KBS doubled down and refused to link their coverage of private conversations of Lee Sun Kyun and Ms. A to his death, this comes after key media figures held a press conference demanding an investigation into police and media outlets, signaling out KBS specifically for their reporting on Lee Sun Kyun.
On the 12th of January, KBS issued a statement addressing the backlash and stated, “To uncover the truth of the drug use allegations against Lee Sun Kyun reported on November 24th last year, we went through a multi-faceted process of investigation and verification. The related content was restrained as much as possible. The recorded conversation used in the report was not unrelated to the allegations, but rather supported the credibility of the related claims, so it was used very restrictively.”
KBS emphasized, “The timing of KBS’s report was about a month before the deceased’s death. It is unreasonable to connect it to the background of the death. The Cultural and Artistic Solidarity Association mentioned in their statement as if KBS reported on the same day (December 26th last year) as the day before the deceased’s death, but KBS did not make any related reports on the 9 o’clock news.”
The Cultural and Artistic Solidarity Association held a press conference at the Korea Press Center in Seoul on the same day. Director Bong Joon Ho stated, “The KBS exclusive report from November 24th last year, which included numerous investigation contents, needs to be thoroughly clarified in terms of the circumstances and purpose of its provision.” Yoon Jong-shin also demanded the deletion of the article, stating, “Can we be sure that KBS, which included the deceased’s voice in the report on private conversations unrelated to the allegations, was solely for the public’s right to know, risking the honor of public broadcasting?”
Lee Sun Kyun was found dead in a vehicle on the 27th of last month. It has only been two months since the drug scandal broke out. He was accused of smoking marijuana and taking ketamine multiple times at the residence of A, a 29-year-old female manager of an adult entertainment establishment in Seoul. He had filed a complaint with the police, claiming that he was extorted 350 million won ($315,000) by A and another person.
He received a negative result from the preliminary (hair) and secondary (armpit hair) precise tests conducted by the National Institute of Scientific Investigation. He completed his third police summons on October 28th and November 4th last year, followed by December 24th. On the 26th of last month, he submitted a request to the Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency’s Narcotics Crime Investigation Department for a “lie detector test,” also appealing his innocence. The police plan to conclude the investigation with “no indictment” due to his death.
Source: (A)
