President Lee’s social media blitz: “Farmland survey deserves praise ... Questions over basic journalistic ethics”

[Financial News] President Lee Jae Myung posted a series of messages on social media on the 28th, criticizing media coverage and stating his positions on key government issues. He squarely rebutted reports interpreting his order for a nationwide farmland survey as “shifting responsibility to the minister,” emphasizing that it was a “reform measure deserving praise.” He demanded that media outlets covering his remarks about foreign workers correct their articles and apologize. He also weighed in directly on the debate over prosecution reform and policies to support advanced industries.
That day, Lee posted on X (formerly Twitter) a message titled “An era is dawning in which saying you like jajangmyeon is treated as disparaging jjamppong,” criticizing some media reports related to his order for a nationwide farmland survey.
Lee explained that he had initially ordered a survey of illegal farmland in the Seoul metropolitan area used for speculation, but the scope was expanded after Song Mi-ryeong, minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (MAFRA), proposed using this opportunity to survey farmland nationwide that had been left unattended for decades.
He stressed, “The farmland survey may face opposition, but it is at the heart of agricultural reform and must be done. Since the minister made the excellent proposal to conduct all at once a survey that had been neglected for decades, I mentioned, by way of praise, that ‘I ordered it, but the minister proposed it.’”

In particular, he said, “The farmland survey was not something wrong; it is a reform measure deserving praise,” adding, “Everyone knows that the president personally ordered the survey at an open meeting. Even if someone else made the proposal, that would not lessen the responsibility.”
He continued, “When I explained that the minister had proposed the project, there were media outlets that criticized it as an attempt to shift responsibility,” and noted, “I question whether they looked directly at the remarks made at the open Cabinet meeting and wrote their reports with even the minimum standards of journalistic ethics.”
Lee also made clear that he intended to respond directly to media coverage, saying, “Distorting the facts like this while insisting that I stop using social media to communicate directly with the public is like saying, ‘Even if you’re hit, don’t resist—just take it.’” Referring to the media’s past pattern of criticism, he added, “It reminds me of those days when ‘saying you like jajangmyeon was disparaging jjamppong’ and ‘insulting the president was a national sport.’”
Late the previous night, on the 27th, he also voiced strong dissatisfaction on X with a news article covering his remarks about foreign workers. Taking issue with the difference between the headline and the body, he said, “There’s a ‘big’ difference between saying ‘not helpful’ and ‘not very helpful.’”
Lee emphasized that he had not denied foreign workers’ contribution to the domestic economy, but had explained their relative contribution in comparison with domestic workers. He said his point was that foreign workers who send money abroad also help the domestic economy, but do not contribute as much as domestic workers.
He rebutted the report, saying, “Given the context before and after the remark, it is clearly a comparison: foreign workers help, but do not help ‘as much’ as domestic workers. It is excessive to criticize me on the premise that I said they are ‘not helpful.’”
After saying that he had demanded a correction and an apology, Lee raised the issue again in a separate post: “If you changed the headline, shouldn’t you explain why? And if the article was wrong enough to need correction, wouldn’t it be right to apologize?”
Lee also shared on X a post from a user who asked, “Why don’t you apologize for labeling your critics ‘irresponsible extremists’?” He responded, “Some people sincerely advocate prosecution reform for the sake of the country and its people. Others, for their own concealed political or personal purposes, focus only on appearing uncompromising or make excessively inflammatory claims, thereby actually holding up prosecution reform.”
He continued, “Taking advantage of some people’s impatient and desperate desire for reform, stoking anxiety about reform failing, acting as if only they are the genuine agents of reform, engaging in ‘all or nothing’ agitation, attacking allies who want real reform, and leading to the failure of substantive, effective reform—that is irresponsible extremism. If you are not part of that group, there is no reason to be offended; if you are offended because you think you are, I suggest you take a moment to reflect,” he said.
Lee also shared an op-ed by Kim Jung-kwan, minister of Trade and Industry, and urged the public to understand and support the government’s policy of purchasing prototypes to foster advanced industries. In a post titled “We Need Help from the People and the President’s Friends,” Lee wrote, “In the era of hybrid policies, pile-on-style reporting is obstructing national development.”
Lee explained, “Support for businesses is essential to growing advanced technology industries,” adding, “For advanced-industry companies, purchase records matter more, so they often ask the government to make the first purchase of a prototype rather than provide financial support.”
On why the government opts for non-repayable budget support instead of buying the products businesses want, he said, “It’s because of irresponsible criticism.” He added, “Even though advance purchases are necessary for industrial development, public officials buy only products that are ‘verified and have a track record of deliveries’ to avoid criticism through audits, media reports, and investigations asking why they bought such an imperfect product.”
He stressed, “But the people’s sovereignty government is prepared to take that risk and make advance purchases,” adding, “We are willing to put up with irresponsible pile-ons because the development of the country and advanced industries is more important than the risk of personal repercussions for public officials.”
Lee urged, “Even if the government buys imperfect prototypes such as AI robots instead of providing financial support to support advanced future industries, please explain to those around you that this is a hybrid policy combining loans and financial support.”
[email protected] Choi Jong-geun, Seong Seok-woo Reporter