy between the break in Perry’s Youtube façade, and his direct transition into his usual mukbang content seems to prove his message: “People consuming anything that they’re told to”. Unethical content consumption leads to the unconscious dehumanisation of content creators, as they are viewed as a simple means of entertainment. From time to time, I would visit Nicholas Perry’s YouTube channel before his transformation. Although I never left any hate comments, I am proud to say that I would heavily judge him, thinking about the extent of human downfall. Despite his curated toxic persona, my perception changed when I discovered his earlier videos. His early videos touch on his experience with veganism, and this is done through a soft-spoken, vulnerable manner. Perry also shares his life with his parrot, his partner and his love for violin. In his earlier vegan days, Perry expressed his distress regarding the constant criticism and hate he received for the way he eats, and the toxic vegan community. Perry then denounced his veganism and fell into a spiral of unhealthy eating. The premise of my criticism towards Perry ironically prolonged his regression. I would frequently come across content from Nikocado Avocado’s YouTube channel or read explicit headlines on his obesity, which caused him to wear an oxygen mask and commute by scooter as he could not walk. These would fill me with a disturbing combination of emotions: pity, disgust, awe, and horror. The single view, the internalisation of his hate-filled comment section, and the passive manner in which I consumed all his content— while seemingly harmless— all heavily feeds into the toxic circulation of ‘unhealthy’ content and feedback. While everyone openly berated Nicholas Perry, no one was willing to actually help him. It is true that the regression of Nicholas Perry into Nikocado Avocado can partly be blamed on himself, as he creates a superficial image for himself for quick views. However, I would argue that the responsibility lies more heavily on the viewers. We have viewed the individual called Nicholas Perry as a simple spectacle and dehumanised him into the hated ‘Nikocado Avocado’. “You are what you eat”. If all that we are ‘consuming’ is toxic and explicit content that makes us numb to individual thinking, what are we doing to ourselves and the content creators? If our social media addiction has amounted to an obsessive, unfiltered viewing of human degradation and disaster, what does that say about our social media obsession or excessive content consumption? If Nicholas Perry was able to gain millions and millions of subscribers through exceedingly unhealthy content, what does that say about us? We live in an era where we create villains with our eyes, with a single view or a click of a button. The case of Nikocado Avocado calls for the urgent need of ethical media consumption.
Creating space for passion: SNU’s Central Campus Clubs that foster personal hobbies
What’s your current fixation of interest? Maybe it’s the intricate perfume-making, or an impulse to go learn scuba diving; perhaps even bird-watching. Either way, SNU probably has a space for your interest to thrive: in the form of a ‘dong-bang. ’ A dong-bang is an abbreviation for ‘dongari-bang,’ which directly translates to “club room,” where club members can hang out, pull all-nighters, have meetings and store all supplies necessary for club activities. Clubs are a fascinating space to explore your hobbies as well as socialize with those who share common interests. University clubs are the epitome of campus life for everyone, especially for freshmen on campus. A popular university platform “Everytime,” an app that introduces all clubs in SNU called “All-cul” (올클) and school-held offline events such as the “Club Introducing Event” are all ways to familiarize yourself with some clubs that may spark your interest. The SNU community offers a variety of clubs to satisfy even the most niche hobbies and explore activities that they have never experienced before. Let us invite you to the world of niche and specialized Central Campus Clubs that are open for the whole university to join and are often larger in scale. There is undoubtedly space for everyone. This selection is only a small sample, yet there are ones that are unique in their purposes. SNU’s clubs are categorized into Academic, Athletic, Hobbies, Service, and others. The provided list will focus on the Hobbies and Athletic clubs as they cater to more creative clubs that you likely may have never heard of!Pium - Room 412Did you know that there are gardens on campus? Pium, which translates to “the blooming of a flower,” is a club that aims to take care of the gardens in buildings 220 and 200. One member of Pium was passionate enough to describe her views about the club. According to the member, SNU’s gardening club Pium has two divisions. "Teumbat-bu" takes care of growing crops and "Jeongwon-bu" takes care of organizing the garden (usually flowering plants). In the weekly meet-ups as well as various