'Thesis Plagiarism Allegation' Seol Min-seok "I Bow My Head and Apologize... I Will Withdraw from All Broadcasts"

Suspected of Master's Thesis Plagiarism on the 29th
Plagiarism Verification Site Analysis Shows 52% Plagiarism Rate
Seol Min-seok: "I Approached It with a Complacent Attitude as an Educator"

History lecturer Seol Min-seok / Photo by YouTube capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] History lecturer Seol Minseok, who has been accused of plagiarism in his master's thesis, apologized, saying, "I bow my head and sincerely apologize."

On the afternoon of the 29th, Seol Minseok wrote on his Facebook, "I am sorry for causing discomfort and concern to many people due to the plagiarism scandal of my master's thesis reported today," expressing his apology.

He continued, "I admit that I was negligent in my research while writing the thesis and was careless in citing and footnoting other papers during the referencing process," explaining, "It is my fault without any excuse."

He added, "As an educator and a person studying history, I approached this with a complacent attitude," and lamented, "I feel devastated for not living up to the excessive expectations and trust that were placed on me."

Seol Minseok announced that he will step down from all currently appearing broadcasts. He said, "I deeply feel responsible and will withdraw from all broadcasts I am currently on," and "I will humbly learn and study more."

On the same day, entertainment media 'Dispatch' reported that Seol Minseok's master's thesis submitted to Yonsei University Graduate School of Education in 2010, titled 'A Study on Ideological Controversies in the Description of Modern and Contemporary Korean History Textbooks,' showed a high plagiarism rate.

History lecturer Seol Min-seok. The photo is not related to any specific expression in the article. / Photo by tvN broadcast capture

According to an analysis by the plagiarism detection site 'Copykiller,' the thesis showed a plagiarism rate of 52%. In particular, out of the total 747 sentences in the master's thesis, 187 sentences recorded a 100% plagiarism rate.

Meanwhile, Seol Minseok was also embroiled in a so-called 'historical distortion controversy' for delivering incorrect information during a recent broadcast. On the 19th, he appeared on the tvN educational program 'Seol Minseok's Naked History' to explain Egyptian history, which led Gwak Minsu, director of the Korean Egyptology Research Institute, to criticize, "There are too many factual inaccuracies."

On the 20th, Director Gwak wrote on his Facebook, "There are so many factual errors that it is difficult to mention them one by one, and even the maps are all wrong," adding, "It seems that the content I advised on was not well reflected, so I suggest not watching it."

As the controversy grew, Seol Minseok bowed his head on his YouTube channel on the 22nd, saying, "This happened because I was lacking and insufficient," and "I will take this as a whip to do better and show you a more sincere and diligent preparation."

Meanwhile, Seol Minseok has been active as a history lecturer on EBSi since 2010. He has also become well-known to the public by appearing on tvN's 'Seol Minseok's Naked History' and MBC's entertainment program 'Those Who Cross the Line.'

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.