In a situation where Democratic Party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung entered the full-scale election campaign, critics are criticizing him for undermining the fairness of the press, stating that he actually hired two incumbent broadcasters as spokesmen as spokespersons.
The National Human Resources Committee (Chairman Won Hye-young, General Manager Baek Hye-ryun) directly under Candidate Jae-myung Lee announced on the 18th that it would recruit reporter Lee Jeong-heon, a major anchor for the morning news of JTBC, and anchor Ahn Gwi-ryeong, who had hosted YTN’s ‘Evening with the News’, as national talents.
Reporter Lee Jung-heon was born in Jeonju in 1971 and worked as a reporter for Gwangju MBC and as a reporter for JTV Jeonju Broadcasting Company. As the main anchor, he has been broadcasting live news. The news was held until the 7th, and it is known that the resignation was recently accepted after the resignation was submitted on the 10th.
Candidate Jae-myung Lee said, “With excellent delivery power and stable news, he has been trusted by viewers. According to the press release released by the election committee on the same day, this anchor said, “As a journalist, I will play a role in conveying the sincerity of candidate Lee Jae-myung, just as he has won the trust of viewers and readers with his refined and elegant words and writing.”
Anchor Ahn Gwi-ryeong was born in Gyeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do in 1989. After working as an announcer for KBC Gwangju, he has worked as an anchor for the YTN news program ‘Evening with Byun Sang-wook’s News (hereafter New Here)’ since 2016. Candidate Captain Lee said, “It is evaluated that the media faithfully performed its role of criticizing and monitoring power with sharp analysis and sharp reporting during ‘New Person’.” Anchor Ahn also aired ‘You’re New’ until the 7th. According to the data of the election committee, anchor Ahn said, “As a young man in his 30s who used to be a non-regular anchor, I will do my best to solve the youth problem, improve the treatment of irregular workers, and reform broadcasting.”
Both anchors will join Lee Jae-myung as a spokesperson for the presidential election committee, and anchor Lee Jung-hyeon plans to serve as the head of the media center center, and anchor Ahn Gwi-ryeong as the deputy head of the center, the committee said.
It is pointed out that the media industry is engaging in a behavior of collusion with the recommendation of ‘polyanalyst’ once again. Since the inauguration of the Moon Jae-in government, there has been a continuous controversy over the direct access of journalists to the Blue House, including Yoon Do-han, the chief of public communication at the Blue House, and Kang Min-seok, spokesman for the Blue House. Last year, there was controversy over Shin Yeon-soo, editorial member of the Dong-A Ilbo, and Lee Nak-yeon’s direct trip to the Democratic Party’s representative office at the time.
Again, less than a week after resigning without going through the minimum deliberation period, he decided to become the spokesperson for a powerful presidential candidate for a specific party. The last broadcast of anchor Lee Jung-heon was on the 7th. In a call with Media Today on the evening of the 17th, the head of the JoongAng Ilbo’s communication team said, “I know that it has been repaired because I submitted my resignation last week.” Team leader Lee said he did not know whether he informed the company about his actions as a spokesperson for the previous captain.
Kim Dong-hoon, president of the Korea Journalists Association, said in a phone call with Media Today that evening, “If you go to politics without a certain grace period, you are undermining their own fairness as journalists who worked for objective, neutral and fair reporting.” I’ve seen it, and after knowing it, it can be misunderstood that these people were on a show that favored one faction.”
Chairman Kim said, “In that respect, journalists should have a minimum grace period.” Regarding the Democratic Party, which recruited two anchors, he said, “I criticized former lawmaker Min Kyung-wook for meeting in the morning and going to the Blue House in the afternoon while serving at KBS. Aren’t the Democrats the same introvert?” he asked. Chairman Kim pointed out, “It is inappropriate behavior and shock.”
In response, anchor Lee Jung-heon said, ‘Did you get a proposal from the party while you were in office, or did you volunteer at your own will?’, ‘I was criticized for collusion of opinions by an incumbent journalist acting as a spokesperson for the presidential candidate, and especially the journalist who was the main anchor went to politics. To the question of how he would view the news for fear that he was trying to betray viewers’ trust in a fair news process and proceed in favor of a specific faction, he did not answer any other than “Please refer to the official press release.”
Anchor Ahn Gwi-ryeong tried to make phone calls several times on the evening of the 17th, and left a text message and SNS messenger query containing the above concerns, but was not connected or received a response.
Lee Jae-myung, a representative of the presidential election committee, explained in a phone call with Media Today that evening, “There are criticisms like this every time we recruit journalists, but it is different from the same criteria as the spokesperson of the Blue House, because it is the participation of the election committee rather than carrying out public office right away.”
In response to the question, ‘The current power is the Blue House, and the preliminary power is the presidential candidate’s election campaign, and the will to power is particularly strong,’ he said, “We have different viewpoints, whether in the media or in the legal world.” He said, “The captain doesn’t give any guarantees, and we only see it as a captain, not a public office,” he said. When asked what is the reason for hiring incumbent journalists despite such criticism, the official said, “The communication skills of journalists who act as a bridge with the public are recognized and evaluated for having specialized expertise.” ), there are always problems.”
The following is the profile of anchor Lee Jeong-heon and Ahn Gwi-ryeong, who were recruited as spokespersons for the new presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung.
Lee Jung-heon (50 years old)
• Born in Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do in 1971
• Graduated from Sogang University, Department of English
• 2017~2022 JTBC News Morning & Main Anchor
• 2014~2017 JoongAng Ilbo-JTBC Tokyo Correspondent
• 2013~2014 Deputy Director, International Department, JoongAng Ilbo
• 2011~2013 JTBC reporter
• 1997~2011 JTV Jeonju Broadcasting reporter
• 1994~1997 Gwangju MBC reporter
Ahn Gwi-ryeong (age 32)
• Born in Gyeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do in 1989
• Graduated from Ewha Womans University, Department of Journalism and Information
• 2016~2022 YTN anchor (evening with news, news departure, etc.)
• 2015~2016 KBC Gwangju Broadcasting Announcer (8 News, Live Broadcast Today, etc.)