special events, a wide range of activities can be experienced. She also shared her personal feelings. “[She] got to be a part of many activities that made [her] feel very fulfilled such as taking care of the in-school garden. [She] grew cabbage and radish to make kimchi with it, grew strawberries and cherry tomatoes only to enjoy the fruits, and planted colorful flowers that brightened up the campus. As for the special activities, [she] visited places related to gardening, planted “pet plants,” created flower arrangements, and did other unique activities related to plants. ” Towards prospective members of Pium, she wants to say that “even if you lack knowledge about plants, the joy of aiding the growth of life with your own two hands along with the other members seems small but is so definite. You can take a breath of air amidst your busy daily life and find some rest for your tired self. ” How would you like a club where you can heal your inner soul by gardening and surrounding yourself with nature on campus?Birdle - Room 606Birdle is a wild bird research society that strives to observe and research wild birds. Anyone interested in birds is qualified to become a member. As there are endless species of birds aside from sparrows and doves, this is a chance to get to know more of them. Since it is hard to find unique birds on campus, there are explorations you can partake in where you get to visit mountains and parks with club members to observe birds and capture majestic pictures of them. This club also works in close relation to different universities with this shared interest, thus you can readily meet people from other schools. With them, you will be able to go on these explorations together with other members, observe birds together, learn new knowledge about birds from one another, and ultimately bond. If you need some time to get away from the busy city life and instead take in some fresh air while encapsulating yourself around the chirping of birds, this may be a club that may allure you. Minutia - Room 441A club concerned with scents sure is one unique club. A variety of cultural and artistic activities relating to scents and perfumes are offered. Perfume-making classes are typically provided every week. The first few weeks of these classes include exploring a variety of basic scents and finding which one is your favorite. The next couple of weeks dive into deeper scents and building personal perfumes. The club also hosts perfume exhibitions every vacation prepared during the academic semester. According to a member of Minutia, “Minutia allows you to familiarize yourself with various scents and even create your scent to be used for your own perfume or scented ornaments. There are also frequent small group meetings to do activities related to perfuming such as cherry blossom scent making and carnation scent making. ” As for the membership fee, she stated “Although the membership fee does feel a bit expensive, I think that money is all worth it since you can experience various scents for yourself as well as create your scent. Furthermore, there are sometimes 회식 (after parties) after group activities, so I had many chances to get close to different people. ” What she wanted to say ultimately about this club was this: “If you have an interest in perfumes or other scented products and want to learn more in-depth about it, I highly recommend joining this club!”HurimA cocktail club in a university undoubtedly does sound foreign. Or perhaps it appeals to many’s hidden obsession. “Hurim” provides cocktail seminars that educate you about a variety of cocktails. You can even recreate your cocktail and get to taste it. Touring bars and pubs to find cocktails that suit your palate is also a possibility in this club. Aside from cocktails, there are events where members can bring in a variety of different drinks such as wines, beers, and even Korean traditional alcoholic beverages, and share them with the whole club. They also emphasize that they are completely free from the forced drinking culture, and everyone drinks to their limit and satisfaction. Hurim appeals to those interested in various types of alcohol while also advocating safe practices of drinking, putting emphasis on the enjoyment of tasting alcohol. Snurfer - Room 612As winter approaches, one may take an interest in specializing in a winter sport. Another uncommon sporting club is Snurfer: a club for those who are interested in snowboarding. They are a part of the Korea University Snowboarding Federation (KUSBF) along with snowboarding clubs of other universities. They host large-scale events such as snowboarding competitions where you can compete as teams or individuals where you can aim for a prize. They also have parties where members can attend. Information on those can be seen on their Instagram page. Although snowboarding is a winter sport, the club still hosts activities during the spring semester so that students can get closer to other members of the club. For example, there are board exercises that can