Cheong Wa Dae Requests Follow-Up Reports on Allegations Linking President Lee Jae-myung to Organized Crime, Calling It a "Courteous Request" to the Media

[Financial News] Cheong Wa Dae (the Blue House) on the 19th asked media outlets to publish follow-up reports regarding coverage of the so-called "allegations of ties to organized crime" involving President Lee Jae-myung of South Korea, which surfaced during the 2022 South Korean presidential election in 2021.
Kyuyoun Lee, Senior Secretary to the President for Public Communication, stated at the Chunchugwan Press Center, "The Lee Jae-myung administration has consistently respected the press and journalistic activities in all matters, and has regarded media autonomy as a value of the utmost importance. On this basis, today we would like to make one courteous request to journalists and media organizations," he said.
He noted, "A considerable number of media outlets, around October 2021 ahead of the 2022 South Korean presidential election, reported by citing claims made by lawyer Jang Young-ha, and some went further by adding additional exposé-style reporting to continue related coverage." He went on, "At the time, the media repeatedly reported not only allegations that then-candidate Lee Jae-myung, while serving as Mayor of Seongnam, had received 2 billion won in money and valuables from an organized crime group, but also photographs of cash envelopes."
He continued, "Regarding these allegations of ties to organized crime and of receiving 2 billion won, the Supreme Court of Korea on the 12th upheld the lower court ruling that sentenced lawyer Jang to one year in prison, suspended for two years, on charges of defamation by publicly stating false information." He added, "It has now been legally confirmed that the related suspicions raised over the years were not factual but based on falsehoods."
Lee said, "Nevertheless, those reports from that time still remain and continue to cloud the eyes and ears of the public, and in reality, there are almost no media outlets that have issued proper corrections." He stressed, "Freedom of the press is a core value of democracy, but the corresponding responsibility is also heavy." He added, "Correcting articles to set the record straight is better done late than never," and pointed out, "The New York Times (NYT), a leading U.S. newspaper, corrected even a small error from 161 years earlier in 2014."
Accordingly, Cheong Wa Dae has requested follow-up reports from each media outlet that reported the allegations at the time, invoking the right to demand follow-up reporting guaranteed under the Act on Press Arbitration and Remedies, etc. for Damage Caused by Press Reports. Lee said, "Since the allegations of ties to organized crime and of receiving 2 billion won have been revealed as false, we ask that you publish follow-up reports," and continued, "Please report with sufficiently detailed content so that the public’s misunderstandings caused by the reports at the time can be resolved and the damaged reputation can be restored."
He went on, "We hope this request will serve as an opportunity for media reports to become more objective and fair, and for the public’s right to know to be better fulfilled," adding, "Once again, we express our respect for journalists and the media, and we look forward to responsible judgment and swift action from each news organization."
west@fnnews.com Seong Seok-woo Reporter