단상斷想

At the beginning of the Park Geun-hye impeachment rally, the public's anger, already filled with anger towards the Sewol ferry victims, filled Gwanghwamun Square. When I made eye contact with Joo Jin-woo, who was striking a celebrity-like pose in the middle of the square, I gave him a thumbs up, and the moment he turned away after seeing my thumb is vivid. I was expressing my gratitude for Joo Jin-woo's efforts to bring down Park Geun-hye, but when he turned away and ignored me, he may have been at a crossroads where he had to decide whether he was a celebrity or a journalist at that moment.

2010: The Beginning of a Small Ripple

It all started in September 2010 on a podcast called 'Kim Eo-jun's Unique Counseling Center,' hosted by Kim Eo-jun. Actress Kim Bu-seon appeared and made remarks implying a relationship with a politician in the past. This seemed like a personal confession and passed without much impact at the time. However, at this moment, Kim Eo-jun stood at a crucial crossroads as a journalist. If he had fully recognized the weight of his influence in selecting guests and the statements they made, he wouldn't have gotten involved in selling masturbation devices in the first place. However, Kim Eo-jun probably didn't know that revealing the private life of an actress would end up hindering the current president.

However, Kim Eo-jun broadcasted this information without going through the process of fact-checking and verification. At the time, there were rumors circulating around political circles that the person Kim Bu-seon was dating was an aide to the late Representative Roh Hoe-chan, but this was also just unconfirmed speculation. Kim Eo-jun was content with just being the interviewer and did not show responsibility for the political repercussions that could occur afterward. His attitude was an evasion of the responsibility of fact-checking and verification, which is a basic principle of journalism, and it is a time when public reflection and introspection on the purpose and role of the media are needed.

2010-2018: Dormancy of a Dormant Volcano

For a long period of 8 years, Kim Boo-sun's remarks were dormant like a dormant volcano. On the surface, it seemed forgotten, but in reality, it was preparing to explode during politically sensitive times. During this period, the incident gradually began to be reinterpreted in a political context, and it contained the possibility of transforming from entertainment gossip into a political attack tool. Rumors circulated in political communities and some media outlets as a vague story of a 'scandal between an actress and a politician.' However, it was not officially raised as an issue and remained only at the level of rumors. At that time, Kim Boo-sun herself did not actively respond. As gossip, she was nurturing the fruits of a combination without the boundaries of the Three Cardinal Principles and Five Moral Disciplines: a washed-up actress wanting to resume her acting career, and a young man with a silver tongue who had no limits on making money, selling masturbation devices and selling French luxury potato chips.

2018: Political Bomb Explodes

In the political battleground of the 2018 local elections, the Kim Boo-sun scandal re-ignited. At this time, the incident was no longer a personal privacy issue, but emerged as a political weapon to attack the morality of a specific politician. The controversy during the sensitive special period of the election became a situation that could directly affect the judgment of voters. However, the fact-checking and verification process, which was the core of this incident, was not properly conducted, and instead, speculation and suspicion were indiscriminately spread through the media and online spaces. In the process of transforming a personal statement from 8 years ago into a political bomb, the boundary between fact and speculation became increasingly blurred, and the side that decided to use it appropriately was a guy who knew the effect of 70,080 hours.

Joo Jin-woo's Intervention and Messiness

As the situation worsened, Joo Jin-woo stepped in as a mediator, but his intervention created even greater controversy rather than resolving the issue. As allegations arose that he was involved in the writing of Kim Boo-sun's apology, Joo Jin-woo also faced criticism that he was acting in political interests. This was an act that deviated from the principles of neutrality and objectivity that journalists should adhere to when acting as mediators in a case. Even if Joo Jin-woo's intentions were good, his intervention ultimately complicated the political interpretation of the case and placed him at the center of the controversy. As a result, the two journalists, Kim Eo-jun and Joo Jin-woo, became key parties to the case, not bystanders or mediators.

Since 2018: Political Distortion and Continuous Abuse

The political use of this incident, which began in the 2018 local elections, has continued through the 2022 presidential election and up to the present. Right-wing media and conservative YouTube channels systematically reproduced and distorted this scandal. They packaged unverified content as if it were an established fact and used it as a key material for negative attacks on specific politicians. In this process, the essence of the original incident became increasingly blurred, and instead, the content was adapted and exaggerated in a direction that suited political purposes. This was an act that directly violated the basic functions of the press, namely the delivery of facts and the principle of objective reporting. The Kim Boo-sun scandal has become the archetype and seed of malicious rumors about Lee Jae-myung, and it is frequently recalled as needed for political purposes and abused as a tool for political attack.

