Jo In Sung’s Marriage Rumor Resurface Amid Ongoing Cyber Defamation Lawsuit in Korea’s Entertainment Industry
A bizarre marriage rumor between Jo In Sung and Park Sun Young has once again stirred up the entertainment industry
As the lawsuit against cyber defamation continues, unceasing rumors are breeding mistrust and vigilance.
On September 15th, rumors began to spread primarily on social media. It claimed that actor Jo In Sung and former SBS announcer Park Sun Young were getting married. This sudden and surprising news quickly garnered attention. However, it was soon revealed to be untrue.
A representative of Jo In Sung told OSEN, “Currently, Jo In Sung is busy filming director Na Hong Jin’s movie ‘Hope’ overseas. The rumor about his relationship and marriage with Park Sun Young is entirely baseless.”
Park Sun Young’s side also asserted to OSEN, “The rumor about the marriage of Park Sun Young and Jo In Sung is completely false. Park Sun Young herself has confirmed this.”
In reality, Jo In Sung and Park Sun Young had no significant connection. Their only interaction was when Jo In Sung appeared as a guest on SBS radio’s Power FM ‘Cine Town’ in 2016, during Park Sun Young’s tenure at SBS. The unfounded marriage rumor took both parties by surprise and led to swift official statements.
Unsubstantiated rumors have been spreading in the entertainment industry for quite some time. What used to be an insider expression has now become widely known, thanks to the extensive reach of social media and YouTube. The emergence of cyber defamation via YouTube has only exacerbated the impact of malicious rumors.
In response, Starship Entertainment is currently pursuing legal action against the prominent cyber defamation YouTube channel “Sojang”. On September 14th, Starship Entertainment issued a stern statement demanding strict legal consequences for the channel.
The statement emphasized that the continuous dissemination of false information had seriously damaged their reputation and disrupted their operations, causing significant pain to artists and fans alike.
However, within a day, strange rumors regarding Jo In Sung and Park Sun Young surfaced once again, despite the efforts made to counter “fake news.” The entertainment industry is now grappling with the proliferation of baseless rumors across all platforms accessible to netizens and the general public.
The industry is pushing for stricter penalties. Current laws classify publicly spreading false information or revealing facts with the intent to publicly defame a specific individual through information and communication networks as cyber defamation.
Even when true information is disclosed, it can lead to penalties such as imprisonment for up to three years, fines of up to 20 million KRW, or suspension of qualifications for up to seven years and fines of up to 50 million KRW for disseminating false information.
Recent comparisons suggest that these penalties may appear lenient, especially considering the revenue generated through advertising by YouTube channels and social media, in contrast to the consequences they entail.
In response to this issue, associations within the entertainment industry, such as the Korean Management Association and the Korean Entertainment Producers Association, have condemned the propagation of fake news. They criticized it as “malicious behavior exploiting anonymity to generate controversy and maximize personal gains at the expense of others’ suffering.”
Above all, they highlighted that such actions not only harm the artists and their agencies but also severely tarnish the image of the entire Korean pop culture and arts industry.
Source: Daum
