KBS Responses To Criticism Over Their Disclosure Of Lee Sun-kyun’s Private Call With Hostess Bar Head

KBS addressed the public’s criticism over the broadcast of KBS2’s “TV Criticism Viewers’ Desk”  about drug suspicions on December 10th, 2023.

Earlier, KBS exclusively reported the phone conversation between the late actor Lee Sun-kyun and the head of an entertainment establishment involved in his drug case on November 24th. After the broadcast, many people disagreed with KBS reporting a private conversation unrelated to the actor’s drug allegations and filed a complaint with the Korea Communications Standards Commission.

Media & Public Relations Professor Kim Hyung-il from Far East University said, “There is still no result even after two months of investigation. KBS News also tried to find out the truth. It is true that viewers are paying keen attention to the case because it involves celebrities. However, they should not make speculative reports based on unconfirmed statements from a suspect whose credibility has not been verified, especially when no director evidence to prove the drug allegations has been found. Viewers’ rights to know information is important, but the broadcaster needs to be cautious to prevent unfair harm to the parties involved when reporting news.”

In this regard, Park Hee-bong, Head of the Social Affairs Department of KBS’s News Headquarters, explained, “The issue of drug abuse is a significant crime that has a huge impact on the public health and social order. Since it’s a matter of great social interest due to the involvement of a well-known celebrity, we judged that the media needed to find out the details of the matter”.

He continued, “The report covered the positions and objections of all parties involved, the police, the celebrity, etc. as balanced as possible. We acknowledged the confusion caused by the police investigation and faithfully included the celebrity’s counterarguments. However, as viewers pointed out the problem, we will make efforts to reflect such feedback in our future reports and production in order to harmonize various aspects, such as viewers’ rights to know information, the human rights of the suspect, and policy implications”.

Meanwhile, Lee Sun-kyun was found dead in his card at a park in Jongno-gu, Seoul on December 27th in the middle of his ongoing drug investigation. 

Source: Nate