Tak Hyun-min on 'Showtong' Criticism Article: "Focus on More Meaningful Matters Than Me"

Tak Hyun-min, Protocol Secretary at the Blue House.
Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] Tak Hyun-min, the Protocol Secretary at the Blue House, criticized an article that labeled the current Blue House protocol style as "show communication" (showy communication), saying, "I hope they focus on more meaningful work."

Earlier, Lee Kang-rae, a former senior administrative officer in the Protocol Office during the Lee Myung-bak administration, pointed out in a Chosun Ilbo interview on the 21st, "When looking at Secretary Tak's communication, the president is always the main character. The word 'show communication' never fails to appear at every event."

On the same day, Secretary Tak shared a screenshot of the interview article on his Facebook, stating, "Chosun Ilbo can lose me now. In reality, I am nothing special."

Meanwhile, Secretary Tak had previously strongly opposed a media report that criticized the Blue House for "using scientists as a backdrop" during the Nuri rocket launch, calling it a "devilish article."

Last month, a media outlet reported that after the Nuri rocket launch, during President Moon Jae-in's public message, "scientists responsible for the Nuri rocket launch were used as a backdrop," quoting a related official, and criticized the event as a political event rather than a historic moment.

In response, Secretary Tak criticized, "The fact that the reporter who wrote the article was not even present at the scene shows how poor this article is."

Secretary Tak emphasized, "I don't know if the reporter had the freedom to imagine endlessly because they weren't there, or if it was written with an intention from the start, but having officials present during the president's public message is a protocol that contains special consideration."

He said, "Standing together with the president is a message in itself, and the president rarely stands with anyone," adding, "This is a common protocol format among world leaders and speakers."

Regarding a part of the article that mentioned "busy setting up the stage for broadcast coverage," he rebutted, "Isn't it natural to prepare for a historic scene and message?" and added, "It is the duty of the event organizers to broadcast every scene live to the public."

He also added, "More than a hundred researchers were present at the president's message announcement site, shaking hands with the president, receiving encouragement, and sharing their regrets."

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