"My Debt Is 73 Million Won"... Sharing Every Repayment Led to an Unexpected Turn

Debt Disclosure and Repayment Journey Videos Gain Popularity

Viewers Drawn to Stories of Overcoming Debt as a Major Obstacle

Content featuring people publicly revealing their debts and documenting their repayment process on social networking services (SNS) is gaining popularity. The trend involves disclosing the specific amount of debt and openly sharing the steps of paying it down. In some cases, people have even managed to repay their debts using the profits earned from these videos.

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On October 3 (local time), the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that content showing individuals disclosing their debts and sharing their journey towards repayment is spreading, particularly on TikTok.

According to SNS analytics firm Tubular Labs, over the one-year period up to September of last year, more than 28,000 debt-related videos were uploaded to TikTok.

The background behind the popularity of this content is that it focuses on the topic of “debt,” something people find difficult to talk about openly. Professor Brooke Erin Duffy of Cornell University explained, “The appeal of this content is that, much like gossip, it lets you examine others' spending and financial situations and compare them to your own.”

There are also cases where people post videos about revealing and repaying their debt and generate income from them. The profits or ad revenue from these videos are used to pay off their debt.

A video capturing a person publicly revealing their debt on social media and showing the process of paying it off is gaining popularity. TikTok screenshot

Flight attendant Rodney Morgan (33) uploaded a TikTok video last July revealing he had about $40,000 (about 54 million won) in debt. It was the first time Morgan, who usually posted about his daily life as a flight attendant, spoke about his financial struggles. The video attracted 1.5 million views. With the video’s popularity, he also received major advertising proposals from personal finance apps. Morgan shared, “I plan to pay off the roughly $800 still owed on my credit card, which I used for home repairs, using advertising revenue.”

Tianagi Carter (31), who lives in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, also records and posts her debt status every night. Carter has shared that she owes about $54,000 (about 73 million won). She said, “Disclosing the exact amount of my debt has helped people better understand and empathize with my situation.”

In Palm Beach, Florida, Kayla Rose revealed in March that her credit card debt exceeded $25,000. She stated she would use the money earned from her videos to pay off her debt. As her videos about disclosing her debt became more popular, her number of followers grew, and in August, Rose managed to pay off all of her credit card debt. She told her followers, “The reason I was able to pay off my credit card debt is thanks to these very videos you are watching.”

Financial planner Brittney Castro commented on why viewers are drawn to these kinds of videos, saying, “There is an entertainment value in watching someone overcome a major obstacle.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.