be done on land, even without snow. Since snowboarding requires physical strength and balance, exercising these skills beforehand will enhance your snowboarding skills. Snow is thus not necessary for practicing these skills. If you are worried about not having the experience beforehand, there is no need to fret. This club has more new members who have never snowboarded before than those who are experienced. Keep in mind that “Snurfer” is a very popular club, thus the applications fill out rapidly and may close earlier than the deadline. Looking for a club to learn snowboarding as a group while meeting new people with that shared interest? This club is for you. SNU ScubaScuba diving sure is not a day-to-day opportunity one would obtain, especially in Seoul. This scuba diving club has been active in SNU for 47 years. Even beginners can join the club as lessons start from the very basics, though one prerequisite is that you must be able to swim breaststroke. You will be able to earn an SDI (Scuba Diving International) license which allows you to scuba dive anywhere in the world. This club does not meet weekly; they have a short training period and expedition during the summer and winter breaks. In the winter of 2023, they went to Namae in the Gangwon Province. They also traveled abroad to the Mactan island of the Philippines. Going on these expeditions will surely significantly enhance your scuba diving skills. If you are invested in activities and clubs that you can participate in during the lengthy summer and winter breaks, why not join SNU Scuba?Most clubs open their applications at the start of every semester, and some are open at all times. Ensure to check up on the details directly announced by the club you are interested in to not miss any deadlines! After you become an official member, visit their dong-bang most likely located in the Student Center (Building #63). The listed clubs that have dong-bangs have their room number stated right beside their name. When you visit, you will be able to enjoy socializing with club members in a space catered just for your club! Everyone in SNU has a space where they can be themselves and explore their identities: clubs are just one sensational way. This space is not only physical, as provided by the dong-bang, but also communal, provided by the members of the club and their interactions. There is always space in different clubs and communities, big or small, waiting for you to be a part. Do not ponder any longer and simply explore. These spaces are waiting for you to benefit.
Chocolate: A Dark, Bitter Story
“Come with me and you’ll be in a world of pure imagination…”Timothée Chalamet enchanted the whole world with his performance in Wonka. The film provided our lonely world with just the thing it needed—hope. The colourful world of dreams, delightful sweets, and exotic chocolates provided the perfect happy ending. However, the film provides false hope, and for all its colour and sugar, the narrative behind the chocolate in Wonka does not have such a sweet aftertaste, nor does it have a sweet origin. There is a clear colonial narrative behind the history of chocolate and the film, which is concealed for our untainted enjoyment and innocent childhood. After roaming the world for seven years to look for special chocolate ingredients, Wonka finally decides to settle and start his business to achieve his dream—opening a chocolate shop to his name in the Galeries Gourmet. Starting off penniless, Wonka is immediately swindled by the cunning city and scammed into becoming an indentured servant (for twenty-seven years, four months, and sixteen days), laundering and ironing sheets. The audience ventures along with the penniless, imprisoned Wonka to see how he eventually achieves his chocolate dream. Although Wonka is unfairly imprisoned, scammed into forced work and later nearly killed by chocolate (literally, a near “death by chocolate”), the true injustice surrounding chocolate is veiled, even within the film. It is well known that cocoa beans — the main ingredient of chocolate, trace back to cocoa trees which are found in South America (Amazon), Western Africa, and South-East Asia. West Africa notably produces the vast majority of cocoa beans that are consumed in the world market. However, most of the world-renowned chocolatiers of today are situated in European countries, and this is a problem. Cocoa beans are grown in Africa, but European countries are the ones who make the most profit out of them. One of the most famous countries for chocolate is Belgium, and I remember being extremely unsettled when I visited in July of 2023. The country’s incorporation of a colonial item into its culture and tourism seemed unethical. Throughout the whole trip, it was interesting to note that most of the tourist districts focused on selling chocolate. Even when planning the trip, a lot of the tourist websites emphasised the world-renowned chocolatiers. In the peaceful country lined with cobblestone, it seemed easy to forget the innocent blood the