social media-Itaewon stampede

▲ Police control the alley near Hamilton Hotel in Itaewon on Oct. 30, 2022, a day after a fatal crush in the area took the lives of 151 people and injured 82 others during Halloween celebrations. (Yonhap)

social media-Itaewon stampede

Social media urge users to refrain from spreading disturbing footage, false info on Itaewon stampede

SEOUL, Oct. 30 (Yonhap) -- Social media and online portal operators in South Korea urged users Sunday to refrain from spreading disturbing video footage or ungrounded information about the deadly stampede at Itaewon that killed over 150 people.

Kakao, the operator of No. 1 online messenger KakaoTalk, made the call in a notice to users, asking them to act with caution when sharing or writing things about the Itaewon accident.

"We ask you to refrain as much as possible from uploading photos or videos that reveal the identities of the victims, and disseminating or sharing unconfirmed facts related to the accident," Kakao said.

Top internet portal operator Naver put up a similar notice calling for restraint in circulating unconfirmed pictures, footage or comments that might reveal the identities of the victims.

Twitter also asked its users to stop retweeting sensitive postings about the Itaewon crush in line with its policy and make reports if any problematic tweets are found.

The calls came as vile footage showing the scenes moments after the fatal crush has been spreading fast through social media and online portal channels, such as Twitter and Instagram.

Some of the footage captured chaotic scenes, from a large crowd of people packed in one spot and shouting at each other, to medical workers performing CPR on people lying on the road and even unblurred images of bodies lying on the side of the streets.

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