Damage to journalistic principles and social impact

Kim Eo-jun and Joo Jin-woo failed to properly uphold the most basic responsibilities of journalism: verifying facts and conveying the truth. Kim Eo-jun released Kim Bu-seon's statements to the world without sufficient verification, and Joo Jin-woo lost objectivity during the mediation process and showed a biased attitude towards one side. In particular, considering their high public recognition and influence as journalists, this irresponsible attitude was a more serious problem. Their statements and actions were accepted by ordinary citizens as if they were verified facts, which resulted in giving political credibility to rumors. Both journalists failed to properly predict the ripple effects of their actions. Kim Eo-jun may have thought it was a simple interview, and Joo Jin-woo may have considered it a mediation in good faith. However, they overlooked the fact that the words and actions of journalists go beyond the personal level and affect the entire society.

Despite a considerable amount of time having passed since the incident occurred, neither Kim Eo-jun nor Joo Jin-woo has shown an official apology or deep reflection on this matter. They have consistently expressed their innocence and avoided taking responsibility. However, regardless of their intentions, the negative impact of their actions on Korean society is clear. Their irresponsible attitude ultimately led to the creation of deep political divisions in Korean society. They set a precedent for unverified rumors being used as political attack tools, which negatively impacted the healthy development of Korean politics.

Even now, this scandal has caused serious harm to the development of a healthy political culture, but even if unverified rumors and suspicions are repeatedly raised, even if it leads to election results that hinder voters' rational judgment and create distrust in politics, it is not subject to legal sanctions. Therefore, while the ruling and opposition political circles have been discussing the 'Fake News Prevention Act' or the 'False Information Distribution Regulation Act' for several years, attempts to include punitive damages clauses must be achieved through media reform. Only then will it be possible to strengthen the accountability of the press and provide relief to victims.

The Kim Boo-sun scandal began as a small ripple in Kim Eo-jun's podcast in 2010, but after 8 years, it exploded as a political bomb in the 2018 local election and is still being used as a tool for political attacks. This process, which has become a representative example of how entertainment gossip turns into political smear campaigns, clearly shows the harm that irresponsible remarks and interventions by journalists can cause to Korean politics. This incident calls for a fundamental reflection on the social responsibility of journalists. It reaffirmed the basic principle that freedom of the press should be accompanied by fact-based reporting and social responsibility. From the beginning, Kim Eo-jun and Joo Jin-woo, who were not journalists, should feel responsible for the betrayal of using everyone's time in this way, recognizing their high public influence and ripple effect. The public is also responsible for not recognizing people's character, idolizing them, and idolizing them. Readers should also be aware of the fact that only mainstream media is getting rich between the two.

The collaboration between the press and the entertainment industry is never an area to be taken lightly. Their cartel defends sex crimes and covers up drug crimes behind them. Also, the public should know that they present illusions to the general public and a strong bromance to each other, solidifying future collaborations. This method is a cartel similar to the collaboration between politicians and prosecutors. The Kim Boo-sun scandal clearly showed that the irresponsible remarks or actions of those who dream of becoming journalists or pretend to be good speakers can have a negative impact on society as a whole, beyond the individual.

Ironically, the most awkward time is passing for those who gained fame and made money by linking Kim Boo-sun and Lee Jae-myung over the past decade, given that Lee Jae-myung, the core victim of this incident, is currently the president. Lee Jae-myung, the actual victim, is too busy to care about the direction of this gossip. President Lee Jae-myung's most important message to those who lost the opportunity to send him away like Roh Hoe-chan and Park Won-soon, who died during the Moon Jae-in era, is clear. Politics must be based on facts and truth, and all members of society, including journalists, must take responsibility for upholding the basic principles of reality. Koreans live with the goal of rising in status and gaining economic benefits more than any other ethnic group, but when they get close to it, they hesitate. This is because they cannot self-reflect. The Kim Boo-sun scandal should be remembered as a negative example showing what disastrous consequences can result from evading economic activity and ethical responsibility.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/zlakQZsbUOc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1f7osep-2g0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6weZKVkpO8E

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