country is built on. Near the end of the 19th century, King Leopold II of Belgium had colonised what we know today as Congo. The main items of extraction were ivory and rubber, and this was done through the forced enslavement of the Congolese people. King Leopold II even went as far as to cut off the hands of slaves who tried to run away and ransacked the country of its resources. Britannica further explains the cruelty and injustices of King Leopold II:“The regime, under Leopold’s unrestrained personal control, became notorious for its treatment of the Congolese. Forced labour was used to gather wild rubber, palm oil, and ivory. Beatings and lashings were used to force villages to meet their rubber-gathering quotas, as was the taking of hostages: one method employed by Leopold’s agents was kidnapping the families of Congolese men, who were then coerced into trying to meet work quotas (often unattainable) in order to secure the release of their families [. .. ] Brutality was widespread in mines and on plantations. The population of the entire state is said to have declined from some 20 million to 8 million” (Britannica, 2023). King Leopold II exercised great cruelty on Congo, but this cruelty persists today in the form of neo-colonisation; Western countries continue to exploit their previous colonies through a pacified form, so that they can continuously profit from them. The legacy of colonialism is still relevant today, which is a sad truth as it means that we are still turning a blind eye to cruelty, discrimination, and injustice. Belgium’s fame for chocolate began around the 20th century, but Belgium was already extracting Congo’s resources starting from the 1880s. Belgium was able to export great amounts of cocoa beans from the cocoa trees in Congo. In other words, Belgium acquired the world-renowned reputation for great, fine chocolate through the exploitation and enslavement of Congo. The problem is that Belgium continues to profit from Congo’s cocoa beans, and chocolate is only the tip of the iceberg—the colonial structures embedded into Congo’s financial, political, and cultural systems continue to exploit the country’s people and resources. Belgium’s chocolate is a prime example of how colonisers are still unjustly exploiting colonies. While in Belgium, I was shocked to see how this colonial narrative became something normal and accepted. As long as Belgium’s legacy of chocolate lives on, Congo’s painful history will persistently follow. We need to be conscious of the history of colonisation behind chocolate, and the neo-colonisation that still takes place today. The need and understanding for ethical chocolate are essential because we have been at the receiving end of the sweet treats wrought from the pain of others for too long. Let’s take a look at Wonka again. With a short glimpse into the cruel colonial truth about chocolate, there are a few things we need to view differently. When Wonka reveals his chocolate for the first time in the Galeries Gourmet, there is a neo-colonial narrative which we should not overlook. Wonka sings the following song at the Galeries Gourment to reveal his fine invention:In a jungle near MumbaiThere’s a little hoverflyWhose wings go at a thousand flaps per sec and that’s no lieThese microscopic fleasLike chocolate more than leavesAnd when asked nicely, Lay precisely one little egg in each of theseWhen it hatches from its shellIt gives a happy yell, Whoo-hoo!How thrilling to be living in a chocolate hotelIt beats its wings with gleeAnd then, as you will seeThe chocolate will levitate and float most gracefully!(from Wonka, “You’ve Never Had Chocolate Like This (Hoverchos)”)Wonka’s “hoverchoc” contains the hoverfly captured near the jungle in Mumbai. Additionally, the chocolate contains marshmallows “Harvested from the mallow marshes of Peru” and caramel “salted with the bittersweet tears of a Russian clown” and cherries “cherry-picked by the pick of the cherry pickers from the Imperial Gardens in Japan. ” One notable thing is that the countries mentioned are not European and are heavily exoticised and portrayed as the “other” from a Eurocentric perspective. Wonka mentions that the hoverflies are happy to be taken from their original homes, imprisoned in chocolate, eaten, and pooped out from the rear. The problem is that Wonka is creating more distance between what is foreign and familiar to the Western audience and emphasising the Eurocentric exoticism myth. The problematic myth, however, is watered down through imaginary and absurd concepts such as the “hoverfly”, the “mallow marshes”, the “bittersweet tears of a clown” and “the pick of the cherry pickers”. There is another problem: the Oompa-Loompas. Wonka (who is evidently white) steals cacao beans from Oompa land, and eventually “enslaves” the Oompa-Loompa (played by Hugh Grant) at the end of the film to work for his factory. The way the Oompa-Loompas are portrayed is reminiscent of how the colonisers used to describe the native people of the colonies: inhumane, uneducated