Seoul, March 16 -- Over 50,000 South Koreans as of Friday have signed an petition calling for regulations on local entertainment reporters who run YouTube channels focused on celebrities' private lives.

The petition, posted on the National Assembly's petition page on Feb. 24, called on the parliament to introduce regulatory measures against malicious videos uploaded by the YouTubers-turned-reporters. Such accounts have been criticized for causing emotional distress to the late actor Kim Sae-ron.

The unnamed petitioner claimed that numerous entertainment reporters covered Kim at a "near-stalking level," and the videos on their YouTube channels, which raised groundless allegations against the young actor, continuously harassed her.

"Afte...