and barbaric. The Oompa-Loompas are green in colour, abnormally small, and follow a culture different to European customs and traditions. The danger is that the audience is positioned to view the Oompa-Loompas as foreign and sub-human, so the explicit slavery and exploitation becomes downplayed as if it were something normal. The relationship between Wonka and the Oompa-Loompa is portrayed as comical; absurdity once again acts as an agent that waters down the danger of the colonial narrative, as the “hoverchoc” did. Furthermore, the problem regarding the Chief-of-Police needs to be addressed. The Chief-of-Police initially seems to be a good guy who humbly attends to his job. However, the audience is soon introduced to the ugly truth: that the Chief-of-Police has been taking bribes in the form of chocolate to do ‘small’ favours for the three chocolatiers dominating the city. The Chief-of-Police gradually becomes more corrupt, and this is shown through a visual representation. The Chief-of-Police grows larger and larger, almost to a stage where he cannot even walk properly, and the “small” favours become not so small as he is asked to murder Wonka. Although we are critical towards the corrupt Chief-of-Police, we fail to realise that the Chief-of-Police is simply a reflection of ourselves: we take chocolate as a bribe, ignoring the injustice for a single moment of enjoyment. Wonka ends with Willy Wonka and the Oompa-Loompa entering a yet-to-be chocolate factory that is magically built through a song. Before Wonka isolates himself in his new chocolate factory, headed towards a new dream, a strong sense of loneliness remains as Wonka is left alone after helping those around him return to their loved ones. Wonka is left alone with the Oompa-Loompa as his only companion. They leave together and decide to work together, although the roles of master and labourer are clear. The ending of the film seems to be a happy one. However, there once again needs to be a critical understanding of Wonka’s factory as a colonial symbol. In Christopher Columbus’ 1493 Letter of ‘Discovery’, there is a huge emphasis on the “beautiful” nature of the “wonderful” land. The ‘new’ land is idealised, as a neo-Eden paradise with “the greatest variety of trees reaching to the stars. ” The craze of the quote-unquote New World (which was clearly inhabited even before Columbus arrived) and the highly idealised depiction of the land is reminiscent of Wonka’s “world of pure imagination” where colourful treats dissipate all worries and problems. Wonka’s ‘chocolate kingdom’ is finalised through his chocolate factory, and the colonial message this sends cannot be ignored. So what should we do? Not eating chocolate for the rest of our lives is too extreme. Fortunately, there is an alternative – ethical chocolate. Ethical Consumer says the following about the unethical nature of chocolate: “The majority of the world’s cocoa is grown by small farmers in West Africa, where it’s the source of livelihood for millions of people. But cocoa farmers receive barely any of the chocolate industry’s $100 billion revenue: estimates range between 6% and 11%. Few farmers can afford chocolate and many have never tasted it, with over half of Ivory coast’s cocoa farmers living below the global poverty line, and their countries taste virtually none of the industry’s profits either” (Ethical Consumer). Most of the chocolate we consume today is produced through unethical means established through colonization. Ethical Consumer provides the following chart of ethical and unethical chocolate: Adequate Cocoa Sourcing Rating (Ethical Consumer)Inadequate Cocoa Sourcing Rating (Ethical Consumer)Inadequately sourced cocoa brands currently dominate the mainstream market. As chocolate also involves problems such as deforestation and child labour, considering the ethicality of cocoa sourced is important when it comes to buying chocolate. Buying Fairtrade International or Rainforest Alliance certified chocolate allows for adequately sourced cocoa to be consumed ethically. As most chocolate we can find on the market in any corner store is inadequately sourced, there needs to be a higher demand for ethically sourced chocolate. It is realistically difficult to consciously look for ethically produced chocolate, but we cannot ignore the history of pain behind chocolate which remains today. The overlooked colonial narrative in the sensational film Wonka reflects the lack of consciousness about chocolate's real-life, colonial history. We vaguely attend to it but choose to overlook the painful past for a short moment of sweet bliss. The accumulation of small changes amounts to big changes, which is why we cannot overlook or gloss over even the smallest injustices. Chocolate, although seemingly faultless, carries a bitter, dark and unjust truth which we cannot ignore. Although the market for ethically sourced cocoa is relatively small, it has the possibility to grow. The history of pain, exploitation and slavery persists and we cannot let this continue.
